Northen India

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Delhi

Back in Delhi once again and headed to the Metropolis hotel given our previous experience of good food and service. The monsoons are moving up the country and coastline and so with temperature and humidity rising we decided to head North on a trip taking in Chandrigar, Dharamsala, Manali and Shimla. We opted for a different company but still chose to have a driver for some of the journey.

Chandrigar
We then left Delhi after one day, heading for Chandrigar. We spent the morning visiting the Rose Garden and the famous Rock Garden. Regarding the latter, we only visited the newest part of the garden due to lack of signposting and the heat, however still fantastic to see with many funny statues made from industrial waste materials surrounded by rock structures and man-made waterfalls.

Dharamsala
Having stocked up on Cherryade and Samosa’s - we headed for Dharamsala. The views on the drive were stunning and the temp. dropped by 10C. We stayed one night in Bhagshu, just outside McLeod Ghanj, the main hub for visitors and Tibetans including the Dalai Lama. We spent our remaining three nights in McLeod Ghanj.

Bhagshu was very peaceful and the highest point in this area at 1700m above sea level. We walked along the path that follows the waterfall. The German restaurant which was effectively a walled gravel floor with a plastic roof and no windows sounds drab, but gave beautiful views of the snow topped mountains and made the best pizza, with good deserts too.

McLeod Ghanj was a lot more lively with lots of stalls and free roaming cattle. We visited the temple complex which also houses the Dalai Lama. We arrived just in time to witness the famous debating of the monks, lots of laughter and clapping of hands. We also witnessed the monks blowing incredibly large trumpets at the back of the complex overlooking the valley. The temple café is a wonderful place to eat with good food, excellent chocolate cake and best of all the money is going to a good cause. Needless to say we ate here a lot. We were lucky enough to see the Dalai Lama as he passed right by us on the way to the Long Prayer. There were many people all dressed in traditional clothing and carrying offerings. We were also fortunate enough to be present at his 73rd birthday celebrations on July 6th.

On trying to visit a Hindu temple we ended up at the doors of a Nunnery where they spoke no English but invited us in for tea, much to the distraction and amusement of the children who were supposed to be reading.

Manali
Famous for the Rotang Pass and wooden houses we stayed here for two nights. We were fortunate enough to witness snow which when the clouds cleared increased the intensity of this Himalayan scenery, surrounded by Pine forests. This was the first time we had seen substantial rain and we became soaked.

Shimla
Once home of the British Government during summertime. A very pretty town with many Tudor style buildings that made us feel at home. We visited the Vice Regal Lodge which is where Government were based. It was also a key place for talks with Ghandhi during discussions about independence. We left Shimla on the Toy Train, which snakes it’s way down the hill, starting at 2200m above Sea Level through 103 tunnels. A fantastic piece of engineering from the time of the British Empire.

Forty minutes out from Kolka we came to a stop as the train driver had spotted a cow that had trapped it’s leg between two rails. We were not allowed to move until the cow was free as killing it was not an option as it is a sacred animal. So at 10.30pm in darkness, one of the train crew ran down the tracks to the next station, to get the key to open the rails to release the cow.

Once the cow was safe, we continued to Kolka to pick up our overnight sleeper to Delhi.

Once in Delhi we stayed in a serviced apartment 18km out of town with an indoor pool, gym and restaurant to enjoy complete relaxation. A wonderful end to a stressful country.

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