I continued my journey up North to a city named Amritsar. I arrived with a couple from South Korea who was on their way to Pakistan. After Taj Mahal, I felt like there was nothing else I wanted to see. What else could be more interesting than the seven wonders on the World? I was so wrong. India is more than Taj Mahal. There are many more interesting places and the Golden Temple in Amritsar is one of them. In fact, Golden Temple is more than a tourist attraction to me. It changes my whole perception of India. Before this, I see suffering, desperation, hunger and poverty. But here, no one is hungry and everyone lives peacefully. Honesty and generosity are abundant. On the first day I arrived, I met a good Samaritan who offered to be our tour guide around the temple for few hours without asking for any money. Even though we insisted on giving him some tips, he declined politely. Everyone can sleep and eat in the temple for free and they are also encourage to contribute to the temple by volunteering or donations. Separate dorms are provided to foreign travelers. For food, everyone eats on the floor in a huge dining hall. Only vegetarian foods are served.
Golden Temple is the most important and holiest temple for the Sikhs. As the name suggest, the temple is covered in gold, which is also its most distinguish feature. To enter the temple, everyone has to cover their hair and remove their shoes. Priests will keep up a continuous chant from the Sikh holy book and this is broadcast around the temple complex by loudspeakers from dawn to night which can be seen in the following video…
I shared a van with some travelers to Atari to witness the India-Pakistan border closing ceremony around sunset. It was one of the most bizarre ceremony I have ever seen. Before the ceremony begin, patriotic songs were played loudly and every spectators cheers like it is independent day. Some spectators can be seen dancing in the middle of the road. It doesn’t matter young or old, every spectators displays an incredible show of patriotism. It was very funny to see how the guards marched toward the border gate during the closing ceremony. Unfortunately, I was too far to see the whole process clearly.
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I have a good pair of legs to climb up mountains, a good pair of eyes to see unfamiliar sceneries, a good pair of lungs to dive deep into the ocean, a good pair of ears to listen to musics of faraway land, a good stomach to get adventurous with foreign foods, a good pair of arms to hug those who meant a lot to me and a good back to carry my backpack across countries...
[...] before I arrived. However, it was a good thing because I heard from the Korean couple whom I met in Amritsar that McLeod Ganj was facing water shortage because lack of [...]