Perched in the lap of the Himalayan foothills, Macleodganj is close to the heart - not because it is a quaint little mountain getaway. It is because of the culture that it has been quietly preserving and nurturing in its embrace. The Tibetan refugee settlement is 3 KMs north of Dharamsala. It is famous as the home to HH Dalai Lama who has been living here in exile. This town is a tranquil portrait of a peace-loving Buddhist community against a violent backdrop of Chinese occupation of Tibet. Despite the horrors and life of exile - what you see in Macleodganj is a community living in harmony with nature and content with what little the local tourism has to offer. Italian cafes, dainty coffee shops, foreign tourists and blaring western music merge seamlessly with the Tibetan symbols, local street food, strolling monks and candle marches.
I was there without any plan, I went there with 10 days and an open mind. There’s a lot to do and see there. All I did was spend my days strutting around the two-street and downtown that make up pretty much the entire town.