How many miles a man must travel before he gets his perfect biryani. The answer my friend is blowing in the wind, the answer is blowing in the wind. And the aroma and the smell in the wind will lead you to really great distances! And that is how our trip to Lucknow was planned. The plan though was aided by the sudden offer 
of extra low airfares in the internet which made the return tickets available to us in pretty low value. The journey from Delhi was booked in the Lucknow Mail and the hotel chosen was the Park Inn, which is now the La Place Sarovar Portico (a brand that was tried and tested, both by the traveling community as well as us). Choosing this hotel was also due its location at Hazratganj, an old section of the city and which would give a real feel of the Awadhi charm.
We came out a bit early from office on Thursday. And after an early dinner we were on our way around 7:45 pm, with more than two hours in our hand to cope up with the unpredictable traffic. And unpredictable it really was and we reached the station in a mere forty five minutes! The wait at the station was a bit boring. We waited at the waiting room, tried out a bit of ice cream; while we watched quite few trains come and go. Even after all this it was still just quarter past nine. We trudged from platform 1 to platform 16, our designated platform. And the train was yet to arrive. Debarghya was on the verge of losing his patience and we were at our limits as well. But it was around this time that the train chuffed into the platform. Things stabilized pretty fast after that. Debarghya settled down quickly in his allotted lower berth and with in half an hour was fast asleep.
We reached pretty much on time at Lucknow. And like any other big city in India we had a bit of a harrowing time just after getting out of the railway station; as we were almost swarmed around by a hoard of auto rickshaw-wallas. Sushree acted quite prudently, and managed to hop in an auto, which was quite not prepared for taking in any commuters. A bit startled, he led us to the near by pre paid auto booth. From there on, the journey to our hotel was smooth.
The first couple of hours at the La Place Sarovar Portico hotel are worth forgetting fast. We had to wait at the not so comfortable hotel lobby for our room to be ready. And that was more than an hour and half. In the time being, we had enjoyed the wonderful spread at the breakfast buffet. Then the room that was made available was a nightmare to say the least. Sushree again took the initiative this time and her strive for a better room bore immediate fruit as the hotel authorities responded with in an hour. This time the room was definitely more habitable.
We took turns in getting refreshed and then move out for lunch. We had planned beforehand to have our lunch at Tunday Kababi at the nearby Saharaganj Mall. We moved out and walked to the destination.
Debarghya was most probably amazed at finding himself in front of a McDonalds! And we had to treat him with his favorite aloo bhaja (fries) and an egg burger. Then we went window shopping for some time! This may sound a bit strange, but in reality the weather outside at Lucknow and our energy level after the nights travel would not have allowed us to do anything else. And after an hour or so, the hunger pangs became strong enough to lead us to the food court at the top floor. We found Tunday pretty easily, and Debarghya located Dominos! So we all had whatever we had asked for. Debarghya had pizza. Sushree went for biryani and korma and I opted for the galawati tunday special kebabs with paratha. And yummy it really was. The kebabs were soft and moist. A real melt in the mouth affair. The biryani was almost perfect, definitely better than what we are used to get in Delhi (a strange mixed variety of spicy rice, a bizarre cross between the Hyderabadi and the Lucknowi variety). The korma was a bit of a dampener, though. After the lunch it was really difficult for us to do anything at all, but we somehow managed to trudge back to our hotel room for a well earned siesta!
Afternoon was planned to venture out for another item Lucknow is famous for – Chikan – the traditional embroidery style from Lucknow, which when literally translated, means embroidery and is believed to have been introduced by Nur Jehan, Mughal emperor Jahangir's wife. So we took a cycle rickshaw and driver (!) guided us through crowded winding roads of old Lucknow to a quaint shop. The shop at basement though was a shopper’s delight. The range was enormous and we bought quite few items from there. The rickshaw had waited up for us. And back he brought us to our hotel.
Dinner was room service of roti, chicken and rice. And the food took longer than normal to arrive and was a bit cold as well. But the sleep was very comfortable. The first day at Lucknow was well spent.
