On a road trip that I had to make all of sudden required me to get from Delhi to Chandigarh in the dead of the night and included a drive of near about 6 hours.
I chose to drive on the 6 lane highway called the Grand Trunk road and completely enjoyed the drive.
The Grand Trunk Road is one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads. For more than two millennia, it has linked the eastern and western regions of the Indian subcontinent, connecting South Asia with Central Asia. It runs from Chittagong, Bangladesh west to Howrah, West Bengal in India, running across Northern India into Lahore in Pakistan, further up to Kabul in Afghanistan. Its former names include UttaraPatha ("Road to North"), Shah Rah-e-Azam ("Great Road") or Sarak-e-Azam or Badshahi Sarak.
The route spanning the Grand Trunk (GT) road existed during the Maurya Empire, extending from the mouth of the Ganges to the north-western frontier of the Empire.
Today, the Grand Trunk Road (GT Road) remains a continuum that covers a distance of over 2,500 kilometres (1,600 mi). From its origin at Chittagong, it traverses to Sonargaon in the Narayanganj District of central Bangladesh, it reaches India, passing through Howrah, Serampore, Bardhaman, Panagarh (where it passes Ramnabagan Wildlife Sanctuary), Durgapur, Asansol, Dhanbad, Aurangabad, Dehri-on-sone, Sasaram, Mohania, Mughalsarai, Varanasi, Allahabad, Kanpur, Kalianpur, Kannauj, Etah, Aligarh, Ghaziabad, Delhi, Panipat, Karnal, Ambala, Khanna, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Amritsar.
It's the easiest way to get to chandigarh from delhi and a number of road side restaurants (dhabas) can be found on the highway throughout this journey. The restraunts offered refreshing tea and yummy Indian food.
A popular hangout is the Sukhdev Dhaba at Murthal, Sonepat. It's a multi cusine restraunt but it's famous for its paranthas which are served with white butter and piping hot tea. Even at 2 in the night the place is thronged with people and getting a table is a task.
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| Sukhdev Dhaba completely thronged at 2 in the night.
The 6 hour drive on the highway becomes a breeze by making a few stops at these dhabas.
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2 comments:
I love long drives, I can choose to read a book and appreciate the sceneries. Yes, its better when you chop it off but now, I got so used to them that I really don't mind.
Glad you enjoyed your drive.
I would love to try the food in Sukdhev Dhaba after a bike ride... I know I would work up an appetite from cycling
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