The INCREDIBLE Golden Temple!

Amritsar, India took me by surprise.  I had NO IDEA how amazing this place would be - especially after almost three weeks in the quiet and relatively clean Himalayas.  After my meditation experience, I was a little concerned about jumping back into the hustle-bustle of India's city-life.  But, Amritsar is heavenly.

Amritsar's is known for the famous "Golden Temple" which is a holy Sikh shrine.  From the second you first lay eyes on it, you become mezmerized.   I visited it multiple times (since it was around the corner from our hotel) at various times of the day.  Each time of day offers a new experience.  I prefer late at night. 

Why?  The Sikh people are the nicest people I have ever met in all my life.

  As a daily ritual, they visit the temple as a place to spend family time, alone time and even social time!  Being some of the only westerners there, we attracted a lot of attention.  Children, teenagers and adults approached us constantly to engage in conversation.  They just wanted to talk - to know where we were from, what we do and if we know anything we can teach them.  They are genuinely interested in having a conversation - with no rush to be somewhere.  Some of them talked for over 30 minutes before wishing us well and saying goodbye!

The Golden Temple is surrounded by a vast white palace with a huge water-filled courtyard.  The Golden Temple floats in the middle of the water-courtyard.  This is a Sikh temple.  Sikhs welcome EVERYONE.  The palace is open for homeless to sleep and eat for FREE.  Where else in the world to the poorest people live and eat in a beautiful palace for free...?? Only in India. 

The main memory that I take away from Amristar is the kindness and genuine friendliness of the Sikh people.  OH, and many amazing photos.  I only posted a few here.  But, enjoy them....!!!  Talk soon.