Day 0: Left Chennai around 6:30 AM for a flight at 08:20 AM
to Delhi. Reached Delhi at 11:00 AM. My
first time experience at Delhi Airport was awesome especially that we landed at
Terminal 3. It truly was to International Standards. I could not believe that
it was India. We decided to take the Airport Metro Express to reach New Delhi
station where we had a train to catch at 20:00 Hours.
The reach to the Metro station from the airport was
wonderful and it was connected through a subway. Reached the station and
boarded the metro to the railway station. It was the fastest mode to reach the
station. After reaching station and leaving the metro area is where I came
across the real city J
It was like I was getting instantly transported from the best standards to the
worst. We had to cross the road to the railway station as the subway was closed
that day and we reached the station around 12:30 not knowing what were gonna do
till our train. As we were walking at the Ajmeri Gate entrance, I came across a
board which said Lounge access with all facilities. That caught my eye and
looking at the condition of the railway station around and the time that we had
to kill we decided to check out what the lounge looked like.
To our surprise it was very neat and was managed by IRCTC.
It was priced at Rs 300 for first 3 hours and post that every hour was charged
at Rs 150/- per person. Being a good deal we decided to take that option and it
definitely was the best choice we could make.
This cannot be compared to the airport lounges, however was
completely air conditioned, meals provided, wifi connectivity, snacks and tea
and what more could we ask for to kill those 6 hours at the station. We took
the lounge for about 5 hours and decided to head to the platform an hour
earlier just to have some fun out there. Food was decent enough though it
cannot be rated the best. So definitely this is a wiser option to make when you
have time to kill at the New Delhi railway station.
Boarded the Jammu Rajdhani express waited for food to be served
and wanted to hit the sack as it was a
long day for us doing nothing J
Had a decent dinner in the train and went off to sleep.
Day 1: Reached Pathankot station at around 03:30 AM. Since I
had arranged for everything from Chennai through a contact, we were received at
the station by the Colonel’s secretary. We were driven to the army cantt and
were given a guest house to freshen up. It was much needed for us as we didn’t
get good sleep in the train. Freshened up and had couple of hours of good sleep
before we were served some hot tea. We were supposed to meet the Colonel for
breakfast. It was a wonderful experience being inside the army cantt and the great hospitality.
Met Colonel for breakfast and had good food with good chit
chatting for an hour before we had to head to our first destination,
Dharamsala.
We had got a cab arranged to drive to Kangra valley. Started
around 09:45 AM from Pathankot and reached Dharamshala around 13:00 Hours.
Enroute stopped for tea. The roads were pretty much bad and not a completely
smooth drive.
Reached the hotel and checked in and headed straight for
lunch. We decided to call it a day post lunch as we needed some rest.
In the evening went for a stroll around the place and called
off. The drive from Pathankot to Dharamsala costed Rs 1,400
Enroute to Dharamsala
Day 2: Took a package for a full day trip from the resort.
Visited the Masrur rock cut temples first. Roads were
absolutely in bad shape. This was located in some serene calm place far from
Dharamsala. This temple is maintained by the ASI and looks very beautiful and
well maintained. Though nothing great it’s a marvellous piece of architecture.
Post that drove towards Jwalamuki Temple which is considered
a must visit from Dharamsala. This is the temple of fire and its more of
pilgrimage for many to visit this goddess. We had to wait for an hour in the queue to get
the darshan. It was a very hot day and we were already getting tired. Had some
refreshments and started to move on towards Kangra Fort
Visited the Kangra Fort post the temple visit. This was one
of the most beautiful and well maintained forts that I have visited ever. The
ticket cost for such a beautiful place is way too less and we paid a Rs 5 per
person for entrance. There were no charges for still camera though. At the
ticket counter there was a lady who approached us asking if we were interested
to take an audio guide. I was pretty much surprised what it was and she said
they charge Rs 100 for it and we thought we will give it a try.
Before we entered the fort the lady gave a headset to my
husband so that both of us could be connected to a guide. This was the first
time ever I came across an audio guide and it was excellent and worth the
money. Usually when we enter any fort, we hardly know the history of that place
unless we have read about it or if someone is around with us. In this case the
audio was well coordinated with the different areas of the fort in the order of
walking inside and it was a good bit of history revealed and as we listened to
it and walked, we never felt the strain and enjoyed the fort thoroughly.
