Chandigarh capitol of Punjab and Haryana

Highway Hanuman

Thursday October 27th. I stayed up having drinks and conversation with friends from work. Finally we watched the first episode of The Get Down. I couldn't rip myself away. It was engaging drama. Not everything about it was excellent but it pulled you in and it didn't let up. Afterwards I wandered downstairs, a little tipsy and packed. I always pack in my head before I actually pack and usually I locate the items or put them in a spot that will guarantee their inclusion by association. Sometimes I pre-pack a little as in the case of my camera or toiletry bag.

Troop of stone monkeys...

My alarm went off at 3am about 2 hours after I'd laid down. I called the taxi driver to confirm and after minor delays we took off for the airport. The flight left punctually at 5:30, rumbling down the undulating military strip of Pune international airport. Two hours feels interminably long on an airplane. Something about it is even worse than 10. Every moment I feel like we should finally be landing and after having that feeling about 17 thousand times we did actually circle in and touch down at Delhi airport.

He was trying to tell me something...

I had the worst possible coffee and a molten brick of a danish at Cafe Costa while trying to figure out where I needed to go to catch the bus to Chandigarh. Burnt tongue and exhaustion were offset by it being the first day of my holiday and traveling light. The shuttle took me out to a big, mostly empty lot with a station that had a single stand selling food and beverages. I had a hot toasted paneer sandwich and kept myself awake by talking to a street dog.

Get down at the Rock Garden

Once the bus came there was some confusion over whether or not I would be able to get on. I wanted to keep my bag, which was carry-on size, with me but the conductor wouldn't have it. I was nervous about it being under the bus as it contained my laptop but I figured it would be kept in a compartment only for passengers disembarking at Chandigarh, and so it was. Finally I was given a VIP seat right in the front. I didn't really want that one but it's hard to deny privilege when it's thrust upon you. I didn't want to seem ungrateful and somewhere there is the nagging
question whether it really is better somehow.

Disturbing bovine forms

The ride to Chandigarh was uneventful but I was glad that I had the chance to cover the ground from Delhi, giving me a feel for the terrain, distance and glimpses of the people and their lives. At the bus station a driver came up to me and I indicated a somewhat non-committal assent. He said the charge would be 80 rupees. We were then mobbed by about six other drivers and one of them said my original driver was a pedal rickshaw, not a motor rickshaw. The first driver said he would take me for 30 rupees.

I asked how far it was to the hotel Diamond Plaza, which I'd booked in advance and they said 3km. I was worried that the distance was too far for the rickshaw driver to pedal. 'Maybe it's too far for you?' I suggested. He looked downcast and the other drivers started loudly competing for my attention. He looked so disheartened that I decided I just couldn't take away his business so I said 'Let's go.' Usually I don't use pedal rickshaws as it seems like such grueling labor and it's extremely badly paid. At any rate, I perched up on the slanted seat behind the driver and he wheeled us onto the road and off we went.

Portable street food setup - tasty result!

It really wasn't that far off and it was more or less flat. I'd been told that Chandigarh was the only city in India designed and laid out on a grid. The city was originally planned by Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier. There are a lot of green spaces in the city. The meridians are landscaped and it's quite orderly.

We soon came to the hotel Diamond Plaza, a cheap affair among a row of narrow storefront on a strip. I asked the driver to wait while I checked that my reservation was good and the hotel looked in order. It was and it did so I came back out and gave the driver 100 rupees. He was pretty happy to get that amount and I was happy I'd given him my custom.

Bright boats in Chandigarh

The next day was Saturday and after my morning run I went out to see some sights. First stop was the rock garden. The rock garden in Chandigarh is one of those park-like constructions somewhere between kitsch and art, ugliness and beauty, awkward and elegant. Basically an artist made or had made, a bunch of cement figures covered in a mosaic of porcelain from plates, electrical outlets and other materials. He created a series of imaginative spaces and filled them up with these figures, some of which are unique and some of which are repeated versions which are more or less similar. The cumulative effect is impressive and some of the spaces are inspired. A lot of it is kind of a cobbled together child-like dream of forts with bridges for trolls and waterfalls. Couples evade a young security guard who carries a stick and tries to catch them in the act of getting too close for propriety. He seems to take his work rather seriously but the couples seem to enjoy the game.

A weird amphitheater

I was probably there for two hours. The next stop was the lake, which was about a 15 minute walk. I eschewed a rickshaw to stretch my legs. Along the way I came across a man selling hot food from a setup which was entirely transported on bicycle. Two containers for the main ingredients, buns and a chickpea paste, plus various spices, onions, hot peppers and lime and a tiny gas burner to heat it all up with. The burner was contained by a little copper shell with a grate inside. It was an altogether compact and portable kitchen.

The resulting veg burger was very tasty. I unfortunately didn't take a photo of it as I was busy stilling my appetite but it was a rather impressive result for such a tiny setup.

The lake was obviously important to the city social life, with a small amusement park with rides for the kids, a restaurant and a cafe where you could order beer. The lake itself seemed to be artificial and the water was quite low. The main attraction at the water was a huge collection of plastic paddle boats in a variety of forms and colours.

 Next to my hotel was a shop specializing in custom wedding attire. I was in there for a formal event so I had a kurta with me but one of the buttons made of a small wooden bead wrapped in cloth had come apart. I asked if they could repair it. The proprietor of Ellcanes Fashion, Simran invited me to relax in her office while a tailor repaired the button.

 She told me she had just opened the shop and is preparing to open a shop in Vancouver in February. Vancouverites, look for her shop for a mix of the modern and traditional in Indian formal fashion. She offered me some Diwali cashews and didn't charge me for the repairs. All in all a very nice exchange. She also sells high quality textiles from northern India. Beautiful