The next was planned for a city tour. We booked our car at the hotel itself, had our breakfast and were out by 10 in the morning. We were guided by the driver to the various locations. We started with the most popular Lucknowi tourist spot, the Bara Imambara and the Bhoolbhulaiya. We dodged our way past the guides into the Imambara. The maintenance at the place was crying out desperately for a non-step fatherly attitude towards itself from the Archeological Survey of India. The crowd around was also mostly local people, and mostly with a religious mindset for the place. We were hence quite the unbefitting type, who were a bit out of place. The Imambara itself was magnificent and magnanimous. It housed the very unassuming grave of Sultan Asaf-ud-Daulah, the central hall of Bara Imambara, which is said to be the largest arched hall in the world. And also the Taziya and Zari works inside. We wandered around the place for a bit, and then ventured towards the Bhoolbhulaiya upstairs. And the Bhoolbhulaiya really stood up to its reputation. The narrow passages and the play of the light and shade in the alleys along the periphery of the place was the perfect prologue to the call of the unknown and the darkness inside. The invitation to move inside was open to us, the obscurity of the dark alleys inside was as if luring us to move in to the trap. And we ventured in, without a guide. We agreed to move back and retrace the steps back as soon as we feel a bit of discomfort of being lost! And we may not have travelled even 50 meters in the maze, when something happened. It was not even 
near to pitch dark inside. And even the clamor and clatter of the crowd outside was audible, though it had dimmed down to a mere hush-hush. But at the next junction, something made us feel somewhat eerie inside. And hence we decided to move back. We retraced our path very confidently, or at least that is what we thought. But the return trip started to seem longer than expected, and though it seemed that we were pretty close to getting out, we were not able to get out of the labyrinth! We were out in the open pretty quickly after that, but the exit point was at least a hundred meters away from the entrance we had used. It was bit of nerve wrecking, but had its own taste of excitement. But one really fails to understand the entertainment value of this location. It is believed that the Sultan used to play hide and seek with his Begums in this place! It could easily have been used as a means of punishment as well; people left inside and will go crazy on being unable to get out on their own. So each one will have their own interpretation of the Bhoolbhulaiya!
We took a mini break after coming out of the labyrinth, with a bit of cold drinks and chips. (We needed that!) We overlooked the Bowli or the Shahi Hammam, a step well with running water from the river Gomti (no more going up and down steps) and just looked over at the quite colossal Asfi Mosque to reach our car.
We passed by the great Rumi Darwaza towrds the Chhota Imamabara. The Chhota Imambara was a beautiful building, though not the architectural wonder in the same league as the Taj Mahal, as it definitely lacked the majesty, yet it was quite exquisite. The gilded dome and the chandeliers inside were its most striking features. Just outside the Chhota Imambara was the Satkhanda, a building which was supposed to be seven stories high matching the Qutb Minar or the Leaning tower of Pisa, yet it laid there unfinished with only four completed stories in it. So much like the story of our lives, what could have been and what it actually is!
We stopped over for a bit near the Ghanta ghar or the Clock tower. At a staggering 221 feet, it stands tall as the tallest clock tower in the country. But here as well, the lack of proper maintenance was pretty much evident. The tower had been renovated, rather repaired, but it looked as if it was built may be couple of decades ago. The real touch of the Sultanate had gone missing!
Our taxi next dropped us off at the bank of the Gomti River. The river was just a bit better than a normal rivulet, and there was only a small portion of the bank which was carefully patched up, paved and maintained for the tourists and may be the local poeple as well. But beyond that patch, it provided the sorry picture of any normal Indian river; polluted, uncared and dirty! But the gentle cool breeze provided a sense of freshness, which prompted us to sit by the riverside for a brief moment and enjoy a mail train crossing the old bridge across the river at a distance.
Next in the agenda was the Residency. Though it was not much recommended by our driver, yet we insisted that we visit the place. We have read about it in many a place; history books and novels and story books alike! And in the end we were not disappointed. Though the lack of proper maintenance was eminent here as well, but it was definitely the cleanest place that we visited that day. There was an unusual problem though. The area was lush green with lots of trees around, and that attracted huge number of love birds! They seemed to have flocked there in pairs all across the area. If you could keep that unpleasantness away from your vision, the place otherwise is charming. It gives a real feel of the era gone by, and a recreates the feel of the mutiny, and was able to conjure up the chaos and violence of the riots. None of the building, except the one where there is now a museum, is intact! And broken walls and shattered ceilings really tell you a story. We wandered around the place for some time, even ventured inside the not so impressive museum till we were almost famished. So we moved on to our next and may be the most important agenda for the day – Lunch.
As per plan, lunch was planned at the Dastarkhwan. The driver easily led us to one of the three outlets of the famous eating joint in Lucknow, most probably the Lalbagh branch. The interiors of the place were hanging in balance between being too glossy and being outright shabby. But overall the place was comfortable. We quickly placed the order, which was guided by the reviews and feedback of the place. The galawati kebab with paratha, the biryani and the special chicken masala with rotis arrived in no time. (Sad to say, they were not serving sheermal for some reasons on that day.) And the food quality really lived up to the reputation of the place. The biryani was one of the best that we have ever tasted, if not the best. The chicken masala was exquisitely spiced and had chunks of chicken, the meat of which was falling from the bones. The kebabs were also a melt in the mouth affair. In the end we had shahi tukda, which was equally gorgeous! After gorging through the brilliant meal, it was time to head back to the hotel.
