Breathtaking Himachal

Tripoto
Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah

Snow Selfie @rohtang pass

Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah
Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah

Enroute Manali

Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah
Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah
Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah

Cloudsss

Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah
Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah
Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah
Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah

Mall Road

Photo of Breathtaking Himachal by Manghala Priyah

Mission Himachal

I challenged myself to pick one of the two ideas that popped in my head at the same time:

1. Catching up with friends over coffee at the new cafe 10 blocks away, and

2. Going on a trip to a picturesque location to chat away

Well, that was a tough choice to make, but I don't drink coffee and this is a travel blog; I obviously chose (drumroll) option number 2. Tough choice? Really? Don't judge me; some of us are lazy, operate with a single brain cell, and have no caffeine in our systems. Give us a break and a cup of green tea (decaf)!!

After considering at least twenty places across the length and breadth of the country, I zeroed on Himachal, the land of yoga, mystics, and mountains. Wow! Did I take a yoga class there? No. Why am I even mentioning yoga? I don't know, let's move on. The mountains called; I had to go, so I put the planning away for a bit. What! Of course, I had to fix the mountain of dishes in my sink before I sat down to plan. Gosh! Okay, trivial details aside, let's dive into the particulars.

I planned this trip with four of my friends. We were all working in different cities, so we decided to meet up at Delhi and continue the trip together. After a long, beautiful, and absolutely non-tiring train journey of about 2000 kms from Chennai to Delhi, I finally got to meet the other four brain cells aka friends. From Delhi, we took an overnight bus to Shimla and woke up to a stunning sunrise. Oh my god! I think I forgot to breathe; Himachal was beauty beyond words. We hired a car for the rest of the tour. We covered Shimla, Manali and Dharamshala.

Stunning Shimla

We went to the mall road, a popular sightseeing attraction in Shimla. It was satiated with eateries, department stores and boutiques. It was one of the busiest areas in Shimla. A lot of hand-crafted items and home-brewed beverages were being sold in the roadside shops. We then visited the Jakhu Temple, located on the highest peak in Shimla, from where we got a panoramic view of the city. There was a giant- sized statue of Hanuman, painted in orange. The route to Manali from Shimla was breathtakingly beautiful.

Magnificent Manali

We visited the Hadimba temple, Manu temple and Solang Valley in Manali. The lush green valleys and the snow-clad mountains of Manali took our breath away. Manali was replete with hotels, homestays, and apple trees. The Rohtang pass was picture perfect. The adventure activities were closed because of unstable weather conditions, but the place was amazing.

Divine Dharamshala

We visited the HPCA stadium and a monastery in Dharamshala. The cricket stadium was nestled in the middle of a scenic mountain range. The view from the stadium was stunning. I think it would be a challenge to play cricket at HPCA without getting distracted by the beauty of nature. Dharamshala was all about good food, Tibetian monasteries, scenic views, and prayer wheels.

We then left to Punjab to catch our train to Delhi. Mission accomplished! Memories made!