hectic hanoi

welcome to hanoi and the lake

another flight (apparently ground transportation in most place is slow/unreliable at best) and we found ourselves in yet another country. from hanoi we got our new currency, booked a taxi and were on our way toward the old city. it was evening, the sun was down and lights were just coming on throughout the city. my first impression was that most of the buildings were quite narrow and about 3-5 stories. our hotel was no exception. just a stone's throw from the lake in the old town, the location was ideal and the staff couldn't be friendlier. (also, only time i've ever seen complimentary items - besides water - in a minibar. oxymoron?)

we stepped out to get some dinner, anxious for vietnamese cuisine. we figured we'd save pho for lunch the following day and instead tried to find some other local specialties. that we did - just around the corner we found a place that had a few of the dishes we'd been hoping to try. bun cha and bun bo nam bo (beef/pork respectively with noodles), both were delicious and left us excited about upcoming days of vietnamese food.

yellow yellow

the next morning we set out to see the city, stopping first, luckily, at the water puppet theater to buy tickets. those things get snapped up fast! we had to opt for the 9.30 show and we barely even got tickets for that. we continued on, walking towards the center of the old town, passing all kinds of shops bursting with shoes, backpacks and stationery. looking up, we'd generally see a tangle of wires, sometimes with birdcages hanging from them. sidewalks that were covered with little food stalls (all with tiny plastic tables and chairs - think playskool size) and motorbikes! motorbikes are everywhere. they seem to be buzzing all over the city, and the drivers are particularly aggressive. it almost seems as though they're trying to run you down. we continued walking, along the busy streets past slightly crumbling yellow buildings (i swear, they were all yellow) with rusting iron terraces or peeling green shutters.

quintessential lunch

we made it to the opera house - also yellow - and stopped along the way at a park with a grimy fountain where no fewer than six brides were having their wedding portraits taken. we wondered at this and grimaced as we saw the white dresses dragging onto the street. we continued on, walking in search of pho. we walked farther than expected, since my mom was hoping for a place that didn't have tiny tables. we eventually found one, luckily just before the lunch hour started wrapping up. quite literally - the tables and chairs were stacked and put away just after we left. the pho, of course, was delicious but we missed the chilli sauce we usually get with it the states.

from there we hopped a taxi to the ho chi minh mausoleum. man. i'm not sure i've ever seen such an ugly monument. it's not even worth including a picture of - google it if you must. we just missed its opening hours, though i'm not sure i really want to see the man's remains anyway. from there we.. well, we got lost for a while. but eventually we found our way to the one-pillar pagoda. it was rather small - sort of like a treehouse - but impressive in that it was built in the mid-11th century. today it looks rather unremarkable, a stocky pillar coming out of a smallish koi pond surrounded by tourists. from there we went towards the temple of literature. but not before being verbally assaulted by a disgruntled and very vulgar rickshaw driver. lovely. that, combined with the long walk around 3/4 of the temple of literature's giant walls left us rather cranky. i'm not sure what i had expected, but this wasn't quite it. it was very.. chinese. to be expected, since they built it. everything was very red and gold. by the time we had made it through we were ready for a rest. another taxi back to the hotel and it was naptime. (or in my case, watch bad tv movies until dinnertime.)

around 7 we ventured out again, this time in search of a fish. we walked down a few streets and made it to the place. hard to miss, since it had no fewer than three neon signs boasting its name: cha ca la vong (also the name of the fish). this particular one has apparently appeared on lists of foods to eat before you die. i suppose because it's only available in a particular region of vietnam. despite its fame the place was rather quiet downstairs and the owner and other employees all seemed to pounce on us. we literally had ingredients being delivered to our table before we had finished making our drink orders (side note: passion fruit smoothie, delicious). the preparation of the fish contributes the experience - various herbs and oils are thrown into a pan and then the fish is cooked right at your table. it was tough to get a decent picture with all the steam pouring up. the fish itself was pretty good. could i have happily died without eating it? probably. but still a worthwhile experience.

fire and water

from there we walked to the water puppet theater. once inside we realized why the shows fill up so quickly. the place is tiny! and cramped. i can't imagine how anyone taller would have managed - and i'm only 5'5". the show itself was quite good. a nice mix of traditional music (the musicians and singers were on stage to the left of the water) and skits that revealed a bit about aspects of life in rural vietnam - fishing, water buffalo, rice paddies. we never did quite figure out the logistics of the puppeteering.. sometimes the puppets stayed close to the curtain at back, but other times they came out quite far into the water... still not sure where the puppeteers were. they ended, naturally, with a dragon and fire to make it a big finish.

