Day four: factories and Sikhs

Day Four - Jan. 25th

Something can be said of Indian hospitality. I have not eaten this much or this well ever. Everyone that has received us here so far has taken very, very good care of us. In fact, I think I will be returning to the states with a few more cavities and a few more pounds than expected. After a long 14 hour flight, we were received at the airport by our driver for the next day. We drove from the Indira Ghandi International Airport to our guest house located in a somewhat affluent suburb of Dehli, Gurgaon. When I say somewhat affluent that means that there are sky rise apartments surrounded by the poor that build them.
That night we went for a late dinner at one of the most expensive restaurants in the area which happens to be in the Radisson. Our meal, $70 for 5 people. I hope that this is the most expensive meal of the trip.

After a short but restful sleep at the guest house and a great breakfast of Parathas we hop in our car for a whirl wind tour of this massive sprawling city. In the little time we had we were able to see most of the new part of the city that was created by the British when they moved their captial from Kolkata. I now see that the term new is used very liberally. I have yet to see the old part of the city which I intend to see on a later visit.

Our fisrt train experience on this trip was the Shatabdi Express which is apparently one of the most deluxe trains in India. After finding our place on the crowded platform we waited a few short minutes for our train to pull in for our journey to Judihana, a city of about 2.5 Million that is know as the wool and textile capital of India. The journey was quite pleasant, the service on the train was better than you will find on airlines these days although the food was a bit starange (Think cole slaw sandwhich on wonder bread.)
We were met on the platform by Naresh, the father of one of James' friends. He greeted us and quickly rushed us through the crowds to the parking lot and through the still busy city streets. Since we have been here in Ludhiana Naresh and his family have been nothing but kind and generous. We found out that it was his birthday that night and that we would be attending a small party in his honor. The restaurant that was choosen was called Big Meats and is what Indians would call a non-veg restaurant. We ate fish, chicken and lamb served in many, many different varieties with a few different kinds of breads.
So far, my second favorite activity in India is driving around (eating being the first of course.) There appears to be no rules of the road and it is a free for all of honking and flashing of lights. Here is a video to show you just a bit of what driving through the small city streets of Ludhiana is like.

We have seen so many things today including the clothing factory that Naresh helps to operate in Ludhiana, a famous Gurdwara (Sikh place of worship) where we were invited to have tea with the president of the Gurdwara and a kid using a garbage bag for a kite.
Right now we are on our way to the city of Amritsar and the site of the famous Sikh site, the Golden Temple. Oh and there is nothing like rolling down the highway with your Toyota bumping Hindi classics.