Half a day earlier than planned I dropped my suitcase at the check-in counter of Dusseldorf Airport and enjoyed a final cup of coffee with Vladi before we said our goodbyes.
The worst part of the trip was over, saying goodbye to my love, my soulmate, my everything! I already missed Vladi, although I just passed security. Somehow, I felt weird, incomplete. Whilst waiting to board the first flight to München I felt strange as although I was on my way to India and I should be happy I could not yet. The pain of saying goodbye was still lingering.
We took off punctual and less than an hour later we arrived in Munchen where I passed customs for a passport check and walked to the gate where a huge crowd was already waiting to board the massive Lufthansa A-380 for the 7 ½ hour flight to Delhi. It was during boarding I felt excited for the first time to return to my beloved India. I had a seat at the upper deck with only one other guest next to me, a young Indian expat, and thanks to the nice conversation I had with him the flight passed by quickly. Before we realised the descent into Delhi had begun.
Customs went surprisingly quick for Indian standards. Welcome back to India Mr. Marcus! Not much later I had collected my luggage and was dropped at my airport hotel by a taxi. By now it was 2:00 in the morning and although tired I first called Vladi to let him know all was fine and I had arrived safely. Then I fell into a restless sleep. The adrenaline was rushing through my blood so sleeping was an issue. I didn’t care, I was back in India, the adventure could begin!
After a short but restless night I checked out from the hotel and took a taxi back to terminal 3 for my next flight to Chandigarh. As I had booked an early afternoon flight, I could do things at ease. Sharp 15:00 I landed in Chandigarh.
Chandigarh, known as “The City Beautiful,” is India’s first planned city, serving as the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana. Designed by Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier, it is renowned for its grid-based sector system, modernist architecture, and high quality of life. The wide streets with plentiful of green and landscaped gardens at the roundabouts made an almost un-Indian impression. If it was not because of the people and the inevitable traffic jam with the constant sound of horns I could imagine being in a different county. My hotel was located at a shopping strip and once I got changed, I went for a short stroll and… a well-deserved Old Monk Rum with coke in a local bar, such a treat. I decided to do nothing for the remainder of the day and just relax. Although the trip so far has been very easy going with a short night of sleep in between flights, I felt I just needed some time to recover.
Instead of dining at the bar I decided to go to the restaurant next-door as their menu made a better impression when I passed by, a wise choice. The food was simply finger licking good, my first tasting of proper Indian food of this trip. And with that wonderful feeling I returned to my hotel room for a good night of sleep.
Next morning I took things easy before I got a Tuk Tuk to the Rock Garden, but before getting there I got stuck in a major traffic jam leading to election meetings next to the garden. For people going to work a nuisance perhaps but I thought it was brilliant!
Nek Chand Rock Garden is a massive 40-acre sculpture garden. It is famous for being built entirely from industrial and home waste like ceramic shards, broken bangles, and discarded wires and was secretly created by a government official who’s name it was given, starting in 1957.
It was an unusual garden, the locals visiting were excited about my presence and encouraged me to make pictures in return for countless selfies. For the first time I felt like embraced again by India and I could not help walking around with a big smile on my face. Happiness truly lies in the shortest of friendly encounters.
My next stop was a bit more traditional, the Zakir Hussain Rose garden, a beautiful park which blended in perfectly in the green streets of Chandigarh. It’s Asia’s largest rose sanctuary. Established in 1967, this 30-acre botanical masterpiece features more than 1,600 varieties of roses and over 50,000 rose bushes. A great opportunity for me to experiment with some macro photography.
The place was used by many couples for a romantic time together, others were having lunch and I even witnessed a little princess whose birthday it was today.
Not far away was sector 17, often called the “Heart of Chandigarh”. The Sector 17 Market (or City Centre) is the city’s premier commercial and social hub, designed by the visionary architect Le Corbusier. It’s a pedestrian paradise; unlike typical crowded Indian bazaars, Sector 17 is a large, open-air pedestrian plaza where vehicles are restricted to the periphery, allowing visitors to walk freely.
I enjoyed the atmosphere for a while and had a refreshing mixed fruit juice. Unfortunately, there were no proper restaurants in the area so I took a tuk tuk back to my hotel as I knew there were plenty of restaurants in that area. I enjoyed the most prefect lunch one could imagine after which I picked up my laptop in order to work on my diary.
The remainder of the day I relaxed and enjoyed an old monk rum in the bar I discovered yesterday. A great and chill full way to finish my first day in India.
Continue the journey to Himachal Pradesh