Golden Triangle

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Route Taken:
Hyderabad->Delhi->Gurgaon->Agra->Jaipur->Jaisalmer->Jodhpur->Ambala->Chandigarh->Jalandhar->Amritsar->Delhi->Gurgaon->Delhi->Hyderabad


Bhaskar Dey, my college mate was bugging me from quiet some time as he wants to have Hyderabadi Biryani and Haleem(minced mutton paste in ghee prepared during the Ramzan season by Muslims in Hyderabad) . Besides I wanted to do a trip down to the North West frontier of India. As I passed by the Charminar and adjacent Mosque lit up by early evening lights and crowded by Muslim devotees offering prayers to breakfast (Roza) I reached Pista House to fetch Haleem along local friend Sheikh Khaleel and to take some photos. Since, I had to catch the flight to Delhi at 6:00pm , I hurried through the traffic taking a parcel of Chicken Biryani from Paradise Hotel on the way and reached Airport just half an hour before the flight take off. Luckily I had a friend named Ibrahim who works for a reputed Private Airlines at Airport and he facilitated my safe boarding to aircraft. It took approximately 3 hours to reach Delhi. Being capital city of India, the Airport Ground Traffic is also quiet high. It took some time to collect the luggage from there and head out of the aircraft. One thing about Delhi is that I never get bored of the city, the young beautiful girls here and there always there to draw your attention. Airport was no exception. Anyways, I was not there for “bird watching” but on a trip in North by North West. I was warmly greeted by my friend Sourav Banerjee who came with a bike to receive me. Soon, I bypassed Delhi and headed for Gurgaon. Cutting through the darkness I passed by the over bridges and roadside emerging Technology Parks to reach Bhaskar’s place. The fatso was quiet thrilled by the food stuff we brought for him but loyally waited for me to finish my fast till midnight as being devotee to Hindu God Sani I don’t take non vegetarian food on Saturday. I finished the food made some adjustments about the route to follow during the trip.
I woke up late in the morning though at 10 am and immediately hurried to Bus Station to catch bus. I took a bus from Ifko Chawki, Gurgaon to reach Faridabad. Previously I thought Bhaskar would accompany for the trip but in the nick of time he became ill and so I headed alone. I soon got a Uttar Pradesh Government bus from Faridabad to Agra. The buses there are bit strange, the ticket collectors in the bus do not come to you, but rather you have to leave your belonging at your seat and go to collector to collect it in a crowded bus. I was a bit scared about the idea but there was no other go. Anyways, nothing happened and I continued to enjoy the roadside beauties from my window seat. It was autumn season and by the roadside one can see “Kash Flowers” and small ponds and UP villages and wheat fields. The area in Uttar Pradesh is quiet fertile and the food crops are easily cultivated in the sediments deposited by Ganges-Yamuna River once upon a time before. I entered Agra at around 2:00 pm and immediately hurried to visit Akbar’s Tomb there spending half an hour there I made a quick round at Fatehpursikri which took around half hour again. I ran and took an auto to Agra Red Fort (fort held by Mughal emperors like Akbar during their rule in India) and studied the artifacts and constructions. I realized I am running sort of money and I had only Rs 500 in my pocket and I have to find a ATM. I found one and luckily saw bus station that leaves for Jaipur City nearby. I got to know that buses leave for Jaipur at every one hour and booked ticket for 7:00 pm bus for 150/-. Agra city as such looked very under developed one in spite of Taj Mahal, seventh wonder of the world been located there. And I hardly found cheap and clean affordable hotel and clean and hygienic restaurant out there. Maybe Agra is not meant to be a place to stay for the tourists. It is just a place to visit and leave. Anyways, I took a 10/- hand driven rickshaw and reached Taj Mahal. Like most of other places I was greeted a lot of touts and frauds there. Anyways, I caught hold of a poor guy 5/- to take some pictures from my camera. There were lots of local cheats around and they even offered an alternate way to get inside the premises of Taj Mahal and asked for 100/-. I don’t know where the police were located to help the tourists and keep out the touts. There was another way to get inside though but it was a long walk. I reached that gate with the help of a cheat but I got better of him and paid him just 10/- instead of 100/- (as charity maybe, ha ha ! ) and made him take some pictures. Later I heard him say the same old bullshit lines yelling at me though,” You are a foreigner don’t you :Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Argentinean…etc You are helpless without me”. My god! In India being Indian too I have to hear such thing! Just because I had long hair and different ascent in Hindi. Anyways, The sunset at Taj Mahal was a thrilling experience. It took a lot of time taking pictures as stood stunned by the beauty of the edifice and color change in accordance to the ending rays of sunlight. No wonder it is the romantic place