India, Feb. 1 -- When it comes to a city's tourism attractions, we tend to think of iconic lakes, museums, gardens and grand avenues. Yet a city often reveals its truest self in humbler places - in lived corridors where stories sit quietly on the margins. In Chandigarh's Sector 17 plaza, beside the old Neelam Theatre lies one such slice of the city's collective memory: a narrow passage where cobblers have sat cross-legged on the floor for decades, repairing soles while silently witnessing the changing rhythm of urban life. There was a time when Sector 17 was the heart of Chandigarh - a place of unhurried evenings, window-shopping, ice-cream walks and laughter drifting across the open plaza. The cobblers were a familiar presence in that landscape. A broken strap, a weary sandal, a loose heel - everything found its way to their wooden boxes and well-worn tools. Customers paused, chatted, shared local gossip and moved on with stitched shoes and lighter hearts. Repair was not merely a service. It was a small ritual of connection. With the arrival of gleaming malls and air-conditioned corridors, the footsteps of the city slowly shifted. Convenience replaced conversation, and replacement replaced repair. Sector 17 lost much of its bustle, and tourism narratives moved toward glass facades and curated experiences. Yet the cobbler corridor did not migrate. It stayed anchored to the tiled floor - like a quiet bookmark between the past and present. Today, when one walks past Neelam Theatre, the scene is gentler but deeply evocative. The cobblers sit in a line, their hands steady, their voices soft, their craft precise. Some have served here for thirty or forty years, measuring time not by seasons but by the patterns of shoes that come and go. The crowds are thinner now, but loyalty remains - elderly patrons who refuse to abandon old leather shoes, office-goers on hurried lunch breaks, and sentimental pairs of sandals that have travelled too many memories to be discarded. This corridor invites us to expand our idea of what is worth seeing. Tourism is not only about landmarks. It is also about dignity of labour, continuity of craft, and the subtle emotional map of a city. These cobblers hold a heritage that rarely appears in brochures - a heritage of patience, resilience and quiet perseverance. They remind us that urban beauty lies not only in symmetry and architecture, but in the ordinary workers who keep daily life stitched together. Perhaps the most meaningful way to experience Chandigarh is to pause here - to listen to the gentle tap of a hammer, to watch a frayed sole come back to life, and to acknowledge the human stories hidden in narrow corridors. In an age of fast consumption, this space teaches us the grace of mending. And sometimes, the real tourism of a city begins where its crowds no longer gather....