- Lucknow folks are all incredibly fond of their chaat. They will insist upon taking you to their favourite joint, frog march you to the front of the queue, ply you with aloo tiki and then look at you intently till you give in and beam in approval.
- The malls are always crowded, especially in summer because it’s so hot outside.
- If you ask a local, anywhere in Lucknow is 10 minutes away.
- The Residency is an infamous LP. LP is local lingo for Lovers’ Point- a discreet location designated for (ahem) couple activities. LPs abound in Lucknow, but none that comes close to the British Residency. This is for several excellent and fairly obvious reasons:
a) It’s unabashedly cheap- at Rs. 10 per pax the entry ticket is a steal
b) It’s incredibly shady- to shelter from the blazing noon sun, and
c) It’s deliciously large- there is room for everyone.
- Ganjing is an activity. It is also a verb- a doing word- like walking and talking. What it involves doing is walking and talking, but with a key difference- in Hazratganj. The latter part is crucial. If you do it anywhere else, it’s just dumb old walking and talking.
- The cycle rickshawalas will not inquire where you want to go, because of course you don’t know where to go. They’d rather pelt you with suggestions on how best to spend your time. A standard suggestion is a relaxing afternoon spent shopping in a Chikan ki dukaan, where they get a commission for rounding up unsuspecting tourists. Win-win for all, see?
- Some years back, Lucknow was terrorized by a gang that went by the name of ‘Kaccha Baniyan Gang’ (Knickers and Vest Gang). It’s hard to say whether the name was ironic, tongue-in-cheek or if the hilarious quotient of the name was completely lost on the gang members, because none of them was ever caught and questioned. The gang created panic in the capital with a series of chilling murders before vanishing mysteriously. I don’t know why I mentioned this random piece of information but this is the kind of stuff that happens in Lucknow.
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