Once we got done, we were very tired since we had skipped
lunch and wanted to head somewhere and have a good snack or grab something to
eat. The driver offered to take us to a good hotel which is supposed to be the
place where the players of IPL teams stay when they have a match posted in
Dharamsala. We were quite worried that it might have been quite a pricey place,
but hunger was taking dominance at that time and we decided to head to that
place no matter what it cost us. It was at The Grand Raj on the Kangra highway
enroute to Dharamsala.
The food was absolutely awesome and to our surprise the
prices were very decent for that kind of a hotel. Must try is
their Rajma and Chawal which was delicious and very filling.
Post our activity filled day and an awesome meal towards the
end of the day we decided to head to the hotel and gave ourselves the much
needed rest.
Day 3: This day we decided to not take any package as such
but just take the local transport around and explore a bit of the place. Woke
up and lazed around a bit and when we decided we could step out rain started
lashing and it was impossible for us to think of even stepping out. So we
decided to stay back a bit in the room and wait for it to stop.
The plan was to take the Kangra mountain railway and just do
a trip up and down and enjoy the scenic beauty. We had to take note of train
timings and took a local bus from the place we stayed to reach the Kangra Valley
station. After a lot of commotion we reached the Kangra Mandir station just as
the train was pulling in. The first time experience in a metre gauge railway
was cute. It was clean enough as against all those reviews I read before taking
this train.
It was boring at one point of time as the scenic beauty was
almost the same throughout the journey. Since that day the train was only going
one way we had to take a taxi back to our hotel. We got down at the station
“Bhaijnath Paprola” which is where one of the Shiva temples is located. The
temple is maintained by ASI and it was very beautiful.
Front view of the temple
Rear view
Took a taxi, visited the temple
and started back to reach our resort. The journey back took about a couple of
hours and there ended another day which apparently turned out to be interesting
Day 4: McLeodganj
It happened to be my husband’s
birthday today and we wanted to make sure the day was memorable.
McLeodganj was planned for the day
and it definitely was one hell of an experience.
We hired a taxi from the local
taxi stand. For a distance of 12 Kms appx he charged us about Rs 300 for a
drop. Never did I dream that the road to McLeod would be as pathetic as what we
experienced. There were literally no roads and it was indeed a scary drive up
the hills. As we were going up in altitude the weather started to change and
could feel the chill breeze sweeping across our faces.
We were dropped at the main circle
and we paid him Rs 350 for the simple reason that he got us safe on top. For
first timers it definitely is a scary experience on those steep inclines where
there were no roads literally.
The first feel you get about this
place is that if you are really inside India. It is so different compared to
the many other places that you visit inside the country. Complete Tibetan
settlement, mostly foreigners around, Indians are mostly the ones who visit as
tourists or those who run those shops out there.
McLeod is one place that needs to
be explored by foot.
It was breakfast time and as we
were confused and walking around one localite decided to have a talk to us and
ask if we were looking for something in particular. He recommended a small
place for breakfast and I should say it was very well maintained and food was
excellent. This is on the road to Bhagsunag temple.
So as a first option post
breakfast we decided to walk to the Dalai Lama Temple. To our luck and surprise
there was a discourse happening and we could get to see His Holiness at his
temple at a very close distance. The security to enter the temple is very
strict and had to hand over all electronics to a small office in the entrance.
They do not charge any fees.
The road leading to the temple of His Holiness The Dalai Lama
We were thoroughly checked before
let in. It was a different experience.
Post that we decided to do some
bit of shopping and purchased some antiques.
Then started our walk towards
BhagsuNag temple which was about couple of Kms from the main circle. It was an
excellent walk and the temple was a small one with a swimming pool (Not
something that you come across anywhere else J
) and worth a visit
Walk enroute to Bhagsu Nag temple
The temple with the "Swimming Pool"
View of the HPCA stadium from McLeodganj
The walk back was also fun with
mist all over. And all that walk got us hungry all over again. We decided to
check out at Mc Lo. Had read many reviews about the place, however we were not
that satisfied. It was ok priced, however service was not all that great. Not a
place to be raving about. May be we should have settled for a better option.
Post that we decided to take a cab
back and before we headed to the resort we wanted to visit the church of St
Johns. That was a beautiful church located in the midst of beautiful and serene
surroundings and the church stood majestic in that mist covered calm location.