In the evening we ventured out to have a feel of the city, trying to look at it from pretty close. And we took a
cycle rickshaw towards the local open market in the Aminabad area. The chaos and commotion of a Saturday evening, countless numbers of small shops abundant with variety, and waves of local people aloof of the three of us, sweeping by us with their daily chores in their minds. Roaming around aimlessly for some time we decided to head back. In stead of going straight back to the hotel, we left the cycle rickshaw in the Mahatma Gandhi road. The street was lined with showrooms of modern big brand names. The buildings on many occasions were still pretty old ones, and strikingly most of them were colored in the same patterns of white and black, and this color code was irrespective of the brand that it housed. It was strikingly strange and somewhat mystically beautiful as well. Debarghya managed to get some small toys as his means of passé-la-temp in the hotel, and we some sweets quite typical of Lucknow for taking back home, and we walked back to the hotel, thoroughly drained of energy.
Dinner was Chinese, far away from the real essence of Awadhi charm, aroma and taste; but it was in an attempt to retain the wonderful memories of Dastarkhwan and to keep it as the lasting memory of Lucknow. And sleep was just around the corner.
The next morning we had our flight at 10:50 to Delhi. We had our breakfast pretty early, and checked out around nine. La Place, in their attempt to make amends to the bygone blunders and to heal the wounds and scars left earlier, made our third morning breakfast complimentary, and the services they provided for the airport drop free of charge. This left in us a good lasting feeling for the hotel, something like having a very good dessert after an ordinary starter. It really makes you linger on with the good taste after you have had your meal. The whole Lucknow trip was in effect like that, an aftertaste which involuntarily creates a smile in the face.
The trip back was easy, comfortable and uneventful. Indigo as always made it on time to Delhi, and we had some other elaborate plans after the landing, but it is definitely not a part of this adventure story. As this story is about our tryst with the Awadhi culture, cuisine and chronicles; stories of the past, present and future. And looking back now, the adventure was really overall a grand one, which shall remain in our memories for long.
of extra low airfares in the internet which made the return tickets available to us in pretty low value. The journey from Delhi was booked in the Lucknow Mail and the hotel chosen was the Park Inn, which is now the La Place Sarovar Portico (a brand that was tried and tested, both by the traveling community as well as us). Choosing this hotel was also due its location at Hazratganj, an old section of the city and which would give a real feel of the Awadhi charm.We came out a bit early from office on Thursday. And after an early dinner we were on our way around 7:45 pm, with more than two hours in our hand to cope up with the unpredictable traffic. And unpredictable it really was and we reached the station in a mere forty five minutes! The wait at the station was a bit boring. We waited at the waiting room, tried out a bit of ice cream; while we watched quite few trains come and go. Even after all this it was still just quarter past nine. We trudged from platform 1 to platform 16, our designated platform. And the train was yet to arrive. Debarghya was on the verge of losing his patience and we were at our limits as well. But it was around this time that the train chuffed into the platform. Things stabilized pretty fast after that. Debarghya settled down quickly in his allotted lower berth and with in half an hour was fast asleep.
We reached pretty much on time at Lucknow. And like any other big city in India we had a bit of a harrowing time just after getting out of the railway station; as we were almost swarmed around by a hoard of auto rickshaw-wallas. Sushree acted quite prudently, and managed to hop in an auto, which was quite not prepared for taking in any commuters. A bit startled, he led us to the near by pre paid auto booth. From there on, the journey to our hotel was smooth.
The first couple of hours at the La Place Sarovar Portico hotel are worth forgetting fast. We had to wait at the not so comfortable hotel lobby for our room to be ready. And that was more than an hour and half. In the time being, we had enjoyed the wonderful spread at the breakfast buffet. Then the room that was made available was a nightmare to say the least. Sushree again took the initiative this time and her strive for a better room bore immediate fruit as the hotel authorities responded with in an hour. This time the room was definitely more habitable.
We took turns in getting refreshed and then move out for lunch. We had planned beforehand to have our lunch at Tunday Kababi at the nearby Saharaganj Mall. We moved out and walked to the destination.
