A tale of two cities (Lahore, Pakistan and Amritsar, India)

Hello All,

We left you last time as we were about to catch our bus to Lahore from Peshawar and very good value it was too. A 6-1/2 hour trip for just over a fiver and they throw in all the drinks you want, lunch, a free newspaper plus headphones to watch a film or listen to a fair choice of radio stations. National Express have got a long way to go before they catch up. Every seat is a recliner with plenty of leg room plus a foot rest. There were only 10 other passengers as most Pakistanis wouldn't dream of paying out such a large sum for this journey. We passed many of their own long distance buses and the only things that looked comfortable in there were the cows and goats in the aisles.

We arrived in Lahore and were jumped on by a million taxi and rickshaw drivers. We yelled out the price quoted in Lonely Planet for the trip to our hotel and the silence was deafening. Nevertheless, we have learnt that they always succumb in the end and so it was this time. We arrived at the Best Westen (yes, that is the correct spelling)and got quite a decent room. We spent the rest of the day exploring the local area. Lahore is the second biggest city in Pakistan after Karachi and is very spread out. There are shopping malls everywhere and lots of Western restaurants if you get tired of the c-i-k-n and c-r- s-u- or m-t-o-.

Whilst we were in Kalam in the Swat Valley, we met a guide who actually worked at the Punjab Tourist Office in Lahore and he had told us about 3 tours that his office organise to show off the sights of Lahore. We checked these out the following morning and they offered very good value (even beating the price of doing it on your own due to the high fees they charge foreigners to enter any place worth seeing).

We booked the afternoon tour for that day as well as the morning tour and border ceremony tour for the following day. They told us they picked up at the 3 top hotels in town (Pearl Continental, Holiday Inn and Avari) or alternatively they would pick us up at the Tourist Office itself which is the option we chose. Despite its cosmopolitan atmosphere we had only seen 2 other Westerners since our arrival and wondered how many might be joining us on the tour. Yep, you're way ahead again! We were the only ones and having enquired how many they usually get for the tours, were told that since 9/11, they could count 'em on one hand. So, we had the mini-bus to ourselves but at least our guide spoke perfect English and was very knowledgeable about what he was showing us.

Our first stop was the Shalimar Gardens which were created in 1641 by Emperor Shah Jahan (him of Taj Mahal fame). 'Shalimar' means 'the place of love and happiness' and is one of the world's finest Persian style gardens.

Next, we were taken to the Old City, a walled area accessible through 12 gates. This one was nowhere near as scruffy as those we had encountered in the other towns and cities we had visited. We made our way to Shahi Hammam (Royal Bath). A most interesting building with plenty of original features and decoration that is currently undergoing restoration.

The next attraction we were taken to was Wazir Khan's Mosque which was built in 1634 and was for us the highlight of the tour. We learnt much about the Moslem religion that we were totally unaware of as well as seeing the preparations for a big festival the next day.

The next scheduled stop on the tour is listed as Food Street which is a pedestrianised road full of different restaurants serving food from around the globe which comes to life after sunset. However, at the time the tour arrives there, the road is clogged with traffic and none of the restaurants are open which makes you wonder why they include it. The last stop of the tour is a handicrafts shop which wasn't open either although we didn't complain too much about that one.

For a four hour tour which cost less than GBP 4 each, we still thought it was good value.

The following morning we turned up at the office to find we were the only ones on this tour also. We had a different guide this time but again he spoke perfect English and certainly knew his stuff.

Our first stop was the Badshahi Mosque which is considered the world's largest, living historical mosque. The size of these places has to be seen to be believed. Apparently, this one holds 100,000 people.

Next we went to Lahore Fort built by the Mughals. This consisted of many separate buildings including a fabulous Hall of Mirrors. Lahore Fort is also home to the only surviving elephant steps in Pakistan.

Our guide then took us on to Jehangir's Tomb. Set in the calm surroundings of a symmetrical garden, this was well off the beaten track with no signposts to it. There were only one or two other people visiting when we arrived, yet again, anywhere else in the world and this would be a national treasure pulling in the crowds.

Our final stop on the tour was the Lahore Museum. Yes, I know. It sounds really dull but our 45 minute visit flew by and all too soon the tour was over.

