Chandigarh

We took a bus from Shimla to Chandigah, to save the hassle of trying to sort out the train and it was also a quicker journey. We had to walk about 45 minutes from the hotel to the old bus stand, and then get a bus from the old bus stand to the new bus stand. Anyway, we boarded the bus in which Jonno got touched up by a man who apparently turned to touch up another guy when he realized how frigid Jonno was, and then began our journey to Chandigah.

Chandigah is different from many towns in that it is divided into sectors of 800m by 1200m, with each sector having a number and a dedicated purpose. So there is a market sector, residents sectors, and public sectors One thing we immediately noticed on arriving in Chandigah is how clean and well looked after it is, with actual rubbish bins on the streets and lots of green spaces. It was also a lot easier to get our bearings and get rickshaw drivers to take us places with sector numbers (most indian addresses consist of (name of place), behind ___school, near ___ shop, (name of city) ) We set down our bags at the bus station and proceeded to try and contact a cheapish hotel we had seen the name of online. They did not answer, but we were then approached by a man who said he could take us to a hotel which was 500-600 rupees per night. We told him that our budget was 500 rupees so as long as they had a room for 500 then we would go with him, to which he assured us there would be. On arriving at the hotel, we checked out the room and it seemed okay, but before we settled in we thought we would double check the price with the owner of the hotel, to which we were told 600. We said thank you very much but before we commit we would like to see if there is another hotel which is 500 as this was our budget. The man who had taken us to the hotel started to protest profusely, shouting 600! At us, and we again explained that we may return if we can’t find a cheaper room but we came to the hotel under the impression that there was a room in our budget and there was not. This was still not enough for the man, who continued to protest and then proceeded to follow us down the road, still pleading with us, as we asked at various hotels along the road. After asking at about 4 hotels and not yet finding one with any rooms, the guy following us said ‘okay okay 500’ and beckoned us back to the first hotel, so we followed. We got back to the first hotel and checked with the owner that this was correct…’500 okay?’ and he said ‘no, 600’ and then started having an argument with the man who brought us back. We left again, stating that we may be back but we were still looking around. The man protested again, and again followed us in our search for another hotel. Again, he said ‘okay okay 500’ so we gave him one last chance and surprise surprise it was still 600 and we were getting pretty fed up with this routine and now not wanting to stay at this hotel on a matter of principle even if it was the cheapest hotel. We left again, and eventually the guy left us alone to hunt for a room in peace. Luckily we did manage to find a room within our budget, in which one of the members of staff decided she and I were new best friends and invited herself to our wedding. I stupidly let her add me on facebook and she sent me lots of messages telling me how much she missed me.

We only had one day in Chandigah as we had planned to catch a train at 5pm the day after we arrived. On reading up about the town, the number one thing that was recommended was a rock garden, so we got up early and went to investigate. The rock garden was created by one man and was a place of his creations, made from rocks and recycled products such as plastic and broken bangles, and had phases. Phase one looked like a 5 year old’s art project, but the second phase had statues of people in various shapes and positions, and by phase 3 whole armies of people and animals emerged. There was also a park area filled with swings and distorting mirrors, which entertained us for a while.

A new pet white person to show off to friends

Armies of rock people and animals

They want brains

Gangnam style

Diana sized doors...

...But not Jonno sized

Swings must be taken very seriously. They are not a fun activity.

 

After the rock park we still had a few hours to kill, and saw on a map there was a lake nearby so decided to visit that. We walked towards it and discovered there was a nature park surrounding it with a 3km walking trail, and after signing in to the park (I am assuming it is to keep track of the people who get eaten alive by the peacocks) we started our leisurely stroll through the woodland. The area was so quiet, such a nice change from the constant horn honking and hawking coughs that we have been living with for the last couple of months. The only sounds were the birds and the rustle of wind through the trees. As we were walking, we heard a rustle and a huge peacock came swooping down from a tree across our path, it was so beautiful to see. We carried on our journey, seeing occasional squirrels and bugs and appreciating the tranquil scenery. We were enjoying the walk so much we carried on past the end point of the trail and continued to walk further, along the lake. It was only when we reached the end of the path and the only way forward was into the lake we realized the only way out was the path we had come, about 4 or 5km back, and we were starting to get tight for time before our train. So we turned back, and a lot less leisurely started our journey back to the entrance in the style of ‘We’re going on a bear hunt’ (http://www.funnysongsforkids.com/childrens-classics/were-going-on-a-bear-hunt). We made it back to the entrance just before the groundsman put our papers in the pile labelled ‘peacock food’, and hailed a rickshaw for a speedy drive by via the hotel to collect our bags and get to the station to wait for our inevitably delayed train.

Do not tease the wild animals

View point in the park

The train arrived with a mere delay of a few hours, and the side of the carriages are labelled ‘chair car’. We assume that means that all seats are the same for this train, so jump on the nearest carriage. The carriage has many vacant seats with a vast amount of room, every seat has a tray table, there is a plug socket and plenty of room underneath the seats for our bags. Thrilled with the luxury for the very cheap tickets, we settle down and prepare for a very comfortable 4-5 hour journey. Unfortunately, a few minutes later we are interrupted by a man saying these seats are reserved for him. Turns out you can’t expect these luxuries for a common man’s ticket price. We reluctantly vacate the seats, and head off in search of the lower class carriage where we belong. By now, the unreserved carriage was nicely full in the way that only Indian transport can be, and we just about managed to squeeze ourselves and our bags on. There was no question regarding if there was an area for us to sit- we could barely find space for our feet on the floor to stand. We tucked our bags behind our legs and settled ourselves in for a not so comfortable journey of standing. As we have mentioned before, the Indian public on trains are extremely friendly and by the time our 5 hour journey was over (we only stood for a short 4 hours of it), pretty much all of the carriage knew our life stories (the ones who spoke English relayed it to the non-English speakers in Hindi). After picking up a few more facebook stalkers, it was time to get off the train at Amritsar. 

Plenty of room in the train