it was a long day in hanoi.. one that seemed all the more hectic because of motorbikes constantly whipping by, giant intersections with difficult traffic patterns, and sidewalks filled with all sorts of obstacles - some stationary, others less so.

lovely little laos

from chiang mai our next destination was laos, the one that started it all, so to speak. that is to say, when i began planning this trip i had envisioned an exploration of laos itself. that somehow turned into a whirlwind trip to four countries in two weeks. hmm. point being, i was particularly excited to see what laos had to offer.

we arrived in luang prabang, what we have since been told is the nicest (presumably nicest tourist-frequented) town in laos. driving along the tiny road to our hotel we had quaint dark-roofed architecture to our left and the mekong down below on our right. when we stopped at our hotel the sun was just going down so we stopped to admire the light reflecting on the water in the adirondack chairs (in sand - 'the only beach in luang prabang!') across the street as we enjoyed the croissants we brought from c.m. a wonderful introduction to the city, i must say.

sundown at the market

we checked into our hotel - like all the others there, entirely paneled dark wood, one of the things that makes luang prabang somewhat reminiscent of a swiss chalet town - and headed out into the dusky evening. we walked up to the main street, running parallel to ours and the river. here the night market was just getting started. i must say, i really like this night market tradition they've got going here. we walked through the rows, tarps lit with big bulbs above blankets laden with all sorts of crafts - most covered with elephants. slippers, coin purses, t-shirts, keychains. you name it. if it had a surface of more than two inches, there was probably an elephant on it. but hey, who doesn't love elephants? and laos is named for them, after all. (literally: land of a million elephants. sadly, not so anymore.) we browsed as we wound our way through the tented street and, a few jewelry purchases later, finally made our way to the end. and dinner! the food was distinctly less flavorful than in laos, but the beer lao was cold and sitting down felt good. our crêpe afterwards was similarly underwhelming. but, hey, when's the last time i had a crêpe?

the next day we started out fairly early after a nice night's sleep and a vaguely traditional lao breakfast at the hotel. we walked down along the river to set up a boat trip for later. some haggling took place but my mom reminded me that the lao (according to the almighty guidebook) are typically gentle people who like to save face, and aggressive bargaining is not the way to go. (i should say the guidebook seems to be right about this one.) i let go of my indian side and agreed on a boat for probably a little more than i thought we should have. but, hey, i'm not footing the bill, anyway, right?

roofs like rolling waves

that settled, we continued on, checking out temples and cool architecture (the french center was very quaint) as we went along. here, again, there were no shortage of temples. but as compared to thailand there seemed to be less emphasis on the gold and more subtle decoration, which i appreciated. the temple in the center of town, though, was entirely red and gold inside. others had lovely paintings - some with very nice details. and of course to make the picture complete there were the orange-clad monks who seemed to be all over town. we followed our wandering with a lunch along the river - half french-inspired (baguette sandwich) and half lao (red curry with buffalo meat, much more flavorful this time!) before our scheduled boat ride.

said view.

we made our way onto the long narrow boat (one row of seats on each side) and made our way down the mekong. i like being so low to the water - it's lovely to be able to reach down and splash if you get the urge. we knew this boat ride would likely be better for the ride itself than the destination - the underwhelming pak ou cave. so we enjoyed the scenery - small green hills, fishermen in pointed sampan hats, and eventually mountains rising up out of the water. after a quick stop at 'whisky village' (very much like the 'hill tribe village' visit, but with local whisky also) we arrived at the cave. the gangplank that led to shore seemed to be made of giant old plastic gasoline containers that tessellated perfectly, which i thought was very clever. the cave itself was little more than a few small chambers filled with thousands of buddha statuettes of varying sizes. we explored it sufficiently in about 10 minutes, the biggest selling point being the silhouetted view of the mountains across the river (see left). the ride back was more of the same, a low lazy float along the river. once we got back it was another meal along the river - fish from the mekong this time - and watching the sun set.

glowing green fields

the next day we did more of the same in a lot of ways.. different yet semi-traditional breakfast at the hotel (brown noodles with fried eggs?), meandering around different parts of the city, including the morning market - full of things like black chickens' feet, giant hacked-up fish, and small birds in bamboo cages (more on that later). we made our way up to the temple atop phou si hill - all 328 steps. we stopped along the way at a charming little wat (temple) with some beautiful paintings inside. then trudged on. we wound our way up the criss-crossing steps and made it to the top with little trouble. we saw more caged birds for sale up there - presumably to be let free atop the hill. sort of poetic, i suppose. the view from there was pretty nice - for once we could see both the khan and the mekong (you didn't even know there were two rivers, did you?). after the trek down, we had another pretty delicious curry lunch and then headed toward kwang-si, the famed waterfall. the ride itself was quite lovely (albeit slightly bumpy in our songtheaw with the not-quite-wide-enough benches), passing stepped green fields and rice paddies.

