Udayan - a new beginning

The Northern Indian sun shone brightly for us as the smell of pancakes wafted from the breakfast room and we enjoyed our first reasonable start to the trip. We travelled by horse and cart to Jallianwala Bagh to learn about the massacre of thousands of peaceful Indian demonstrators in 1919 by British troops following General Dyer’s inhuman orders. We were befriended by many Indians who chatted to us and asked for our pictures, slightly odd in light of the nature of the memorial. We were surprised how tranquil it was inside the memorial in contrast with the hustle and bustle of Indian life.

We moved onto the breathtaking Golden Temple where we were guided around the lake by the soft beat of a Sikh drum and the gentle chanting of the scriptures, the lake bore the reflection of the temple. We bathed in the water underneath a tree where a leper was once miraculously cured. The girls helped prepare the chapattis while the boys stirred the vast caldrons of curry which would later be served to 500 thousand people throughout the day. After peeling scraps of food off our feet, we slowly completed our lap around the Golden Temple before reclaiming our shoes and returning to the mayhem of the Indian streets.

We took the rest of the day for our leisure; some of the braver (Camilla, Jamie, Dominic and Maya) took icy waters that were the swimming pool for a quick dip. After regaining a normal body temperature we all took a tuktuk to the local market.

We are now off to revisit the Golden Temple at nightfall to see the putting to bed Ceremony of the Holy Book, the Guru Grant Sahib.

We will fill you in tomorrow with tonight’s activities.