in India and Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan’s most precious gift for his beloved wife, Mumtaj. People all over the globe came there to take pictures. But I was pretty disappointed to find a single helpful soul to take some pictures. I met some French ladies there and successfully got them to take some pictures of me. Besides I was lucky that knew how to use my camera because they were using the same Panasonic FZ 20 camera like me and they were over thrilled to find someone speaking French in India. As the light started to fade away I decided to leave but did not find an auto to reach bus stop. I found horse driven tanga instead and reached just in time to catch the bus for Jaipur. I called one friend of mine Pankaj Sharma, a college mate and resident of Jaipur. He hold a iron welding and molding company there and belongs to one of the rich families there in Jaipur. Bus to Jaipur took more than usual time to reach Jaipur from Agra. Later, I heard some tax issues was the problem at Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan border. I reached Jaipur, the main city of Rajasthan, the state of Maharajas (Kings of India). I was surprised to find that Pankaj turned up at the Pink City Central Bus Station along with his brother in an air conditioned Hyundai car at 2 o’clock in the night. Soon arrangements were made for my dinner. Roti , Vegetables , Dal and Pista Turmeric Milk to follow after day long struggle lifted my spirits of further travel. I had a sound sleep in the night in the air-conditioned room of his.
In morning much to my disappointment I woke up late again. Soon, breakfast was been served consisted of Upma(Rajasthani style porridge) and lot of Rajasthani sweets. Pankaj took me to his office and factory and showed me welding of metals and business process of the company and also the work culture and industry related stuff in Rajasthan. I was getting late to visit the heritage sites of the city. So, I bid farewell to Pankaj, took and auto and checked out the availability of train tickets of further travel in Rajasthan and Punjab. Since this being the tourist season in India I found none. I decided to travel by bus to visit the places. I booked the ticket for bus at night to Jaisalmer 150/- from Pink City Junction main terminal. I just walked around the city a bit got hold of an auto and bargained for 650/- to visit the places in the Pink City of Jaipur. The auto rickshaw driver was a shrewd one asking every minute details about my travel life and what made me come here without girlfriend… bla bla!! Anyways he was pretty accustomed in showing tourist places and he got to learn how to operate camera from some foreign tourist girl who was studying Jaipur and goes frequently with him to visit the places in the city carrying a laptop and camera. The first place I seen and which engrossed my attention on my way to Hawa Mahal are the low roofed markets all in red or pink colors selling handicrafts to daily consumable products like slippers, plates etc. If small designer windows be replaced by cards the red colored gate of Hawa Mahal looked like a pinkish-reddish house of cards. Residents may have resided there felt that it is very comfortable experience to relax and enjoy the cool breeze there giving the name Hawa Mahal to the building. I left Hawa Mahal in half an hour and headed for Jaigarh Fort ,a fort held by Raja Jai Singh during his rule in Marwar region of Rajasthan. On the way, I found the summer palace by the side of the road. It is called “Jal Mahal” or “Water Palace”. It may have been constructed for the relaxation place for the kings and the queens. It looked like a water body in the middle of lake and is accessible only by boat. The time I visited there was not much water in the lake. So the lake looked a bit dirty with weeds protruding and some maintenance work going on there. I then resumed my journey and moved to the outskirts of the city to climb the shallow hills to Jaigarh Fort. It was end October at that time in India but it was still very hot. Jaigarh Fort did not look very tempting from outside the gate maybe because I was caught by the heat or the Jaigarh gate did not look much appealing. But, I was mistaken. I first entered the fort museum and observed the artillery, swords, knives guns, shields, pottery used by the kings during their rule. The swords were antique ones and looked the most royal with the shape and size. Gradually I entered the fort where I found the water reserve for the fort and then moved in to narrow alley where sun rays coming from the windows and darkness in the other part seemed to play hide and seek adding another dimension to the beauty of the passage. I noticed an open terrace where an cradle was kept. It might have been used for the newborns of the kings. I walked on the small passage on the walls of the Jaigarh Fort to get the view. The City of Jaipur looked clad with pink clothes because of the pink paints and the city is getting water from the lake and there being a damn circulating water to it. The view of the Amber Fort from Jaigarh Fort looked pretty nice and the walls and temples are also clearly visible from Jaigarh Fort located on the top of the hill. I observed