really does it no justice at all

about thirty minutes later we arrived at the waterfall. well, actually we arrived at the little area of food stands and shops just before the waterfall trail. the walk was quite short, punctuated only by a stop through the free the bears reserve. the bears looked pretty comfy, lounging in hammocks and whatnot. a quick look and then onward to the waterfall. it was, in a word, unbelievable! the water was a perfect bluish green - i'm not sure any picture will do it justice. once i had scampered all around on the rocks, in the water, on the bridge, behind the trees taking pictures i figured i should get in. the water wasn't quite warm, but it wasn't too cold either. once you got used to it you could just completely enjoy the sensation of swimming under a waterfall - although this proved difficult since the water is essentially trying to push you away with a constant barrage of gallons and gallons of water. on one of the upper plateaus there was a rope from which you could swing and jump into the water. i worked up my nerve and finally went up on the tree to do it. what i did was less of a swing and jump, really more of a fall and flop. still, i did it. it probably wouldn't have been so bad if there hadn't been dozens of people standing around watching. don't they have better things to do? like, you know, swim under waterfalls? well that's what i did anyway. stick with what you know, right?

boats at sundown

i grudgingly removed myself from the beautiful water, dried off as best i could without a towel, and made my way back onto the trail. another sunny, sleepy ride and we were back in luang prabang just in time to watch the sun go down over the many boats in the river. the river seems to really define the city well - monks and people from various islands cross it every day and long boats take people up and down the mighty mekong. after taking that in, all that was left was another dinner and a stroll through the night market (i bought a fun paper lantern/lamp! and possibly some more jewelry..) before hitting the hay.

river of orange

we were up early the next morning - even before the sun - to catch the daily monks' alms walk. we were confused as to where exactly this event took place but we ambled somewhere in the semi-darkness until we reached the spot where most tourists seemed to be gathered. a few people were milling around, some had chairs. there was even a makeshift coffee stand. we waited in for some sort of order to arise and eventually we saw the monks approach, easily visible in their distinctive bright orange robes. the walk was simple but still an interesting sight - all the monks shuffling forward, accepting their small offering of rice from each person assembled, dropping it into their pots. one elderly couple looked particularly sweet as they doled out the portion to each successive brother. and then just as the light was almost total, the walk ended and the monks scattered into the town, each to their respective temple, i suppose.

just elephants walking through a river

we headed back to the hotel for a quick breakfast before our next excursion: the elephant village. (side note: not that this is always a good measure, but on tripadvisor it's the #1 thing to do in laos. not this city. all of laos.) it ended up being one of our favorite parts of the trip. i suppose we booked it initially because we hadn't felt satisfied with our last elephant ride. besides, you can't come to the land of a million elephants without at least seeing one, right? another bumpy ride and we found ourselves in elephant country. it was a lovely camp, and just from the way it's set up you can tell they have the elephant's interest at heart. our half-day adventure started with an elephant ride, naturally. we were on a little saddle, as before, but this one was bamboo instead of metal. our mahout led him to the water, down a narrow slope that this giant creature somehow navigated. we waded through the river and came to a small embankment. there the mahout gestured, asking if i wanted to switch and ride on his shoulder. let me think about that.. um, YES! i was so excited; it was exactly what i had been hoping for. it took a little while to get used to; if you don't sway your body with his you could easily topple off. but i got the hang of it. it even seemed like he was wrapping his big floppy ears around my legs to keep them in place. i patted his hairy head in return. i assumed before we reached the end of the rocks the mahout and i would switch back. but the elephant had other plans. he kept on trucking - through the water, up a small hill and up to some delicious sugar cane. i'm happy to say i managed to stay on top throughout and had a fantastic time doing so.

after that we had a chance to feed the elephants - we bought a bunch of bananas and had a grand time feeding him whole ones that he would curl up into his trunk and devour. then we fed ourselves - a lunch provided by the village. then it was a pleasant boat ride to a place that i'm sure is very beautiful when there is a waterfall but in the dry season, less so. and then back to luang prabang where we wandered to the other side of the river and got some chocolate croissants for the road.

i'm not sure i've ever said this before, but i think we did luang prabang about perfectly. though it's a small town we spread our visit over several days so we could take our time, breaking up days of temple-visiting with little jaunts out of the area. altogether a completely lovely visit. no complaints at all!

