northern exposure

as i was headed on a northward train bound for the capital i realized a week ago i had been lying on a beach with sand in my toes. my sunburn was still peeling when i reached delhi and its cold winds. the forecasted highs in 60s turned out to be quite deceptive - as that temperature lasts only for about two hours a day when the sun meekly tries peek out from behind the solid curtain of clouds.

i spent the first few days with my good friend reetika's family - she arrived two days later - enjoying home-cooked food and walking around the neighborhood, including the fancy nearby mall, which was all decked out for christmas. i must say the cold weather made it feel a little more festive.

then my friends arrived and we left for haryana - but of course not without some family input on driving, weather and fog. eventually we were on the road and, lo and behold, the fog was as bad as we had heard. for the last 30 kilometers our speed was probably little better than a determined cow. but we were rewarded with chai and duty free goodies upon our arrival at jimmy's house.

a dewy karnal morning

the next day or two were spent enjoying the sights of the countryside in karnal, getting to know jimmy's family (in town from the US and australia) and, in my case, taking pictures of dewdrops on the roof.

then that night we, and all the guests, were treated to a party. in preparation the women all got henna from the mendhiwalla (which i stupidly didn't take a picture of) and some of us finally got our hair properly done after months of tangles and gel! we got all gussied up and come outside to an awesome setup. jimmy's front yard was transformed - surrounded by tents of white and pinks, with hanging lights, covered tables, chaffing dishes waiting with catered deliciousness, a bar, a dance floor/DJ and a full staff passing out appetizers. these guys don't mess around. and, best of all, since it was a punjabi affair, there was dancing (and bhangra, natch) within the first 20 minutes. even baby zara (jimmy's newest niece, with the absolute cutest cheeks i've ever seen) made and brief appearance on the floor. it was pretty perfect.

but then it was on to amritsar! and my first time in the punjab. we crammed our stuff into the back of a moderate-sized indian car (read: very small by american car standards) and jammed five of us into it. i've said it before, and i'll say it again. that backseat was not meant to be shared by three grown adults. it was a rather painful car ride - imagine being on a plane in the middle seat with no armrests, no ability to get up and walk through the aisles, and no entertainment but old hindi songs (which i generally like, but still). for eight hours. that was about the size of it.

and this was one of the nicer ones!

but we were rewarded with our arrival in amritsar and the softest bed i have slept on in months! the next day was a full day of amritsar - which mean golden temple, wagah border and lots of food. it also happened to be christmas! in india, that apparently amounts to cheesy christmas wares - including uber-creepy santa masks that people walk by wearing/selling - and cruising around in the street all night honking and yelling. but i digress.

golden water

our first stop was the golden temple (officially, harmandir sahib), the holiest site for sikhs and an incredible sight to behold. definitely one of those 'i can't believe i'm here' moments. the gurdwara draws religious pilgrims, of course, but also welcomes anyone - provided your head is covered and your feet are washed. once inside you can see all sorts of families, visitors and faithful taking a dip in the holy water or circumambulating in approach to the inner temple. we took our time enjoying the various views of the gold reflecting on the shimmering water and the white marble tiles. because of intense sunday crowds we made our offerings at a smaller shrine and received our (delicious!) prasad. you can even go back for seconds. now that's a good temple. in seriousness though, it was a pretty incredible experience and one of the most spiritual places i've gone in a very spiritual country.

just look at it glisten

having experienced the quintessential amritsar attraction, it was on to the number 2 thing to do in amritsar: EAT. amritsar has the self-proclaimed 'best food in the world', which apparently means the oiliest. we were lucky to have jimmy, a seasoned amritsar visitor, to hit all the highlights of punjabi cuisine in the city, including the famous kesar da dhaba, down a series of alleys i'm sure i never would have discovered. we had a parade of foods - greasy puffed up puri or thick tasty kulcha, along with various vegetables and paneer that all came with a thin layer of desi ghee floating on top. even the heartiest of eaters among us were thoroughly stuffed after each meal. incredible food, but i don't recommend eating it every day. unless, of course, you're a robust punjabi farmer who works his fields every day. sort of the indian version of a ploughman's lunch.

sun setting on india and pakistan

our next stop was onward to the wagah border, the india-pakistan border, (so close to lahore - only 26 km! - i want to gooo) which i have heard is an experience. we arrived just before the flag lowering ceremony at sunset. my friend and i were ushered through security lines and then sent to sit in the ladies section (our less fortunate male counterparts were relegated to stay outside as seating was full - or so we thought). it was packed and the crowds were excited. it was quite a patriotic display, with flags waving and chanting (long live india, that sort of thing) that i imagine is matched only at cricket matches. one man in a white track suit ran along the road rousing the crowd and inciting cheers. in the midst of this we noticed three guys running across the road to claim some spots on the road down front. yes, it was our friends. evidently they used some bulky SLRs and college IDs to convince the border police they were making a documentary for an american university (did you get permission? oh yes yes). no, i don't know how they would make a documentary with still pictures, either. stop motion animation? at any rate they got in and of course the story has now become requisite in retellings of our trip to amritsar. the border scene looked quite picturesque - the flags and crowd in that golden dusky light - but after a few guards shouting and high-kicking and the simultaneous flag-lowering, it was all over.

reminders

after a small christmas celebration that night (mini tree, santa hats and fruit cake - all available here) we awoke for our final morning in town. we followed a hearty breakfast (naturally) with a trip to jallianwala bagh. the site memorializes the victims of one of the sadder chapters in india's history - a massacre of innocents by british general dyer. 700 was the official death count but other estimates place it at over double that. most moving were the bullet holes in the wall that people tried to scale to escape.

after a quick stop shopping for shoes (which was remarkably quick considering the shoppers included women) and some streetside sweet potatoes (with lemon and spices, of course) we made our way back on the road. another long ride, made bearable only by reetika's ipad and a stop for chai and pakoras at a dhaba.

lemon parathas.. who knew?

eventually we made it back to delhi, where i spent the next few days playing with reetika's nephews, eating, museum-hopping, seeing friends, and (my favorite thing to do in delhi!) shopping. some highlights: sampling different types of parathas at paratha wali gully in chandni chowk, trying the unique changezi chicken, snacking on aloo chaat and getting piping hot momos wherever i could find them. new years was celebrated as it should be, with good friends and good food. (although we missed the midnight countdown..oops) the rooftop bonfire was an added bonus. and at janpath i scored some great kurtas and beautiful scarves at excellent prices (native-approved) and bolstered my confidence in my haggling abilities.

it was a great trip - and wonderful seeing old friends (does two years an old friend make? i say yes) but before i knew it i was speeding back to mumbai in my sleeper train berth. warm weather (goodbye, socks!) and metered autos (god bless those) welcomed me back to bombay, which i'm glad to enjoy. at least until the next trip.