small idols in an enclosed portion of the fort which pictured the royal dining customs followed. The Amber Fort is located in a little height than Jaigarh Fort and looked very pretty. Giant Mounted cannon know as Jaivan , which is believed to be the largest cannon in the world. It was constructed in Jaigarh’s foundry in 1720 and its barrel alone weighs close to 50 tons! It is said that it has been once been moved by 4 elephants ,fired once and that it’s ball fell 35 km away . I left Jaigarh and collected some bananas and some snacks and cold drinks from the canteen at Jaigarh and headed for Nahargarh Fort. There were peacock crossings on the way and as I passed by I was lucky to view 3 peacocks crossing the road. Their tails looked pretty but I was not that lucky enough to observe the full view of the tail and looked busy finding food. I reached Nahargarh Palace at around 4 o’clock at the sun beginning to set. It is ideal time to visit Nahargarh Fort. The Fort looked extremely well decorated during sunset. It was royal for the royal queens and meant for the queens residence. It displayed majestic and grand architecture of Rajasthan. There were lots of pigeons here and there and finding shelters in the small holes and window tops. I climbed to the first floor and went through the narrow passage. The view of Jaipur City and the Man Sagar Lake looked even prettier. I was been informed by guards there that Amber Fort will be closing by 5 o’clock. So I hurried and with the auto hurried for Amber Fort. I reached Amber Fort just in time to take photos of Elephants and mini elephant ride to the Amber Fort. Elephant Ride to Amber Fort is considered royal and one of the prime attractions of Jaipur. I just reached at the bottom of Amber Fort at 4:45 pm and gave a sprint to reach the top of the hill to enter Amber Fort. The interiors boast of expressive paintings that come alive with carvings and precious stones and mirror settings. The Maota Lake provides a sumptuous foreground, while the heavily structured walls assures one of the safety against the invasions of the enemies. It is said that the fort was originally a miniscule one that was won by the Rajputs from the Meena tribes and was later enlarged and renovated to its present status. An interesting past and archaeological history shrouds the fort. The oldest ruins that can now be seen are from the 16th century. The fort is divided in four sections and one can reach them either by climbing the imposing stairway or riding royally on an elephant on the broad aisle. Surajpol, the main gate leads to Jaleb Chowk, the main courtyard. From there one has to climb up the stairs to reach the palace. In the past, the returning armies were welcomed here as they displayed their war earnings to the population at large. The fort also has a Kali Temple known as Shila Devi Temple, which is famous for its mysterious history, huge silver lions and silver doors with raised relief. On its doorway, is an image of Ganesha carved from a single piece of coral! Diwan-I-Aam or Hall of Public Audiences is a pavilion of double row of columns. Ganesh Pol leads to the residential apartments of the Maharaja. Jai Mandir or Hall of Victory has a dazzling mirror ceiling and an inlaid panel. Sukh Niwas or Residence of Pleasure has an ivory inlaid sandalwood door. Zenana or Palace of Women has rooms that are connected by a common corridor. It was cleverly designed to give privacy to each queen of the Maharaja. As I descended from the hill and got back to my auto I headed for the Rajasthani Theme Village and Restaurant “Chokhi Dhani” sun as already set and the it was quiet dark and street lights were on adding charm to the city. I reached Chokhi Dhani around 7 pm. I was been greeted by drums beets, garlands and tilak in my forehead. The Rajasthani villages are been idolized very well and showed the Rajasthani culture and traditions. Every minute details of Rajasthani life and household are been portrayed very well. My camera battery was down so I gave the authorities there to charge it up and started to look around the place. There was an small handicrafts shop selling goods like shawls, carpets, garments and lamps. At one corner was an Rajasthani magician trying out tricks with pebbles and coins. Close to the magician counter there was a long pole and small Rajasthani kid in a gymnastic stance showed us acrobatic climb to the top of the bamboo pole and movements at the apex. There was a small cave and Rajasthani jungle theme park who made to dance to their tunes. But most beautiful dance show which I enjoyed was Rajasthani Folk dance of the ladies who were gracefully turning and moving around to Rajasthani folk tunes. It was greeted by wide round applause from the crowd. The 250/- entry to Chokhi Dhani included dinner coupons also. So I got to taste the authentic Rajasthani food. The meal was served in Rajasthani style in earthen pots and dishes. The food included Rajasthani breads Rotis of Jowar, Bajra, Wheat and Besan. The gravy included curd curry , vegetables, Dal and sweets. But the most tasty dish there was “Dal Bati Churma”. It is a crispy wheat flakes soaked in ghee and taken with Dal. I left Chokhi Dhani and boarded the bus for Jaisalmer.
