Chandigarh is a lovely city in the north of India, very near to Delhi. You can fly there from Delhi, take the super fast Satabdi Express train or even hire a car and hit the National Highway.
The city as most of us know was designed by renowned architect, Le Corbusier. It is a well laid out city and has lots of trees lining the avenues leading to the roundabouts and further avenues.
There is one thing which to me stood out in the city of the Chandigarh and that was Nek Chand’s world famous Rock Garden. It is a garden totally out of waste materials whether it is from kitchen, bathroom, electrical, plumbing or even bangles.
The Rock Garden was opened on July 7th, 1988. If you happen to visit Chandigarh this is a must visit.
These birds on the walls are made from broken ceramics.
The welcoming shapes as you walk inside the entrance.
A wall made out of electrical waste.
Potteries lined up as you walk in further inside the park.
This is the hut from where Nek Chand started his work on the Rock Garden.
Section of the garden where mini gardens have been created meticulously.
There are waterfalls, bridges created within the park.
The stepped wall made entirely with materials we all throw away.
Interesting figures, some looks spooky and some like soldiers standing tall.
Lots of small figures are created and lined up on the high side walls.
These figures are made using glass bangles. How lovely and colourful they look.
The more you walk in the park it makes you wonder how such beautiful things can be created with things that are thrown away as waste.
It does open the door to a very different world. Next time you see any waste material, you won’t see them as you do today, it will certainly have a different perspective.
This is just a great post. I have never been to Chandigarh and therefore completely unaware of what it has to offer. Has this been in US, it would have probably shot up to top 10 must see places. But again, the Rock Garden does have a tough competition since this is India, steeped in history, culture and so much more.
I will be curious to know though if there is an entry fee, how long does it take to go around the entire place and what other spots are there to see in and around the Rock Garden. I believe those suggestions can also lead into new posts.
Thank you so much. Your feedback and suggestion is much appreciated. There is a nominal entry fee of INR20. It takes around 3-4 hours to visit the entire place. There are other places nearby like the Sukhna Lake…well, new post is a great idea!