my thai-land

once again we found ourselves at the bombay airport (i think that makes 4 times in 5 days or something obscene) and - after being mistakenly dropped at the domestic terminal - were on our way to bangkok. in less than five hours we were in bangkok. i have to admit, it was a little weird to be out of india. the language of course i knew nothing of (but i will say the alphabet looked something like malayalam or tamil). at first it was a little stressful leaving the airport with no idea how the transportation works, how much something should cost, etc. etc. but once i realized i was just a tourist and there was no expectation (from myself, more than anything) to know any of these things i relaxed and just braced myself to get somewhat ripped off. something that's always hard for me to accept.

we got in a thai version of an auto rickshaw (each country seems to have its own) - he took us a bit farther then realized he either didn't know where we were going or for some reason no longer wanted to take us there. he dropped us off and fortunately we were able to find a nice taxi driver who even went by the meter.

we arrived at our hotel which was perfectly situated in the old part of town along the river and, as it turned out, had an unbeatable view of wat arun, the temple across the water. the hotel - sorry, residence - has only a few rooms and ours was just lovely. a living area and bathroom with a loft bedroom area above. the shape of the space and the look of the stairs (and, i suppose, the presence of water) made it seem somehow boat-like and fun. we briefly enjoyed our surroundings and then rushed out to find some food. it was now past 2pm and the cookies we'd had on our 6 am flight were a distant memory.

fortunately on the corner of our little street was an unassuming outdoor eatery of plastic tables and chairs (this seems to be a wide trend among southeast asia). we sat down and had two bowls of delicious noodles/rice with pork and a few sodas. i made note of the accoutrements on the table - we had a set of various spices, vinegar and chilis - sort of like the typical indian lemon, onion and pickle combo. we devoured everything in front of us and paid our bill (about $3) and were on our way fully satisfied.

from there it was a short walk to one of the ports. along the way we saw all manners of dried seafood, fruits, nuts. at one point i took a picture of a basket of shrimp and was immediately accosted by the shopkeeper and unwittingly dragged into a 10-minute conversation in which he showed me every photo he had of the members of his family and all the countries he'd visited (which was quite impressive). he was nice, but it was still very odd, and ended with him giving us an envelope and enlisting us to send him something from america. lesson learned.

nightly boat traffic on the river at wat arun

we reached the dock and decided to take a trip on the water taxi as an intro to the city. we quickly hopped on a boat - they seemed to be arriving every few minutes - and wobbly found a seat on the long, low narrow boat. we saw a few temples.. then fewer, as we headed into the more hotel/corporate end of the city.. then an interesting expansion bridge.. then the sun began to set and we figured we should turn around. we got off at one stop, easy enough, then waited for another going the opposite direction, and suddenly realized that we hadn't really seen any. it only ended up being about a 10-minute wait, though, and we arrived back at our stop just as it was getting dark and the temples were being lit up. we hurried back to our hotel where we enjoyed both the spectacular view of the opposite temple lit up and our complimentary welcome drinks. it happened to be valentine's day, as well, so on our way down we passed several couples dressed fancily (when was the last time i saw so many miniskirts and heels??) for a dinner at the hotel's classy restaurant.

street food/night life

we walked the other direction this time, in search of a cheaper option. on the way i was excited/dismayed to learn that there was a french movie playing outdoors nearby - very cool, but unfortunately we were too hungry/late to catch it. we walked on and soon came upon the beginnings of a street market (produce and sweets mostly) where we saw another corner restaurant. same plastic chairs, same table garnishes, slightly different but delicious food. this time noodles with pork balls (which can also be seen roasting on every street corner). we got and paid for our food mainly through pointing and gesturing, then enjoyed it as we watched a few cars zip by along the street.

the next day we set out early since we had so little time in the city. hoping to do the royal palace first, we headed in that direction. on the sidewalk we were intercepted by a man who told us we weren't properly dressed for the palace (half-true) and that it wouldn't be open for foreigners until the afternoon (not true). instead he recommended we visit several other temples in the rickshaw that just, hey, happened to be nearby. in retrospect, we quickly realized this was a scam. still, the ride was dirt cheap and we were only taken to a few jewelry/silk emporiums - at one of which we bought something, the others we extricated ourselves as quickly as possible. apparently the drivers get a cut when they bring us there. pretty sneaky. at any rate we saw a few temples, tried a tempting chicken-on-a-stick (full of fat, bleah) and had a wonderfully spicy lunch (fiery shrimp paired with a thai iced tea with milk) before being dropped off back at the royal palace.

