No colonial guilt whatsoever

Hit breakfast early then off the Amritsar. First the Jallianwala Bagh to see bullet holes in the walls and hear about the British Army massacring 1900 peaceful Sikh protestors. From the height of the bullet holes it’s clear that just shooting over their heads wasn’t an option… First dose of colonial guilt tripping today (not the last…)

Then off to the Golden Temple which somehow seems less magical in the daylight. Since the queue to visit the actual Golden Temple was 3 hours long we decided to give up our places to true believers and pressed on. This time we went into the Lagan and saw the food prep, cooking and washing up that delivers a meal a second 24 hours a day…. Clue: very large cooking pots and flames that would not be out of place in a steel works. (Plus a machine that makes chapatis very quickly indeed.)

Lunch in the restaurant that all the tourist guides go to, went Italian as Indian will always be available. Then the inevitable tourist tax visit to the government licensed ‘local craft shop….’

Moving on then to the Retreat Ceremony at Wagah. Arriving early and judicious waving of our passports got us pretty good VIP like seats.

The only thing missing from the ceremony was a pantomime horse, otherwise everything was there – aggressive facial hair twirling, competitive public singing/chanting, stirring music and some pretty non-military stride patterns. Has to be seen though. Sat behind was an American who was explaining to his guide that he didn’t know much, if anything about why the ceremony existed. So colonial Brits who made the Indians part of the empire and forced partition into Pakistan & India with its associated forced migration get their 2nd dose of guilt tripping.

Back to the hotel to meet up with Ben & Virgil from Elite in the bar to discuss the next few days. Then dinner and bed.