The bus reached Pokhran at around 8 o’clock in the morning for a halt. There was one guy standing at Pokhran who was asking for every passenger where they are heading and if people have any accommodation at Jaisalmer or not. I asked him what is the situation at Jaisalmer but the guy turned out to be an agent and a fraud who is running a cheap motel at Jaisalmer. Anyways there was not much to be seen on the way to Jaisalmer. There were hardly good crops. The soil is sandy and only vegetation found are some small desert weeds and cactus. As soon as I reached Jaisalmer there was huge crowd of agents and surprising chanting my names. I guess all because of the fraud at Pokhran. As I was heading to reach the Gold Fort at Jaisalmer a guy asked to see their hotel first and then go to the Fort. As I was tired I fell in trap and he took me in his bike to his hotel. The hotel looked dirty and full of frauds. The hotel named “Heena” was run by Muslim guy. The owner is an extremely shrewd and he convinced me to take a scheme of travel in the evening by jeep and camel safari and night stay at the sand dunes of the Jaisalmer, enjoy the desert music and dance. I did not have any other go and was physically exhausted to think much so I accepted the offer and paid him 2000/- for it. So foolish of me. There was Bengali tourist family who came over there who looked like perfect jokers wearing cheap dresses and sunglasses. I took a light shower there and was served food. The food tasted absolutely horrible. I felt like vomiting. The rice tasted fishy , Dal and vegetables were not properly cooked either. I knew I was in big trouble. But there was no cover. I was trapped. Anyways, I went to Golden Fort and walked down the narrow lanes there. It had Jain Temple and old havelis. Golden Fort of Jaisalmer was built by Raja Jaiswal and build on sand stones. It looked like an golden fort with bricks being built of golden colored stones. The havelis are well carved and most noted havelis there are Nathmal Ji Ki Haveli,Salim Singh ki Haveli ,Patwon Ji Ki Haveli and Tazia Tower. As I was walking by the streets there I found a shop keeper selling saris and I he helped in taking photos of me and gave some good offers of stay here. He also explained every minute details of the Fort and told me about the tourism there. By hearing him explaining things I felt was been well cheated by the Muslims frauds there. I felt those guys in Heena hotel might be Pakistani intruders and spoiling the tourism and scaring the tourists away. Anyways, I felt I got to do something to take back the money from Heena Hotel. As soon as I reached Heena Hotel I started acting I am suffering from food poison and sun stroke. I acted for 2 hours that I was ill and finally made them return my money. As soon as I got back my money I rushed out of the hotel and headed for the fort and learned about the places to visit in and around the desert city. I found out there was a nice lake nearby called Godi Sagar lake. I saw the lake and got a lift from nearby vehicle to reach sand dunes. The sunset in the sand dunes and camel ride hence was an amazing experience and that will make go back there again in spite of my encounter with the cheats. I wished I could go for a night halt at Jaisalmer but time was running away for me. In morning however I met an veteran French Lady who had come to India for a long trip and suggested me to visit Amritsar as soon as possible. So I bought the train ticket for Jodhpur then and there itself and also the forward journey to Ambala Junction in Punjab. So as the sunset in Jaisalmer I bought some snacks, took dinner in a restaurant up the way in fort and directly headed for the railway station. The station was deserted and lacked security. Jaisalmer being located close to Pakistan border the place had a military base. So there were lots of scouts but I could not find a single security officers or guards or police anywhere and place looked really scary in the night hence. Anyways Jaisalmer was been flocked by foreign tourists rather than Indian tourists more with people coming from France and England. I had a pretty nice conversation with them and got to learn about their travel plans. They knew more than us in terms of travel in India and it was a shame that in spite of we being Indians we don’t know India well. The train to Jodhpur reached early morning at around 5 o’clock and I decided to give a quick visit to the Jodhpur City Palace which was visible from the station itself. It looked great. But since early morning gates were closed I could not explored much of the place. I took like breakfast of Puris bought some Jodhpur sweets which were pretty famous at this part of the world and boarded the train at 9:30 in the morning.
