Sikh It Out

When i did my TEFL certification course at the wonderful Boston Language Institute (yes, of "T" fame, beantowners) our headmaster dude was a fella wearing a turban and a white mundu. We all thought he was an Arab. "Actually" he said, "I'm from Philadelphia." He continued to explain that he is a Sikh, and that they are definitly not Arabs. Don and i went to the Sikh holy city of Amritsar, right on the India/Pakistan border. It was a 24 hour train journey from Varanasi to Punjab, one made much more uncomfortable buy some stomach bug i picked up somewhere along the line in Varanasi, which kept me moving between the bunk and the toilet. You really get acquainted with those things, toilets. Like the train varity which have two metal footprints to show you where to place your feet when you squat.
But Amritsar was beautiful, the Golden Temple is fantastic, and the Sikhs seem to have a great thing going on. We also made a stop by the border to watch the ceremonial Closing of the Border. The biggest Indian and Pakistani army men are chosen to huff and puff at each other while they lower the flags and officially close the border to traffic for the evening. People gather on both sides to cheer and jeer at the soldiers below. Check it out!