Debarghya was most probably amazed at finding himself in front of a McDonalds! And we had to treat him with his favorite aloo bhaja (fries) and an egg burger. Then we went window shopping for some time! This may sound a bit strange, but in reality the weather outside at Lucknow and our energy level after the nights travel would not have allowed us to do anything else. And after an hour or so, the hunger pangs became strong enough to lead us to the food court at the top floor. We found Tunday pretty easily, and Debarghya located Dominos! So we all had whatever we had asked for. Debarghya had pizza. Sushree went for biryani and korma and I opted for the galawati tunday special kebabs with paratha. And yummy it really was. The kebabs were soft and moist. A real melt in the mouth affair. The biryani was almost perfect, definitely better than what we are used to get in Delhi (a strange mixed variety of spicy rice, a bizarre cross between the Hyderabadi and the Lucknowi variety). The korma was a bit of a dampener, though. After the lunch it was really difficult for us to do anything at all, but we somehow managed to trudge back to our hotel room for a well earned siesta! Afternoon was planned to venture out for another item Lucknow is famous for – Chikan – the traditional embroidery style from Lucknow, which when literally translated, means embroidery and is believed to have been introduced by Nur Jehan, Mughal emperor Jahangir's wife. So we took a cycle rickshaw and driver (!) guided us through crowded winding roads of old Lucknow to a quaint shop. The shop at basement though was a shopper’s delight. The range was enormous and we bought quite few items from there. The rickshaw had waited up for us. And back he brought us to our hotel.
Dinner was room service of roti, chicken and rice. And the food took longer than normal to arrive and was a bit cold as well. But the sleep was very comfortable. The first day at Lucknow was well spent.
The next was planned for a city tour. We booked our car at the hotel itself, had our breakfast and were out by 10 in the morning. We were guided by the driver to the various locations. We started with the most popular Lucknowi tourist spot, the Bara Imambara and the Bhoolbhulaiya. We dodged our way past the guides into the Imambara. The maintenance at the place was crying out desperately for a non-step fatherly attitude towards itself from the Archeological Survey of India. The crowd around was also mostly local people, and mostly with a religious mindset for the place. We were hence quite the unbefitting type, who were a bit out of place. The Imambara itself was magnificent and magnanimous. It housed the very unassuming grave of Sultan Asaf-ud-Daulah, the central hall of Bara Imambara, which is said to be the largest arched hall in the world. And also the Taziya and Zari works inside. We wandered around the place for a bit, and then ventured towards the Bhoolbhulaiya upstairs. And the Bhoolbhulaiya really stood up to its reputation. The narrow passages and the play of the light and shade in the alleys along the periphery of the place was the perfect prologue to the call of the unknown and the darkness inside. The invitation to move inside was open to us, the obscurity of the dark alleys inside was as if luring us to move in to the trap. And we ventured in, without a guide. We agreed to move back and retrace the steps back as soon as we feel a bit of discomfort of being lost! And we may not have travelled even 50 meters in the maze, when something happened. It was not even 
near to pitch dark inside. And even the clamor and clatter of the crowd outside was audible, though it had dimmed down to a mere hush-hush. But at the next junction, something made us feel somewhat eerie inside. And hence we decided to move back. We retraced our path very confidently, or at least that is what we thought. But the return trip started to seem longer than expected, and though it seemed that we were pretty close to getting out, we were not able to get out of the labyrinth! We were out in the open pretty quickly after that, but the exit point was at least a hundred meters away from the entrance we had used. It was bit of nerve wrecking, but had its own taste of excitement. But one really fails to understand the entertainment value of this location. It is believed that the Sultan used to play hide and seek with his Begums in this place! It could easily have been used as a means of punishment as well; people left inside and will go crazy on being unable to get out on their own. So each one will have their own interpretation of the Bhoolbhulaiya!We took a mini break after coming out of the labyrinth, with a bit of cold drinks and chips. (We needed that!) We overlooked the Bowli or the Shahi Hammam, a step well with running water from the river Gomti (no more going up and down steps) and just looked over at the quite colossal Asfi Mosque to reach our car.
We passed by the great Rumi Darwaza towrds the Chhota Imamabara. The Chhota Imambara was a beautiful building, though not the architectural wonder in the same league as the Taj Mahal, as it definitely lacked the majesty, yet it was quite exquisite. The gilded dome and the chandeliers inside were its most striking features. Just outside the Chhota Imambara was the Satkhanda, a building which was supposed to be seven stories high matching the Qutb Minar or the Leaning tower of Pisa, yet it laid there unfinished with only four completed stories in it. So much like the story of our lives, what could have been and what it actually is!
