Road trip to "City of Nector".

It might sound strange, but that is what the truth is. Many Indian cities have a second name associated for their popularity. The way "pink city" is to Jaipur, "Orange city" to Nagpur, Likewise City of nector is associated with Amritsar a city in Punjab provinces. Few days ago I reached Delhi only to join my friends for this trip. It was a quick plan and my friends were all set to surprise me. After 8 hrs of drive and covering 500 KM the city just gave a glimpse of their popularity. A wide big Golden gate right at the entrance of the city was ready to welcome us.

Amritsar is called the city of nectar because its name literally means "Pool of Nectar" (Amrit Sarovar). This name comes from the sacred pool that surrounds the Harmandir Sahib, also known as the Golden Temple, which is the holiest shrine in Sikhism. Even after residing so near to this city, I never been to this city before. But my friends called me up for a weekend road trip. I was excited to be part of it and to join them, I reached the pick up stop way ahead of schedule time.

After waiting for over 40 minutes, my friends arrived after their half day of office. They were excited too afteraall it was #tgif It was a Friday and a mini outing is must. They have been delaying such outing for long and unavailability of few but with festival season around they find an excuse to plan it, but it came out too quick to prepare much. We set off towards the National highway. I was expecting a smooth ride. And it turned out to be one. There is hardly any rush and entire trip was like travelling in a desserted piece of land. This is what stopped us from clicking the picture. After driving for 5 hrs, we stopped at a Dhaba for some meals.

The picture can tell the status of the dhaba not well maintauned but this is what we can expect from.such eateries

A "dhaba" is a roadside restaurant in the Indian subcontinent, often found along highways and serving traditional, home-style Indian cuisine. These casual eateries are popular with travelers and locals, known for affordable prices, a relaxed atmosphere, and authentic food, similar to a truck stop.

Finding the old fashioned cot, my frirnd who was on the driving seat finding it an oppurtunity to stretch his leg..

I was looking for such dhaba since long. These wooden cot allows the driver to rest and take their meals. They place a wooden plank in middle of the cot to make it look like table. We ordered some lentils and chapati. They serve it quickly

It was pretty late at night, we happens to be the only travellor, few drivers and rest the place was empty and deserted just as it happen during our entire trip.

But this dhaba does have some authentic traditional touch that state like Punjab is famous for. After taking little rest at the dhaba, we moved ahead to cover another 90 odd kilometer. The drive was again a lonely with not much traffic on the highway. After driving for another few hours , we took a sight of relief once entering Amritsar - city of nector. It was easy to notice due to the giant welcome gate.

This is a historic and architectural gate that serves as a welcome to the city. Sometimes the gate is referred to as the Sri Amritsar City Gateway. Finally we saw our destination around midnight and give us hope for an amazing weekend. Will keep you posted for more adventure from this amazing trip.

In good faith - Peace!!