The train reached Ambala Junction of Punjab at 5:30 in the morning next day via Ajmer, Bikaner( where at Railway Station I bought the famous snack Bikaner Bhujia) . It was bitter cold early Punjab morning. But cool breeze and smell of Punjab was quiet different and smell of the air was so fresh and sweet. I went of the Ambala Junction and just near the bus stop there went to the small roadside café to have breakfast. The café looked small and almost unnoticeable. But I thought of giving it a try before heading for Chandigarh. The Aloo Paratha( Potato Stuffed Wheat Bread fried in oil) was the best breakfast I have had entire trip. It tasted simple awesome and mouth watered for more after having one. I got the bus soon for Chandigarh and reached there by 7:30 am. I did not know what to do in the city. So I asked a local what are the things to see in the city. Chandigarh being one of the planned cities of India is well formed and maintained and is very clean. I took a bus that goes from city to the outskirts and then back. Chandigarh is less polluted and well structured and weather is very good because of hilly location. It is neither very cold nor very hot and it is like spring weather of France throughout the year. I took the public bus for Amritsar from Chandigarh at around 10:30 am. The bus to Amritsar was a lengthy trip and it took the road via Jalandhar. As I had already mentioned there is something in the air of Punjab that made me feel so relaxed. The small villages , the cultivation of mustard, wheat and sunflower plants to small canals and damns looked very pretty. The breeze made me so relaxed that I slept in the bus for about an hour. It was 3:30 pm I reached Amritsar. Taking directions from the locals I made my entry to Golden Temple of Amritsar. I wanted to take a shower and keep in my luggages somewhere and change my clothes. Actually, I felt I better stay for evening closing ceremony but I did not find any rooms to spent my night there. I decided to keep my travel bag in Golden Temple Ashrayalaya cloak room and used the public toilet to take shower and wash my clothes. Cleaned up I decided to get inside the temple premises. Golden Temple is considered one of the most important and holy destination for Sikhs. So for Punjabis come here to peace of mind. Golden Temple. The temple, a two storied marble structure with a golden dome, stands in the middle of the sacred pool Amrit Sarowar (tank of Nectar) reached through a bridge- Guru's bridge. I got enlightened by the hymns, the surroundings of the temple and godly atmosphere. I prayed there and dedicated my offerings there. The temple was so beautifully constructed and as the sunset the reflections of the golden temple took me to another world. I was been offered Pagree ( Turbans or holy Sikh cloth cap worn in head) and halwa(sweet porridge) and my heart and soul was full of satisfaction and happiness. In a melancholy way I watched the sparkle and glitter of the golden temple as day light faded and lights were on. Feeling a bit hungry I headed for Langar Ghar, the dining hall where food is been served free of cost to the pilgrim ants. Food was been served after chanting prayers for Gurus of Sikhs. It consisted of Dal and Roti. It started to rain in Amritsar all of a sudden with heavy rain drops pouring in from everywhere. I decided to take shelter at “Sarai Guru Ramdasji”, the place where devotees take night halt free of cost. But The time I visited Golden temple there was huge rush of Sadhus or Hindu Saints in saffron color pouring in from all over India and moreover heavy rain made everyone rush inside the building and all the rooms being filled I just spread one bed sheet in the open corridor and tried to get some sleep. In the midst of huge number of Sadhus pouring in and number Sadhus lying next to me on the floor and rainwater occasionally coming in I found it difficult to sleep. I took an rickshaw and headed for Volvo Bus Station for a bus back to Delhi which was further down the road from local bus station and close to Railway Station. Luckily I got the ticket for Delhi for 600/- Rs and decided to eat some more. Next to the bus stop again I found a small Punjabi Dhaba, it looked descent. Tandoori Chicken and Nan with Lassi was the best non vegetarian dinner I had there and it confirmed my trust that Punjabi roadside Dhabas serve the best food in India.
