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Well, I almost didn't make it off the train because so many people were shoving in the doors, but other than that scary arrival experience, I managed to find the bus stop and make my way to the only planned city in India!
I regret not spending more time here as I really enjoyed my jam-packed day of touring around the city! I stayed at a really great hotel that had a heater (included in the price!) that worked. The only downside was that my bathroom had a clerestory that was opened towards the hotel lobby as well as another guests bathroom so I didn't have much privacy there! I was just so happy to finally be warm that I didn't really care!
I had decided to take a bus tour that you could get on and off to see all of the sites because Chandigarh is really quite a large city. Well, typical India they decided to change the bus departure time to later and I didn't feel like sitting around and waiting so I decided to head off on foot, and I'm really glad I did!
My first stop was the city museum, on the way I passed the rose garden, one of many planned gardens in the city and very well kept! Although the museum is definitely in need of some repair work, and I was sad to see that some of the original drawings had been destroyed by the sun that was allowed to shine on them, the museum is a definite must for everyone to understand the history of the city. They even had the original models used for the civic buildings - really cool! I also learned that the original plan was started by two American architects but the one died in a plane crash in Cairo and that's when Le Corbusier took over.
From here I decided not to see the other museum and started walking through the nearby gardens towards the civic center. I could see that a lot of thought went into how the traffic worked in the city planning but I have to admit that I was disappointed in how little thought was given to the pedestrian. Once I hit the end of one of the blocks I had to walk parallel to the road for some time to find a place to cross over and continue onto the next garden. I was surprised to see a dedicated jogging path in the next park I walked through. Of course no one was actually running on it, but at least they considered it! If I only had my running shoes...I am feeling so unfit!
After finally reaching the civic center and figuring out how to get in through the checkpoints I first stopped at the secretariat building. having just seen a model of the building it was interesting to see it in person. Sadly, it has been modified through the years and has exposed plumbing lines and many different types of glazing enclosing what were once balconies but it is still impressive. From here I somehow figured out how to get to the central courtyard between the Vidhan Sabha and the High Court buildings. This was this vast ceremonial courtyard space and there was absolutely no one in it. I felt very small and kind of afraid that someone was going to come running up to me questioning why I was there. But I got some great photos! Unfortunately there wasn't a connection between the two buildings anymore as it had barbed wire so I had to backtrack to make it over to the high court. I regret not trying to go inside as I read afterward that it is open to the public. I got a bit intimidated by the lawyers or judges or whatever they were in their black robes with the funny white collars. They were gathered outside in large groups talking. I thought that it was interesting that there were stalls set up in front selling law reference books. I guess while you're in court if you need to look something up you can just run outside or something!
My next stop of the day was really fun and unexpected. I went to the rock gardens, a place created by an artist using industrial waste. It was kind of like Disneyland without the rides. There were so many waterfalls and statues and mosaics it was so fun to walk around. Of course, there weren't any maps and I think that I saw that the place covered 3 acres but I think he built this place with either children or dwarfs in mind as all of the arched doorways were super short and I had to constantly watch my head when I was walking around! It was here that a really friendly family struck up a conversation with me. They were actually from Los Angeles, well, they're from L.A. but their children go to boarding school in India and they were there to spend the holiday with them. They were so nice, the wife gave me some much appreciated snacks that I can't find here - peanut M&M's!!! Oh boy! It was then that I realized that it was 2:00 and I hadn't eaten breakfast yet. Wow, I am starving!
I headed for a short walk down the road to the lake, don't remember the name, but it had great food! There were all these colorful paddleboats in the shapes of swans and ducks out on the water and the contrast between these and the very simple, modern tower on the island in the lake was really nice. I'll upload a photo!
From here I needed a break so I decided to take a cycle-rickshaw. This was my first experience on this mode of transport and I have to admit that I was a bit conflicted. First I wanted to offer to switch places so I could get some exercise; however, I realized that I can't drive here as I cannot seem to cross the street without looking in the wrong direction - there was no way I could navigate the streets without heading the wrong way! So then I sat there and felt rather guilty having someone bike me around. I almost took a photo of the driver's pants as they were about to split open at the seam but then I realized that would be rather rude. Then we reached the more high traffic areas and I became a bit freaked out as we were out in the traffic and I was relying on him to get us going to avoid being hit and stopping and all that. So yes, this will be my final cycle-rickshaw ride here in India, thank you very much!