all that gold must be heavy

entering the grounds feels very much like entering disneyworld. there's a big crowd, cheesy music piped in and a recording that repeats a welcome message and the opening hours for visitors. once inside we found out i had to cover my shins (seems like vital information for a guide book, no?) so we had to wait in line to borrow a wrap-around fabric. it was actually quite pretty but also very hot in the rather stifling heat. the grounds of the palace are, of course, massive. we wandered around the vast set of temples - all covered in ceramic mosaics or gold. actually there's just a lot of gold here, period. and here i thought india was super-decorated. every inch is covered with something - either a guardian figure, some sort of stylized flames, or just tiny tiles. after exhausting our bodies and cameras we left in search of a respite. we got some water and street food (crab wrapped in dough and dipped in some sort of mango butter, i think) and walked through an informal street market that had wares ranging from food to old coins to plenty of tiny buddha figurines.

baskets and bouquets - thousands of roses

in need of a rest, we headed back to the hotel to relax before dinner. by the time we headed back out it was dark (it does get dark early) and we set out in search of the night market. after a short, overpriced rickshaw ride we realized it was just a bit past where we'd walked for dinner the night before. live and learn. we wandered through the market - first flowers. thousands and thousands of flowers of all kinds. but mainly marigolds (yellower than the indian counterparts), roses, carnations, and orchids (so cheap you almost just want to buy one for the novelty!) an amazing site. i stopped for an iced coffee (so delicious - like south indian filter coffee but with condensed milk) and we walked on through the food sections with produce, sweets, all sorts of fruit, meat, just about anything. we crossed a big intersection and entered the other part of the night market, that is, mostly retail. all kinds of clothes, shoes, cosmetics and accessories. there were some pretty good tees and sneakers - definitely a step above fashion street (sorry, bombay). i had my eye on some sneakers but in the end only walked away with some nail polish. oh and a tiny blueberry waffle which was delightful. we ended up hungry and wandering to the nearest restaurant we could find - over a little bridge right on the river (which i recognized later in a scene of the hangover 2, on tv the next day). they had tom yum soup - exactly what we'd been searching for. it's a delicious tomato-based soup with shrimp, lemongrass, lime leaves, basil, and other subtle citrusy spices and herbs. perfectly accompanied with a cold singha beer. one of our favorite meals of the trip.

gaudi, before gaudi

the next day it was up early to head to the temple across the street. you gotta break up these temple visits; there are so many and it's easy to get 'templed out'. we were there a little after 8 and found a pretty peaceful temple, with just a group of schoolchildren in formation reciting some kind of pledge. we wandered around, watching as people fed the one or two puppies and went about their morning routines. it was more of the same decoration - lots of ceramic of all kinds and a few golden spires. the interior, here, though, was the main attraction. in one of the temples resided the sleeping buddha, a reclining buddha that's over 45 feet tall (god only knows how long) and takes up almost the entire space. the buddha himself is covered in gold - all but the bottoms of his feet, which are mesmerizing swirls of mother-of-pearl. pretty amazing.

we decided we had time so we'd head across the river to wat arun, that temple we'd been gazing at from our hotel every night. a quick ferry ride and we were right there. it turned out this temple was worth a closer look. it was, like others, entirely covered in ceramic and gold, but the ceramic of this temple came mostly from broken cups and saucers of all different designs. very gaudi-esque. you were able to climb up the (incredibly steep) steps up part of the stupa which i did, clinging to the flimsy metal handrail.

then back across the river and out of the sun for a somewhat unremarkable lunch (our first) before checking out of the hotel and heading to the train station to leave our things. this ended up being almost hassle-free, and a nice service to have. from there we went to the jim thompson house (after some minor difficulty finding a cab), which is the residence of a WWII soldier/architect who moved to thailand after the war. i was skeptical as everything was very overpriced and chi-chi (the store prices were ludicrous). but actually the house itself was quite innovative. he incorporated indigenous design elements with clever ideas of his own. he even incorporated antique asian pieces (like doors) in interesting ways - as room dividers or tables.

from there we took the metro to a shopping area in the newer part of town - somewhere we hadn't really explored yet. the metro itself was quite nice - user-friendly and clean, with TVs everywhere. but it was rather expensive. and with all the line-switching (there are two separate lines with separate payment systems for some reason) it ended up being probably more than taxis would have cost us. seems counter-productive to me.

another quick stop for a market (again mostly retail - cute but very small clothes and shoes) and another ill-advised chicken-on-a-stick (same result) and then back to the train station. there we hoped to enjoy a massage as we waited. there was only one staff member on the job so mom got a foot massage while i explored what little the train station convenience store had to offer (ice cream flavored oreo? crab flavored chips?)

then pretty soon it was time to board. next stop: chiang mai

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.