I had Tasted Blood with my first women-only road trip.
The winter of 2016 saw a friend from Dubai visit Chandigarh. She wanted to visit Amritsar, as one of her life-long desires. Since it was a last minute ‘want’, the probability of train tickets being available was next to negligible.
A bus journey was a reliable option but this got me thinking. Like the bulb that went off when that fated apple fell on Newton’s lap and he discovered gravity (or simply put ‘Ting!’), I thought:
“Why not drive down to Amritsar?”
The distance between the two cities is around 250 km after all, not a lot of driving anyway (around four hours end to end without a break).
Convincing my friend, who did not know how to drive, wasn’t a concern – in fact she was game – but the issue came from the family. After all, this was my first women’s-only road trip!
After an initial drama, things fell in place for us, all of it adding to the adventure.
Contents
The Drive From Chandigarh To Amritsar
We left early morning. It was around 5.30 am, and with the sun having yet peeked through and fog for company it was dark.
I wanted to take the New Chandigarh route; but one of my office colleagues had discouraged me, saying it was too isolated for two girls.
Fair enough. Adventure is good, recklessness not so much.
Paying heed to her advice, we took the Kharar route and quickly crossed Rupnagar.
As per my plan, we were to halt to gorge on some delicious highway parathas after Rupnagar but what my plan hadn’t considered was these dhabas might not be open that early.
We were famished for sure and the temptation to stop over for a hot beverage at a McDonald’s outlet was strong, but stronger was the desire to devour chai-paratha. With Jalandhar only a few kilometers away, we decided to put a lid on our temptation for a few more minutes and opted to stop over at the Jalandhar Haveli.
The Haveli was a decent stop. Not your typical roadside dhaba, but a more lavish version of it. After seating ourselves, three people asked if anyone else would be joining us (no, am not exaggerating!). Two girls (seemingly young looking, I would like to think!) visiting a highway joint is not very common, yet!
Having stuffed ourselves with the parathas and masala chaai, we resumed our drive – the only difference this time being I was too sleepy thanks to that potent combination of waking up early and stuffing in the parathas.
So, we stopped. Got out of the car. Stretched ourselves a bit. Washed our faces.
(And obviously) clicked a few goofy photographs!
The adrenaline rush was back and the sleep had been banished. The last 80 km of the drive went by smoothly after that.
This was my third time to Amritsar; however, it was my first time driving down.
And the cherry on top was the fact that we did not have to pay any tolls (since we went a few days after the demonetization announcement)!
The Stay
Our stay was at a quaint place, Mrs Bhandari’s Guesthouse in the cantonment area and away from all the hustle bustle and crazy traffic of the city of Amritsar.
It was my second time to this guest house, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who does not want to stay in a conventional hotel room.
It is a colonial-styled guest house with all basic amenities. A warning though, being in the cantt. area and surrounded by lush and green courtyard, this place can get quite chilly (even in early winters).
The Sightseeing
Being my third time here, I knew exactly where all to go and where all to eat.
Having said that, the Amritsar I saw this time, was a new and improved version. The entire area around Harmandar Sahib (popularly known as the Golden Temple) had been remodeled to make it a heritage area with broad lanes, organized shops, statues, lampposts and fountains.
And that is a far cry from what I had seen during my previous visits.
There were no hawkers.
No overhead wires.
No dug-up streets.
No tussles between rickshaws and pedestrians.
In fact, for a minute, you could have me believe I was in a European city.
It was only when we heard the (in!)famous Indian bargaining talks – “150 mein dete ho toh bolo!” – loosely translated to “I will buy if you sell it for 150 bucks” – that we knew we were back in North of India.
My friend went crazy over Punjabi jootis and I think it’s a good thing that we had rationed cash (due to the demonetization announcement) which led to controlled shopping.
Golden Temple was as beautiful an experience as it always has been and adding to it was approach to the temple, making it a sonay pe suhaaga (the icing on the cake).
The Return: Amritsar To Chandigarh Via Bhakra Dam
While returning to Chandigarh, we agreed on taking a diversion as I wanted to drive on a different road. We looked at Google Maps for some possible alternate routes and found the Bhakra Nangal Dam.
Having only read about it in our Geography textbooks, we thought we should see this engineering marvel.
Bhakra dam is a concrete gravity dam on Sutlej river and forms the Gobind Sagar reservoir which is the third largest reservoir in India. Nangal dam is further downstream (around 15 km). Together these two dams are popularly known as Bhakra-Nangal dam.
After a heavy breakfast at our guest house (I should probably stop saying I am not a foodie!) we added our new destination to the map. The map warned us to reconsider the destination as the dam was scheduled to close at 3.20 pm and according to GPS, we would reach our destination at 3.18.
This was a challenge for us – to prove Google wrong!
We drove non-stop; blindly following the directions of the map.
The route we took was via Adampur-Hoshiarpur-Una. I must add here, I was pleasantly surprised by the excellent condition of the roads considering we were not on National Highways for a good part of the journey.
