Yesterday was my first visit to Taj after the ghastly terrorist attack last month. It was a strange feeling looking at the building after watching it burning on TV. The surrounding was very quiet not many people were allowed to go near the building and it resembled a very secure zone.
Generally the area around Taj is always bursting with people mostly tourists taking pictures of the building alsong with the Gateway. It felt eerie to look at those empty streets and it brought back those bad memories once again. I remember being locked in my office and looking Taj buring from my window as written earlier in my blog entry. There was security at the entrance but not the way I was expecting may be hospitality and security don't go hand in hand. Inside the hotel everything looked exactly same except there were very less people in the lobby. We went on to Nalanda the bookstore to catch up with the guys there. The sales man told us how they were locked in the godown with 12 guests for more than 48 hours waiting for the help to come. Luckily for them no one was hurt. We know now not many were that lucky. The older building has sealed off areas like the famous Golden dragon resturant.
When we walked out of the hotel there was a strange feeling of satisfaction. The reopening means a lot to this city and to India in general. But I hope we never forget this act of war against the very idea of our country.
Generally the area around Taj is always bursting with people mostly tourists taking pictures of the building alsong with the Gateway. It felt eerie to look at those empty streets and it brought back those bad memories once again. I remember being locked in my office and looking Taj buring from my window as written earlier in my blog entry. There was security at the entrance but not the way I was expecting may be hospitality and security don't go hand in hand. Inside the hotel everything looked exactly same except there were very less people in the lobby. We went on to Nalanda the bookstore to catch up with the guys there. The sales man told us how they were locked in the godown with 12 guests for more than 48 hours waiting for the help to come. Luckily for them no one was hurt. We know now not many were that lucky. The older building has sealed off areas like the famous Golden dragon resturant.
When we walked out of the hotel there was a strange feeling of satisfaction. The reopening means a lot to this city and to India in general. But I hope we never forget this act of war against the very idea of our country.
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