The land of the Unexpected

We planned for 2 weeks holiday vacation to places in Himachal Pradesh
My mind was blank when I started my journey.
I had no idea what was in store for us for the next 14 days.
I simply packed my bags and baggages as per my hubby’s instructions.
All that he defined went soundless in my brains…….

A journey into mysticism through the land of the unexpected.

We boarded the Spice Jet Airlines from Chennai Kamaraj Domestic Airport at 12.15 on 19th September 2010 to New Delhi.
Heading straight to the capital city , we boarded a local taxi and visited the India Gate, the Rashtrapathi Bhavan and the Parliament house and finally reached Anu Anna(my Dad’s cousin)house in Lodhi Gardens.
We had a warm welcome with a sumptuous dinner in the hands of Mrs Anathanarayan .
The kids were energizing with shrills but I remained naïve.
It was also the 2nd Death Anniversary of my mother
We viewed the JawarhalalNehru sports complex outside.
It was grandly decorated for the upcoming Common wealth Games
From Delhi we went to Pathankot.
We reached Pathankot the next day.and headed to Dharmashala .
I suffer from severe altitude sickness.
I came to know that Himachal was a Land of Snowy mountains. This thought lost the holiday sensation in me!
This was how my vacation started……
How am I going to travel such long distances in a hilly terrain like Himachal??
Would I be paralyzed again, like our last before trip?
What if I could not make it?
Naïve and mindless , I kept moving.

DHARMSHALA

To my sudden delight , Dharamshala turned out to be a beautiful experience.
Low rolling hills criss-crossed by narrow fast-flowing streams, scores of tiny hamlets, lush tea gardens and paddy fields with the backdrop of the majestic Dhauladhar mountains - all combine to make Kangra one of Himachal's most beautiful tracts
And Lo! All the more , it was a land of Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries.
My Uranus arches rose high when I ate the delicious momos and noodles with soup with chopsticks.
The monasteries were wide, huge and magnificent , of course.
I begged Charu to allow me to buy the Tibetan Bell, the therapeutic singing bowls and the traditional Thanga painting. He agreed.
In 1960 Dharamshala became a temporary headquarter of His Holiness The Dalai Lama,and was since know as the “The little Lhasa in India” .
His temple lies in Mcleodanj or upper Dharamshala.

During our short stay we witnessed the Ganesha Idol Immersion on the 12th day into the Beas river.
Folks dressed in colorful costumes,throwing holi powder celebrated the procession with great fervour and revelation.
Black channa sundal cooked in heavy mustard oil and spices was distributed as Prasadams to devotees.
We then visited the Bhagsunag temple and the Bhagsunag freshwater spring . (Located one km from McLeod Ganj)
It was very panoramic and a beautiful scenic spot..
All these was seen in one day.
We boarded a local train from Palampur and reached the ancient Hindu temple dedicated to Bhagsu Nag, the snake god, and to Lord Shiva located in the picturesque Bhagsu tribal village.
According to legend, 5000 years ago, Nagdevata, the snake God was drawn into a battle with a local King Bhagsu, who dared steal water from the sacred NagDal Lake. King Bhagsu was vanquished and forgiven by the Snake God and the site consecrated as BhagsuNag.
Thus My first destination ended with a happy note.

Our next destination was Manali!!!



From Dharmashala to Manali ,we saw the Baijnath Temple, and the Bir monastery.The journey was very horrible. This was the worst I was looking forward to.
We went through the trials. Like the musical chairs , kids and myself kept throwing up every 10 minutes.
It was actually 7 hours hill journey, but due to us it took 9 hours.
Yet , our driver Aman drove skillfully as possible.

So ...Manali, at the northern end of the Kullu Valley in Himachal Pradesh, is a hill station situated at a height of 2050 m (6398 ft) in the Himalayas. Situated on the Beas river (Vyaas in Hindi) and near its source, it is a popular tourist spot in summer and a magical, snow-covered place in winter.
The temperature was between 10C to 15C. I just could not bear it Kids showed no sign of restlessness. They stayed without sweaters many times and enjoyed the weather thoroughly.

It was a Romantic place of course!I could see many honey noon couples over there.But it had many temples too.
Jagtush temple, Hadimba temple, Manu temple, Tibetan temple ,and the like. Each had their own legendary stories.

Now I must say about the Vashita hot spring.
Around 3 km from Manali, across the Beas river is Vashist, a small village with natural sulphur springs. Modern bathhouses, with Turkish-style showers, have the hot water piped into them for the convenience of the visitors who come here to benefit from the medicinal properties. The temperature in these hot water springs vary between 110 degree Fahrenheit and 123 degree Fahrenheit. The bathhouse was divided into two. One for the men and another one was for the women. It was a shock of my life! I have never seen women taking bath in such a odd fashion, almost shameless!!!I sprang out as fast as I could from that place.Outside the bathhouse there is a temple for saint Vashista.
If i want to recollect....not any more!
The temple is a beautiful wooden temple .We met a sage who will stay here for 6 months and later leave this place and go to another place.He made a lemon tea for us and we had short friendly bonding with him.
Apart from those above , we saw The Rohtang pass and the Solang Valley.
Many Hindi movie shootings takes place in the Solang Valley and we got to see one of it. Mehul and Nirek enjoyed Paragliding in the Solang and of course Nirek tried river crossing as well.
Manali market is key place for eatables. Right from chat to Indian (veg/nonveg) to international cuisine like Italian/Chinese are available in the main market which is just opposite the Manali Bus stand. The mall road has a variety of eating options ranging from stalls and dhabas to fancy restaurants. Deeper into the lanes of the town, one can find more local eating places, catering to special tastes and habits ranging from Tibetan food, to Vaishnavi Dhabhas. You are sure to find something without hunting around too much.
Old Manali is one of the best places to hang out in the evening. It has a great collection of restaurants and shops. It is also not crowded like the Mall Road, with the crowd consisting mostly of foreigners.
SO that was KuluManali!