After driving through villages, fields as well as ghats – and a tad more rashly than I probably should have (afterthought, of course!) – we reached the security gate of the dam at 3.10 pm.
Just as we were feeling elated, the security guard asked for ‘the permit’ (!).
We knew about the permit but did not know we had to procure it from an office which was a few km before the entrance.
We had overshot the office by around 1 km. We quickly reversed our car and reached the office at 15:18. After answering a few security questions and showing ID proofs, we were given the permit.
Entering the gate (after assuring the security guards we were not too young to drive and could handle a car in hilly regions!) felt like an achievement alright.
As expected, the dam was a breathtaking site, together with the bright green colour of the Sutlej.
Things To Do In Amritsar
Golden Temple (Of Course!)
This is a gurudwara located in Amritsar and is the most important pilgrimage site for Sikhs. For those taking their cars, there is a well-managed multi-tiered parking complex about a kilometer from Golden Temple beyond which vehicles are not allowed.
The entry into this temple is smooth and quick. You will, however, need to stand in a queue to enter the main temple where the holy book is kept.
The queue time for this can range between 0.5-3 hours.
I would recommend the ‘langar’ or the free kitchen at this Gurudwara. And don’t miss the karah prasad here – it is divine (pun intended)!
If time permits, I suggest visiting this temple once during the day and once at night.
Jallianwala Bagh
The site where the public massacre by the British Army took place on 19 April 1919 (Punjabi New Year aka Baisakhi) when General Dyer ordered his men to seal the only exit and fire their rifles into a crowd of unarmed Indian civilians.
Since the Bagh was enclosed by walls and had only one exit, the civilians had no place to run. The British troops reportedly fired hundreds of rounds until they ran out of ammunition.
The site has now been turned into a public garden as a token of national importance.
The bullet marks and the well into which many people plunged and drowned gave me goosebumps. This is next to the Golden Temple and the visit to this Bagh can easily be combined with the temple visit – a combination of spirituality and history.
Wagah-Attari Border
This border is around 30 km from Amritsar and is famous for the flag lowering ceremony also known as Beating Retreat Ceremony.
The ceremony starts at 4.15 pm in winters and 5.15 pm in summers; however, if you want to watch the ceremony from inside the stadium, then you need to reach well in advance (~3 pm in winters and 4 pm in summers).
The best way to reach the border is to hire a taxi or drive from Amritsar.
You can also take the bus till Attari Border and then take a cycle rickshaw to cover the last 3 km to the border. There are three ways of viewing this ceremony:
- VIP Pass: We had this during our first visit (defence services connection). This pass allows you to skip the queues, avoid the crowd and view the ceremony from the VIP stand which is very close to the border gate.
- General Stadium: This was during my second visit where viewers are allowed to enter the stadium on a first come first serve basis. Once the stadium is filled to its capacity, the gates are shut.
- Screen: This was my third visit. If you arrive late and cannot make it to the stadium, you will need to watch the ceremony on the screen placed outside the stadium. According to me, this was not worth travelling all the way.
What to Buy?
I am not a shopper and am even less of it while on a trip, so my advice is based on what my friend shopped and a bit of having spoken to a few others. Amritsar is famous for Punjabi jooti, phulkari dupatta, Amritsari wadi and papad.
What To Eat and Where?
Amritsar is a heaven for the foodies.
Things to try: Amritsar Kulche, Punjabi Chole, Lassi, Jalebi, Amritsari Tikki, Butter Chicken (which is a given at most places in the north), Makki di Roti with Saag (if you visit Amritsar in winters) among others.
I am not much of a foodie and to be honest I feel the food in Amritsar is good at most places as long as you try the above. Some of the famous joints are
- Kesar da Dhaba (for Maa ki dal)
- Bharawan da Dhaba
- Gurdas Ram Jalebi Wala (for hot jalebis)
- Kulcha Land (for kulchas)
- Ahuja Milk Land (for lassi)
- Makhan fish and chicken corner
I would not go out of my way to visit the famous food joints – but then again, I am not a foodie.
Tips from the Chandigarh-Amritsar Drive
- If you have the luxury of time, ditch the national highway and take internal roads in Punjab – these are usually scenic and will mostly take you on narrow roads right through the fields. And if you are lucky, these might just be mustard fields a la DDLJ.
- Look out for stretch limousines in Punjab – it is fairly common for Punjabis to hire limos for weddings and parties!
- Try and avoid fast food chains as stopovers and go for the traditional parathas and chaai/lassi at any dhaba.
- Weather: The best time to visit Amritsar is winters (Oct-March).
- The petrol price in Chandigarh is usually lesser than that in Punjab. Hence it would be economical to fill petrol in Chandigarh.
Awwwwieee … such awesome read
Thank you! Glad you like it.
Enjoyed your trip and simple writing style.
Thank you!