Em & Tola's Travel Blog

We left Dharamsala and the cooler weather after a few days and as we drove away I kept looking out the back of the bus at the beautiful snow capped mountains. I was a bit sad as they continued to get further and further away, but our last glances of the mountains were spectacular. Our time in the Himalayas had come to an end, and our weeks in the Himalayas are some of my favourite weeks from our trip.

Our bus ride was quite fast compared to our other bus rides in India, so Tola and I were both shocked when we arrived in Amritsar so quickly. We both became excited when we arrived because Amritsar appeared to be a bustling and exciting place. A cycle rickshaw driver quickly took us to the guesthouse we had researched and we checked in right away. We also made sure that our TV had “ESPN Live” because the World Cup would start during our stay in Amritsar … very important, of course! :)

The two highlights of Amritsar (for tourists) are the Golden Temple and the Indian-Pakistani Border Closing Ceremony. The Indian-Pakistani Border Ceremony is something that takes place every evening as the border gets ready to close. On our first evening in Amritsar, Tola and I along with two French guys hired a taxi to take us to the border ceremony. The ceremony is very popular amongst tourists, but it proved to be even more popular among the Indians (of course there are millions of more Indians in India compared to tourists). :)

I would not say I was really looking forward to the border ceremony, but once we arrived at the border, I realized that the border ceremony would give me another chance to learn and research more about India’s history. I quickly became interested as locals from Amritsar and Indian tourists packed into the bleachers on the Indian side, and the Pakistani’s did the same. It was quite the sight and I was not really expecting such organization and so many people. The security to get into the border ceremony was quite tight, and the guards and police were very strict, but I think that this makes perfect sense especially with the hundreds of people that were attending.

The ceremony lasted about 40 minutes and it mostly entailed Indian soldiers and Pakistani soldiers doing a routine “against” each other. The soldiers would stand on both sides of the border and then walk quickly, in military style, towards each other. As the soldiers walked briskly, the crowds of people on both sides of the border yelled and cheered. It appeared that the point of the ceremony was to see which side would appear more nationalistic. I won’t state a winner because the competition was a bit one sided as many more Indians were present at the ceremony. It was quite an amusing 40 minutes with lots of chuckles and funny looks. With flags waving on both sides of the border, the ceremony ended and people gave out their last cheers. This evening became a good evening to experience the Indian nationalism, and Tola and I were both really happy that we made the effort to go.

After the border ceremony, Tola and I both recognized the friendliness of the people of Amritsar. They were all very welcoming and accepting of others, and a few kind individuals came up to us for simple conversation. It was fun being in Amritsar because again there was so much to look at, but it wasn’t completely overwhelming.

On our last full day in Amritsar we headed for the Golden Temple. Sikhs from around the world make pilgrimages to the Golden Temple every year. Many tourists also venture to Amritsar because the Golden Temple is a sight to see as far as its architecture goes. The Golden Temple also has a lot of recent history, so it was interesting to read about the history of the area.

Amritsar became a great place to spend a few days. I will admit I wasn’t excited about getting back into the heat, but it ended up not being bad at all. We felt settled for a few days and met many friendly faces during our time in Amritsar.

P.S. The World Cup has started!!!!!!!!!!!!