We took our time and enjoyed that place thoroughly before heading back to
Dharamsala.
While returning we visited the
HPCA stadium as it is supposed to be one of the best cricket stadium in the
world. True to what it is being raved about it indeed was very beautiful,
colourful and set amidst the breathtaking Dhauladhar ranges.
That completed our day and we were
so happy end of the day. Headed to the resort and called it a day.
Day 5: Dharamsala – Dalhousie
Post breakfast started our drive
to Dalhousie.
The view was truly breathtaking
and as we were approaching Dalhousie one could feel the altitude and the steep
roads leading towards the destination. This was different from all the hill
stations that I have visited. The road that was taken for some part of the
journey was absolutely scary with deep gorges and path good enough for only one
vehicle to pass through.
As we were approaching Dalhousie
the weather was changing drastically and it was getting colder.
It was almost 3 and half hours
drive to our destination.
Checked in to Hotel Grandview and
just settled off for the day. In the evening took a stroll around.
It was breathtaking views we had
from the hotel. Dalhousie in itself seemed very calm and serene and there was
no mad rush. Life seemed to be moving at its own pace. Very laid back city it
was.
View from the Balcony
Day 6:
Planned a day long itinerary of
important places to visit and started post breakfast for the same.
Started the day with Kalatop
Wildlife Sanctuary. Instead of walking that distance inside the sanctuary we
did a car drive inside. It was a completely different experience from the
various wildlife sanctuaries I have ever visited. The atmosphere, the thick
Deodar trees that formed gorges, the so called roads where only one vehicle
could move at a time and where literally we had vehicles coming in opposite
direction too, the skill with which the drivers negotiated those tough drives,
the serene untouched beauty of nature was all admirable.
Drive through the sanctuary
View from Kalatop
Spent some time over here and
moved on to our next destination – Dainkund Peak.
This is located right opposite the
air force base station of Dalhousie. The view indeed was breathtaking. The
initial part of the trek was a little tough, however it’s easily doable.
Trek starts here
Up there is one view point
We didn’t stop and moved on
towards the Polani Matha temple which is another couple of Kms walk from the
initial peak. The walk as we started towards the temple is something that
cannot be explained. The clouds moving past you as you walk, the chill breeze
hitting on your skin, the deep gorges, pin drop silence, sometimes you get to
see the valley below, sometimes there was hardly visibility up to 100 meters,
the calmness, it gives such peace and calmness to one’s mind.
Trek route to the temple
Some more views of the route
Finally the appearance of the temple
We were walking and at one point
it seemed endless. There was no view of any temple anywhere and there was not a
single soul to be seen around. It was just the 2 of us amongst the nature. We
kept walking as we did not want to give up. There were rocks, mud track, stones
but it was fun.
Finally we saw a board leading to
a temple and as we walked near that open temple, it gave us a feel that the
walk was never a waste of time. The view from that place and the location of
that small temple is just beyond words.
Sat there and had some
refreshments from a small shop on that peak and started our trek back.
Post this visited Khajjiar – Also
called the Switzerland of India. The first impression of this place was again
something that cannot be explained in words. The meadows, the Deodar trees
surrounding the entire place were definitely a feast for the eyes. Walked
around the entire place, had lunch at one of the small restaurants there and
with happy day spent, returned back to the hotel.
On the way back, visited a place
which was not worth any mention.
Adventurous, fun filled day.
Day 7: This day we just decided
to take it light and spend at our own leisure.
Walked over to the nearby chowk,
did some shopping and returned back to the hotel
Dalhousie is indeed a calm and
serene hill station which still preserves some old world charm. The night sky
is beautiful. I don’t remember seeing stars so close and littered all over on
any clear night in any of the cities.
Day 8: Time to get back to
Pathankot for our train journey. Took a taxi post lunch and headed towards
Pathankot. Went on to the same Army Cantt with loads of hospitality awaiting
us.
The day ended so beautifully with
our dear friend taking us on a drive till the J&K border and a cup of chai
in a nice restaurant beside a beautiful canal.
Boarded our train an hour before
midnight.
Day 9: Reached New Delhi Railway
station. Took the subway to reach the metro station in turn to board the Airport
express.
Reached the airport well ahead of
time. Finished our check in and was relaxing at the airport lounge till our
flight in the afternoon.
Came back from a wonderful
vacation with loads of memories accompanied by loads of pictures.
