Being an experimental civil development project, Chandigarh does not have much to offer in terms of tourism except those places that I covered on my first day here: the Rock Garden, Rose Garden, Sukhna Lake, and the Leisure Valley. And since we came here earlier than expected, we had to head back out of town to keep from boredom.
Well relaxing was the most important thing on the agenda. Having woken up at the break of dawn every day so far to travel, we decided that we would sleep in a little and actually have a vacation. So at noon, we left the house and headed out of the state of Punjab to Haryana. Our first stop was Pinjore Garden, which were designed in the 17th century for Aurangzeb, one of India’s cruelest kings during the Mogul rule. It is also said that these terraced gardens were created on the spot where the Pandava brothers (from Hindu mythology) rested during their exile before, as a sign board reads outside the gardens, “disappearing into oblivion in the Himalayas.” I found that amusing.
The gardens were beautiful though. I know I overuse this word, but I mean it every time I say it. They were very well manicured and for something that was built in the 17th century, they still look as though they were created last year. We walked around there for a good long while mum told me about her childhood visits here and how she used to climb trees and sneakily pick fruits from there – and my god, were there fruit trees!? Hundreds of them! A bazillion species of mango, peach, lychee, guava as well as apricot, plum and many more! Of course most of these were out of season, but that didn’t stop us from picking a few and nibbling on clover-like leaves. All the while, I kept thinking how amazing it is to walk on grass (damn you Hong Kong!)
After the gardens, we went to the Mansa Devi temple (one of the lower-ranking goddesses that I mentioned yesterday) and then to the Patiala Mandir (another temple). Both temples were nearly empty and therefore less…uh…commercial. I actually enjoyed looking around and appreciating the culture there.
From there, it was an hour’s drive home and by then the sun had set. We don’t have anything planned for tomorrow. I’m probably just going to lounge around at home and waste my time this way or that. We’re leaving for Delhi on the 3rd, but I have nothing to do until then. Maybe a little shopping? At least the first two days of 2009 will be relaxing. We’ll see what the rest of the year brings!
Happy New Year!
Well relaxing was the most important thing on the agenda. Having woken up at the break of dawn every day so far to travel, we decided that we would sleep in a little and actually have a vacation. So at noon, we left the house and headed out of the state of Punjab to Haryana. Our first stop was Pinjore Garden, which were designed in the 17th century for Aurangzeb, one of India’s cruelest kings during the Mogul rule. It is also said that these terraced gardens were created on the spot where the Pandava brothers (from Hindu mythology) rested during their exile before, as a sign board reads outside the gardens, “disappearing into oblivion in the Himalayas.” I found that amusing.
The gardens were beautiful though. I know I overuse this word, but I mean it every time I say it. They were very well manicured and for something that was built in the 17th century, they still look as though they were created last year. We walked around there for a good long while mum told me about her childhood visits here and how she used to climb trees and sneakily pick fruits from there – and my god, were there fruit trees!? Hundreds of them! A bazillion species of mango, peach, lychee, guava as well as apricot, plum and many more! Of course most of these were out of season, but that didn’t stop us from picking a few and nibbling on clover-like leaves. All the while, I kept thinking how amazing it is to walk on grass (damn you Hong Kong!)
After the gardens, we went to the Mansa Devi temple (one of the lower-ranking goddesses that I mentioned yesterday) and then to the Patiala Mandir (another temple). Both temples were nearly empty and therefore less…uh…commercial. I actually enjoyed looking around and appreciating the culture there.
From there, it was an hour’s drive home and by then the sun had set. We don’t have anything planned for tomorrow. I’m probably just going to lounge around at home and waste my time this way or that. We’re leaving for Delhi on the 3rd, but I have nothing to do until then. Maybe a little shopping? At least the first two days of 2009 will be relaxing. We’ll see what the rest of the year brings!
Happy New Year!
Cherry Blosson at the Pinjore Garden
Main gate at the Pinjore Gardens
(left) Mansa Devi temple; (right) A truck's rear: trucks in India (and Pakistan) are so heavily decorated that the pretty designs on them almost excuse them for polluting the roads with their heavy diesel smog. Almost. What I find hilarious is the mantra written at the back of most of these trucks. A mantra that rules the India's traffic - Horn Please. Or a variation thereof.
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Wow that is amazing. I love you photos from this trip feesh =)
ReplyDeletethanks feeshy! it's been fun taking photos this time :) x
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