Linda, my better half, and I took a weekend off back in January for a little relaxation and sightseeing in and around Amritsar in the Punjab. Getting there from the Capital was a cinch, as the Shatabdi Express leaves New Delhi Railway Station at 07:20 hrs and arrives at 13:25 hrs. The early afternoon arrival allowed us time to check into our spa and catch a few winks (a catnap) before hopping into a car for a 35-km drive to the town of Attari to take in the popular sunset border ceremony.

Attari was once called Wagah, which is a town that was bisected by the controversial Radcliffe Line in 1947 when India was partitioned. It lies on the Grand Trunk Road about half way between Amritsar in India and Lahore in Pakistan. The portion of the town on the Pakistani side of the border retained the name of Wagah, while the Indian portion was changed to the name of Attari in 2007. It is here where every night at a few minutes before sunset, the bleachers on both sides of the border come alive as high-spirited Indians and Pakistanis cheer on their respective soldiers as they carryout a display of patriotism including precision marching and foot stomping, before lowering the two flags in unison.

Loudspeakers on each side of the border blare out patriotic slogans enticing the spectators to respond. The pro-India slogans are ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’ (Glory to goddess India) and ‘Hindustan Zindabad’ (Long live India); the Pakistani slogans are of similar nature. On the night that we were there, the spectators on the Indian side outnumbered those on the Pakistani side by about two to one. The border ceremony is quite moving and therefore well-worth taking the time to experience; for those who would like a sneak preview, it can be found on YouTube, but videos are no substitute for experiencing the real thing.1

While there are several attractions in or around Amritsar, the ones that we most wanted to see were the border ceremony and the Golden Temple. Having cheered on the Indian side at the former, we visited the Golden Temple the following morning — a Sunday. Our driver dropped us off as close as he was allowed to go — a point about half a kilometre from the complex where we followed the crowd through a gauntlet of souvenir shops and hawkers selling all sorts of items including orange head bandanas. Visitors are required to cover their heads while in the inner complex and bandanas are not for sale inside; therefore one is advised to purchase one from a vendor along the approaches. If you’re a foreigner they’ll start the bargaining at fifty rupees; I countered with five and we closed at ten rupees.

While approaching the temple complex we encountered the entrance to Jallianwala Bagh (garden,) the site where on 13 April 1919, British Indian Army soldiers under the command of Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer (often called the Butcher of Amritsar) mowed down approximately 1000 unarmed civilians in what is now referred to as the Amritsar massacre. With the Golden Temple complex in our sites and minds, we gave Jallianwala Bagh a pass.

The Golden Temple, or Harmandir Sahib, is the most significant place of worship of Sikhs and one of the oldest Sikh gurdwaras. It was established by Guru Ram Das, the fourth guru of the Sikhs. When one enters the inner complex after depositing his footwear (socks included) in storage and donning a head bandana, he encounters the glimmering Harmandir Sahib in the centre of an artificial lake surrounded by a white complex with watch towers, museums, food places and all kinds of religious establishments such as the Baba Deep Singh Shrine. Attempting to describe the Golden Temple complex and especially the centrepiece (Harmadir Sahib) in a few words would be like attempting to describe the taste of chocolate. View a multitude of photos like the one we took (left page) on Google images by entering the exact phrase “Harmandir Sahib”. Wikipedia also provides a detailed description.