The tour we were really looking forward to was the 'Wagah Border' tour. You are taken to the border of Pakistan and India, the gates of which are situated just outside the town of Wagah. Each evening around 5.30pm they have the official closing ceremony despite the fact that you can't cross either way after 3.00pm. On the Pakistan side, there were a few grandstands with probably around 1000 people in total. On the Indian side, the grandstands seemed to go back much further and we estimate there must have been 10,000 people watching the ceremony from there. The men and women are split up and have to sit on opposite sides of the parade ground but all Westerners are given seats right at the front. The crowds on both sides are encouraged to yell out their respective countries names and there is much clapping and flag waving by officials whose job it is to spur on the crowd. Then the ceremony itself begins.

Of course, we couldn't see much of what was going on across the border but on the Pakistani side it consists of various army officers (or Rangers as they are known, as officially the army can't control the border) goose-stepping up to the gates themselves, stamping their feet as if they are having a tantrum with much pouting and insult throwing to the officers on the other side. Presumably the Indians are doing the same back. It is very comical to watch. Once they have had enough of insulting each other, the flags are then lowered exactly at the same pace, as neither countries flag must be seen to be higher than the other. This lowering is done so slowly, it takes a good five minutes yet they fold the flag up in less than 5 seconds flat. The final part of the ceremony consists of the officers slamming the gate shut in the faces of their opposite number and with a final pout, they march the flag back to their own barracks. The whole thing only lasts 25 minutes but it's certainly one not to be missed.

We had intended to leave the following day but decided to stay on an extra night so that we could visit Lahore Zoo. We are both very glad we did. Although it is not in the same league as London Zoo, there were plenty of animals and birds to see although many which should have been roaming around in large pens were all caged up. At times though, we knew how the animals felt being stared at as we seemed to be as big an attraction as they were. Once again, all very friendly with people coming up to introduce themselves and shake our hands.

We both liked Lahore a lot. Although Jo still prefers Is-scam-abad, my vote goes to Lahore for the best City.

We gave our likes and dislikes about Pakistan in the last blog but probably the biggest surprise of all was that so few people spoke English. I guess because we are used to Pakistanis in England speaking it fluently, we just assumed that it would be widely understood. This is certainy not the case despite almost a lot of the signs being in English plus many English TV stations and newspapers.

Would India be any different? Tomorrow would tell!

The following morning we handed our rucksacks to a taxi driver we had seen every morning outside the hotel but never used. He put them in the boot as I enquired what the fare would be to the border. Having read in 'Lonely Planet' it should be around 400 PKR, I wasn't quite expecting his reply of 1000 PKR. I said the price should be 400 PKR but after much deliberation, he would only come down to 800 PKR. Paying double is not on our agenda so we insisted he open the boot and give us our rucksacks back. Meanwhile, another taxi driver who was listening in on this argument said he would take us there for 500 PKR. Much to the first ones disgust, we readily agreed and off we went.

We were told that to cross the border takes around one hour and were pleasantly surprised to find only two other people there. They were two Germans on motorcycles and we saw that they were being given a real hard time by the Pakistani officials. We were told to take off our rucksacks and leave them outside the office and were then asked our nationality. Once they learned we were English and not American as they suspected (probably due to the caps we were wearing) they were all smiles and handshakes. We guessed Americans would get a pretty cool reception from these guys. We were led into the office and the Germans were unceremoniously kicked out and told to wait. There was much frivolity about the England/Pakistan cricket matches and plenty of compliments about how nice it was to have the English in their country. We were also asked several hundred times what we thought of Pakistan and of course, gave all the right answers.

We were then led in to the Customs Hall. It looked like a scene out of 'Midnight Express' with rooms echoing to every footstep and very grubby counters where bags are searched. A customs officer drew up a chair and although very pleasant, made it perfectly obvious that we could be there 2 minutes or 2 weeks depending on what change (i.e. high rupee notes) we had on us. I managed to find a 100 PKR note (about 95p), gave it to him and watched his reaction. He wasn't smiling yet! I patted all my pockets, even though I knew exactly where all our US Dollars were hidden and asked Jo to see what she could come up with. Well blow me down if she didn't produce another 100 PKR note from her pocket and handed it to him. A broad beam came across his face and with that we were told there was no need to check our rucksacks as he was sure it was only personal items in them. He then said 'Please realise, us Muslims do not cheat people. We are very honest so only 200 PKR'. Yeah, right! I somehow don't think Allah would agree.

However, for less than 2 quid, we were on our way to India......after we tipped the porter (albeit a porter with a military uniform on) of course, who insisted on carrying our bags to the gate despite our objections.