The bus reached Delhi at around 5 o’clock in the morning. The problem is the last stop for the bus in Delhi was Red Fort in Delhi while Gurgaon is on the other side of Delhi. I took an auto for 60/- to reach Delhi-Gurgaon highway. I took a Gurgaon going public bus and reached Ifko Chawki and subsequently to Bhaskar’s place. It was Friday morning! I had actually cut short a day of my journey and reached Delhi a day early. Anyways I headed for a local Dhaba and had a sumptuous breakfast of Aloo Paratha with lots of butter left on the top and took it with card, smoked a bit to beat the cold came to the room, had half a bottle of Smirnoff Vodka and passed away. Woke up at 5 o’clock in the evening and decided to go for a ride outside and see Gurgaon a bit. I have heard that Gurgaon has some of the some of the best multiplexes and shopping malls in India. And indeed it was a nice experience to visit the twin malls there City Center and Metropolitan. The malls were been decorated very well on the eve of Diwali, the festival of lights in India. I had two large chicken burgers and went to buy some crackers and fireworks for Diwali. We went to a nearby market for the same and bought crackers for 500/-. We came back to room and decided to see Delhi. The major problem was that there all the 4 wheelers for Diwali were booked. We decided that we will travel by bus to see the places. I played 3 rounds of “Age of Empires” at hard levels and slept of at 4 o’clock in the night. We woke up at around 10 am in the morning with Sourav coming to our place after completing his late night duty. He took the bus to Delhi got down near India Gate and took some snaps and headed for Humayun’s Tomb located nearby. Luckily, we were able to spot an running air conditioned car driven by Sardarji who gave us lift till the place. Humayun was one of the great Mughal emperor and his Tomb monument plaza was well maintained and one of the archeological sites visited by foreign tourists. As we entered I spotted a number German tourists who came for a visit in India. Bhaskar successfully bargained with Sardarji and planned for a full day trip. Well, how can we leave an air conditioned car in a hot summer day just like that! I got a glimpse of High Court and halted for a minute at Rastrapati Bhavan (President House) and Parliament House. Generally people parking was not allowed in front of this buildings primarily because of terrorists which took place some time back. We headed for Akshar Dham. Again the security was very tight. There was a recent terrorist attack here. But this place made a mess in name of security. We had to submit camera leather bags, plastics, shoes etc and had to pass channels of security to get inside. Akshar Dham is considered not just a temple, but a place of education, entertainment and enlightenment. There are 73 richly patterned and 63 partially carved pillars. The structure and buildings were enormous and represented a modern day grand temple. The temple was well constructed though I personally felt like it is not a pilgrimage center where devotees will come for prayers. People will come for appreciating the beauty of construction but not for pilgrimage. From Akshar Dham we headed for Lotus Temple. Lotus Temple resembled much like the Lotus Building of Sydney, Australia. It is Bahai Temple for Bahai faith and meditation. From Lotus Temple we headed for Chittaranjan Park where we took our lunch at “Babu Masai” . The non vegetarian Bengali meal costs a mammoth 250/- but it was bit expensive but the quality was pretty alright. We headed for KaliBari of Chittaranjan Park where annual festival for goddess Kali was taking place. We had already left Sardarji and his car. So we were looking for a quick exit from Delhi to reach Gurgaon. Luck favored us again, as we found another helpful guy who readily gave us lift back to Gurgaon. “Delhi Saher Dilwalo Ka!” , I must admit! We reached home and celebrated Diwali burning lots of crackers and lights and it was one of best Diwali I celebrated away from home with friends. The next morning I took a prepaid cab to airport and headed back home.
Golden Triangle trip might have been over but the experience and memories of the places will remain with me as one of pleasant days of travel in years to come.

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