I have been thinking of compiling this list for along long time, but I did'nt get started because I could'nt come up with a list of 20 things. But I decided to start anyway.... These are all things which will make you feel proud of being an Indian ( I am not insinuating that you are not a proud Indian already!) and unique experiences hard to find a match elsewhere. I will keep adding to this list over a period of time till we reach 20. so here goes.....
1. Visit the Taj Mahal, Agra
When I came back after my second visit to the Taj, my son asked me.. what was your reaction when you saw the Taj Mahal. I asked him why he asked that,he said,' when I saw the Eiffel tower in Paris, I found it disappointing.It was painted brown and I did'nt feel anything when I first saw it" . Well, Taj Mahal IS stunning and beautiful. When you see it first, you do get a feeling of awe and you it does feel like you are looking at one of the 8 wonders of the world. Every word that has been written in it's praise about it's beauty and grandeur in any language is true. What also adds to the experience is the fact that, the area around the Taj, unlike most of Agra, is fairly well maintained and the government authorities have put in substantial effort of making the experience worth a while.
Other things you could do in Agra: Visit the Fatehpur Sikri, Agra Fort (both again fairly well maintained), night viewing of the Taj, shop for handcrafted marble with inlay work, leather (surprisingly cheap, if you can manage to strike a bargain and good quality), dig into the awesome chaat that Agra is famous for. Be careful about the water you drink though. Advisable to stick to bottled drinking water.
2. Visit the Wagah-Attari border : The border of India with Pakistan, a few kilometers outside Amritsar. The nationalistic fevour during the closing of the gates ceremony is unparalleled. The gates are closed at the end of the day around 5 pm. The flags are lowered and the border security guards do a small parade and put on a show for the crowd which gathers to see the ceremony. The Pakistanis gather to see their show on their side too. The majestic guards, the slogans being shouted on both sides....its a show you can't miss in your lifetime. For a glimpse of the ceremony click here:
video clip
and no watching the video is not enough.. you just haveto be there to truly experience it as it is.....grab a seat, crane your neck to get a better glimpse, try and take pictures, buy the cheap CDs of the ceremony being sold by the local village boys and take pictures and chat up with teh BSF guards (they are nice and friendly) and yet shout slogans till your throat is hoarse.
3. Do visit Kolkata: Something about Calcutta got lost when they named it Kolkata. Thank god, the CC&FC is still called Calcutta Cricket and Football Club.
If you want to experience a colonial hangover in this country, this is a place to be.The clubs, the trams, flury's, Fort William, Victoria Memorial, chatting with the members of the British scholars association (people who have done their college studies in England) at the British Library, the street names, colonial bunglows, the disappearing corporate HQs, where you still see white gloved bearers serving tea to the sahibs in the boardrooms, carefully keeping the heirarchy in mind; the very british street names... I could go on and on.
But Kolkata is much more than that... cultural, passionate, foodie, un pretentious, warm. The land of communist and the land of didi.
The food,oh yes the food. Something ignites the foodie in you, the moment to set foot in this city. From Puchka's next to vivekananda park to the the boneless smoked hilsa at The Grand. From the Emperor's banquet at Chinoiserie at the Taj to the crab claws at Tangra or the streetside chinese breakfast in old chinatown....
Multicultural... from the fast dimishing Armenian Jews to the close knit Indian Chinese community from Tangra.. chinatown.
Yeah! this is India too. You need to be there to feel the pulse of one of the warmest cities in India.
to be continued
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