We got a few bucks ready, just in case, to grease the palms of the officers on the Indian side. However, no such sweeteners were requested or expected and we were welcomed through with no problems. Despite the paper-work taking longer on the Indian side, the difference in the two buildings was startling. A scene out of Midnight Express on the Pakistani side but a light, bright cheery customs hall on the Indian side.

On the other side of the gates, the taxi-wallahs were waiting in force but we just collapsed at the nearest refreshment shack to have a cold drink. The taxi-wallahs just stood there patiently waiting for us to finish, then leapt on us again. We knew that the fare to Amritsar should be around 350 IR (Indian Rupees)but they led us to a board and said 'Fixed Fare, Fixed Fare'. This board quoted 650 IR. As we walked away, several yelled out 'How much'. We said the first one to accept 400 IR gets the job and, of course, there was no shortage of drivers happy to take us. Strange, isn't it, how flexible these fixed prices can be?

We decided to try out one of Lonely Planet's recommended budget options for our stay in Amritsar. We chose one about 5 minutes walk from the Golden Temple and although pretty basic it only cost GBP 8 per night.

Apart from the Golden Temple, there are only two other tourist attractions in the town worth seeing and as all three were close to each other, we decided to do them all the following day and spent the rest of our arrival day looking around the shops. Noticeable straight away was the fact that many more people spoke English and although there was a definite third world feel to the place, it was far cleaner and much less shabby looking than we had become used to in Pakistan.

The following day we went to a local restaurant for breakfast as our guest house did not provide it. Well, what do you expect for 8 quid!!! Checking our map of the town, we realised we were within a couple of minutes walking distance to our first sight, Jallianwala Bagh.

Bagh means garden and this particular one commerates 2,000 Indians who were killed or wounded here by the British in 1919. The Indians were holding a peaceful demonstration against the British who had just introduced emergency powers to imprison without trial any Indian suspected of sedition. A British general named Dyer arrived with 150 troops and without warning ordered his soldiers to open fire. Six minutes later, 337 men, 41 boys and a baby were dead and a further 1500 were wounded. Many of those men died jumping into a deep well to escape the bullets. It was a very moving place and as well as the surviving well, there is clear evidence of the bullet holes in parts of the wall surrounding the garden. An eternal flame also burns.

We then went on to the Golden Temple itself. It is hard to believe that 22 years have passed since Gandhi sent in her troops which ended in the deaths of 500 Sikh extremists who had occupied the site. There are no tell tale signs anywhere of that fateful day and the place is a haven of peace and tranquility. The Golden Temple itself is somewhat smaller than we were expecting but its position at the end of a bridge together with the surrounding pool and marble walkways makes the whole complex look absolutely stunning. Up until now, Versailles has always got my vote as the most impressive building I have ever seen but the Golden Temple surpasses it.

Every visitor has to take their shoes off, wash their feet and wear a turban to enter the complex but it's completely free of charge and they even give you a free meal and a bed for the night if you so wish.

Unfortunately, photography is not allowed either on the bridge or in the Golden Temple itself but believe me, it is opulent. Walking around the compound it became very evident how serious many people take their religion. We were rather surprised that there were only a handful of Westerners walking around and expected many more considering this is supposed to be India's second biggest tourist attraction after the Taj Mahal. We actually got talking to one Sikh and it turned out that he was there on holiday too......from Finchley in North London.

We decided to return that evening to see a particular ceremony and take more photographs. During the day the Sikh holy book is kept under a pink shroud in the Golden Temple itself but each evening it is ceremoniously returned to the Sikh parliament building which is also in the complex. The faithful really come out in their hundreds to see this one and although we stuck out like a sore thumb we were ushered towards the front where we could see everything that was going on and they were quite happy for us to take photographs.

Prior to our evening re-visit, we went to a park called Ram Bagh. In this park is a Summer Palace once owned by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, a great leader who won many battles. This Summer Palace is now a museum which houses both a panorama and a diorama about his life. The colours used in the costumes on the models are stunning and the way they have depicted his battles with scale models is quite awesome. This is a definite 'must see' if you ever find yourself in Amritsar.

We have today arrived in Mcleod Ganj, home of the Dalai Lama, after another bone-shaking, bum-numbing bus ride of 8 hours. The town is an old British hill station and the views are stupendous. A full report will be given in about a weeks time.

Take care and don't do anything we wouldn't do.

Love
Mike and Jo
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