After making a brief pit stop at the hotel I headed off to the shopping center of town, just a short 10 minute walk away. I hadn't planned on buying anything but I managed to walk away with quite a few things, none of them Indian - all of them western in origin! How bad am I? I couldn't help it though, I really did need some of the items. Oh wait! I did buy some really good sweets, they are so cheap here, no wonder I don't feel fit, ha!
So back to the hotel and on to dinner. I tried a thalia, which is a mixture of different types of food and it was really good! I have to admit that I was so tired after my long day of walking it was really difficult to get out of the chair after eating! But so long Chandigarh as I have an early morning train to catch. If only I had spent more time here!
previous travel blog entry
chandigarh says:
Chandigarh decaying in the name of development Hemant Goswami The contribution of Chandigarh After having spent my childhood in Chandigarh, it took me nearly twenty years to understand the contribution of Chandigarh to the development of India. The more I travelled around the country, the more I got convinced about how Chandigarh had silently shaped the development of modern urban India. As the first modern planned city of Independent India, conceived by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Chandigarh was deemed as a city “unfettered by the traditions of the past, a symbol of the nation’s faith in the future.” Chandigarh, indeed, has no reflection of our colonial past and has truly paved the way for modern cities with proper urban planning and well laid out master plans. Most Indian cities were later built on the success of Chandigarh as a modern city. A City now killed by whims of individuals Le Corbusier had visualised the possibility of greedy and opportunistic people trying to hijack the materialistic returns which Chandigarh could provide and so he passed on the responsibility to save Chandigarh on its citizens. While laying down the ‘Edicts of Chandigarh,” he clearly wrote, “The object of this edict is to enlighten the present and future citizens of Chandigarh about the basic concepts of planning of the city so that they become its guardians and save it from the whims of individuals.” Though Corbusier was foresighted enough to ensure legislative protection to the city but within fifty years, the termite of greed and corruption has started pushing Chandigarh to the path of self-destruction. Murder in the name of futuristic development “Shouldn’t Chandigarh also progress and become dynamic with time?” was the counter-question of the bureaucratic mouth-piece of the property mafia when they were recently confronted with the unscientific abrasive sale of property in Chandigarh. I ask: Is a “Film-City” a requirement of the city? Is a hundred acre ‘Amusement park” within Chandigarh the need of a city with 114 square km of area? Is a “Milk City” and a “Vegetable market” built by uprooting thousands of farmers from Chandigarh a prudent futuristic idea? Is constructing commercial flats till the regulatory end of the lake, a development in the interest of the city? Is selling a two room flat for 60 lakh the dream of a socialist Pandit Nehru? Is inviting migratory population to Chandigarh, in the name of various projects, a prudent idea? No unbiased urban development expert can justify any of these acts in Chandigarh. In the last five years, the city has seen open loot and plundering in the name of development. Unfortunately all this so called development activities have made the city more fragile and less adaptable for the natural evolutionary process of development. Chandigarh - The loose end of democratic India The 1980’s were a bad phase for the region. During the Punjab disturbance, the bureaucratic control of Chandigarh also got disturbed. The changes effected included the Punjab Governor assuming the role of “Administrator” or the chief executive officer of Chandigarh. This change of guard has proven fatal for Chandigarh as it shifted the decision taking power from the hand of the Union Ministry and Parliament to the hand of an unelected political nominee who has all the reasons to be tempted to act on his whims and fancies instead of following the scientific approaches. In my opinion, Governors are mostly political appointees, assuming power only as a reward for their sycophancy and on the basis of “who-knows-who” politics. They are not accountable to the people or the parliament either directly or indirectly and only answer to their political masters. That’s one of the reasons why our Constitution does not provide for any executive powers to the Governor. Giving executive powers and the control of the state to a person who does not represent the faith of the people is undemocratic and against the very basis of the constitution. Chandigarh has fallen into this peculiar trap and has become the only state in the country which is being ruled by someone not answerable to the parliament either directly or indirectly. Save Chandigarh before it is too late There is an urgent need to get back to the basics. All the futuristic development plans of Chandigarh have to go into the hands of the urban-development experts and not the non-technical bureaucrats of doubtful integrity. The desired extrapolated growth has to be as scientific as the initial concept of Chandigarh was. It has to eliminate the possibility of personal whims and plug the leakages through the legislative route. If someone is unhappy with the concept of Chandigarh, let him or her go and construct another Chandigarh instead of tinkering with the present one. The citizens of the city have to stand up and fight to protect this city. Article from Indian Express