We stopped over for a bit near the Ghanta ghar or the Clock tower. At a staggering 221 feet, it stands tall as the tallest clock tower in the country. But here as well, the lack of proper maintenance was pretty much evident. The tower had been renovated, rather repaired, but it looked as if it was built may be couple of decades ago. The real touch of the Sultanate had gone missing!
Our taxi next dropped us off at the bank of the Gomti River. The river was just a bit better than a normal rivulet, and there was only a small portion of the bank which was carefully patched up, paved and maintained for the tourists and may be the local poeple as well. But beyond that patch, it provided the sorry picture of any normal Indian river; polluted, uncared and dirty! But the gentle cool breeze provided a sense of freshness, which prompted us to sit by the riverside for a brief moment and enjoy a mail train crossing the old bridge across the river at a distance.
Next in the agenda was the Residency. Though it was not much recommended by our driver, yet we insisted that we visit the place. We have read about it in many a place; history books and novels and story books alike! And in the end we were not disappointed. Though the lack of proper maintenance was eminent here as well, but it was definitely the cleanest place that we visited that day. There was an unusual problem though. The area was lush green with lots of trees around, and that attracted huge number of love birds! They seemed to have flocked there in pairs all across the area. If you could keep that unpleasantness away from your vision, the place otherwise is charming. It gives a real feel of the era gone by, and a recreates the feel of the mutiny, and was able to conjure up the chaos and violence of the riots. None of the building, except the one where there is now a museum, is intact! And broken walls and shattered ceilings really tell you a story. We wandered around the place for some time, even ventured inside the not so impressive museum till we were almost famished. So we moved on to our next and may be the most important agenda for the day – Lunch.
As per plan, lunch was planned at the Dastarkhwan. The driver easily led us to one of the three outlets of the famous eating joint in Lucknow, most probably the Lalbagh branch. The interiors of the place were hanging in balance between being too glossy and being outright shabby. But overall the place was comfortable. We quickly placed the order, which was guided by the reviews and feedback of the place. The galawati kebab with paratha, the biryani and the special chicken masala with rotis arrived in no time. (Sad to say, they were not serving sheermal for some reasons on that day.) And the food quality really lived up to the reputation of the place. The biryani was one of the best that we have ever tasted, if not the best. The chicken masala was exquisitely spiced and had chunks of chicken, the meat of which was falling from the bones. The kebabs were also a melt in the mouth affair. In the end we had shahi tukda, which was equally gorgeous! After gorging through the brilliant meal, it was time to head back to the hotel.In the evening we ventured out to have a feel of the city, trying to look at it from pretty close. And we took a
cycle rickshaw towards the local open market in the Aminabad area. The chaos and commotion of a Saturday evening, countless numbers of small shops abundant with variety, and waves of local people aloof of the three of us, sweeping by us with their daily chores in their minds. Roaming around aimlessly for some time we decided to head back. In stead of going straight back to the hotel, we left the cycle rickshaw in the Mahatma Gandhi road. The street was lined with showrooms of modern big brand names. The buildings on many occasions were still pretty old ones, and strikingly most of them were colored in the same patterns of white and black, and this color code was irrespective of the brand that it housed. It was strikingly strange and somewhat mystically beautiful as well. Debarghya managed to get some small toys as his means of passé-la-temp in the hotel, and we some sweets quite typical of Lucknow for taking back home, and we walked back to the hotel, thoroughly drained of energy.Dinner was Chinese, far away from the real essence of Awadhi charm, aroma and taste; but it was in an attempt to retain the wonderful memories of Dastarkhwan and to keep it as the lasting memory of Lucknow. And sleep was just around the corner.
The next morning we had our flight at 10:50 to Delhi. We had our breakfast pretty early, and checked out around nine. La Place, in their attempt to make amends to the bygone blunders and to heal the wounds and scars left earlier, made our third morning breakfast complimentary, and the services they provided for the airport drop free of charge. This left in us a good lasting feeling for the hotel, something like having a very good dessert after an ordinary starter. It really makes you linger on with the good taste after you have had your meal. The whole Lucknow trip was in effect like that, an aftertaste which involuntarily creates a smile in the face.
The trip back was easy, comfortable and uneventful. Indigo as always made it on time to Delhi, and we had some other elaborate plans after the landing, but it is definitely not a part of this adventure story. As this story is about our tryst with the Awadhi culture, cuisine and chronicles; stories of the past, present and future. And looking back now, the adventure was really overall a grand one, which shall remain in our memories for long.
1 comment:
fine. a good and honest description of the tour.
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