Somewhere in the Himalayas

Located approx. 30 kms. from Shimla on the Kufri Chail highway, the Toshali resort can truly be said to be in the middle of nowhere. Situated along the side of a cliff so that all rooms can overlook the Himalayas, this is one place that is truly off the beaten track.
	We left at 7 am on a Thursday morning from Delhi and took roughly 8 hours to reach Shilon Bagh (including a one hour lunch stop on the Punjab Haryana border where we had aloo parathas and curd at a roadside tourist resort). The landscape began to change as soon as we hit Kalka, which is right at the foothills of the Himalayas. As we climbed higher and higher (Shilon Bagh is at 2400 meters above sea level) the vegetation seemed to change from shorter heavier trees with wide leaves to tall (very tall) and thin pine trees. Some seemed to reach over a hundred feet.
Opting to go via Chail rather than risk the Shimla and Kufri traffic jams, we found ourselves meandering on a very narrow road for about 60 kms. The last hour or so it rained non stop and as if to welcome us into Himachal Pradesh we encountered several icicles (�olley�) dropping along with the rain. For travelers such as ourselves, arriving from the 40 degrees plus heat in Delhi it was a welcome sight. The air was chilly and pure. I actually felt I was taking in some good clean oxygen for a change.
The first thing we did after checking in was to order �chai�. Nothing like a hot cup of tea while sitting on the balcony on a cold evening watching the rain come down over the dense pine forests on all the mountains around. We did this at least twice a day on all days of the trip.
It was the same month two years earlier that we�d made the exact same trip though we�d stayed at the Chail Palace that time. On that trip we�d done all the �touristy� things like visiting the highest cricket ground in the world at Chail, walking down to the Scandal point on Shimla�s mall road, Kasauli�s Monkey Point, having lunch at Giani da Dhaba etc. (though we�d skipped the mad crowds of Kufri on that trip as well). This time, we planned to take the road less traveled.
On Friday morning, we took a packed lunch and drove to Naldhera. Naldhera is famous because Lord Curzon was obsessed with it so much so that he named his daughter Lady Alexandra Naldhera.	He had designed a nine hole golf course there which though unfortunately in terrible shape, does posses the unique distinction of being all alongside the mountain. Small wonder that the greens were exceptionally small and the fairways short.	Right next to the golf course is a picnic spot where you can sit under the pine and oak trees for hours if you�re out for relaxation or you can take a horse ride and explore the whole area. We chose to spread a sheet and relax as our one year old daughter played with her ball.
	On our way back, we took a bit of a diversion to drive into Shimla before returning to Shilon Bagh and we were once again amazed at the traffic, the crowds and the congestion of a place, which was once India�s winter capital (during the British Raj). The architecture is decidedly British and there are some interesting sights to see in that area. Wildflower Hall (Mashobra), which is now an exclusive Oberoi property, but which was earlier the residence of Lord Kitchener of Khartoum, built specifically to irritate Lord Curzon and of course, once banned from Shimla, the Maharaja of Patiala, Bhupinder Singh built his own capital, which was higher than Shimla � Chail. For those who have a fascination for the British Raj, Shimla is a must visit. For us, there was no parking and too much congestion, so we just drove around, took in the sights and went straight back to the hotel.
The next day brought with it another packed lunch and yet another trip � this time to Narkanda. Over 60 kms away from Shilon Bagh, all we knew about Narkanda was that we would be able to see the snow packed peaks of the Himalayas from there. So off we went.
It was a drive that took over two hours, but the picturesque beauty of nature in all its grandeur was a breathtaking sight. At every turn it seemed like we were all alone with nothing but the sounds of birds for company. The vegetation changed from pine trees to Christmas trees and they seemed to be taller, thinner and straighter now.	When we reached the small market place that was undoubtedly the center of the town, we stopped to ask a local where the viewpoint was. There wasn�t any, he informed us and there wasn�t any skiing either since that only happened in the winters. A bit disheartened, we decided to drive a bit further.	At 2800 meters we found a lone Circuit House, standing atop a hill that seemed to have the picture perfect view. The snow capped mountains were visible right in front of us as we sat in the lawn of the Circuit House sipping a cup of (what else?) tea.
	Just as we were about to leave Narkanda, we happened to see a board proclaiming that there was a lakeside campsite just 7 kms ahead. It seemed almost implausible that there could be a lake at that high an altitude, but we decided to go check it out anyway. Several meters higher, we found it � a totally secluded region with a really tiny lake nestled on what could not even be termed as a small valley. But as we looked up at the absolutely clear blue sky, we did think for a moment that it would�ve been fun to go boat riding on that slightly-larger-than-a-swimming-pool lake. Indeed, we may have if we were sure it was deep enough.
The route back was dotted with apple orchards, leechi trees and several bee farms where honey was being extracted. All the small towns we passed had their populations in hundreds � some even in double digits and I could not help wondering what those people�s life was like. To wait hours to catch a bus, to walk a couple of kilometers just to buy eggs and bread or to go to school, to gather broken twigs and branches to light their fire and to carry heavy �matka�s� of water from the hand pump to their home each day. It must be a very difficult life.
	We stopped at the edge of the road with only the cliff side on our left and took a moment to take in the sight when all of a sudden; a woman appeared out of nowhere. A scarf around her head and a typical Himachali suit worn with socks and shoes, she seemed to have miraculously appeared at the edge of the cliff. We were so taken aback that I had to step closer to the edge and it was only when I peeked over at the drop below and that I saw it � a small path just enough for a single pedestrian to climb up and get to the main road. She must have her house somewhere way down there I thought to myself, amazed again at the stamina of these people to be able to do this so easily day after day.
Once we got back to Shilon Bagh, it no longer seemed as exotic and pristine as we had thought when we left earlier that morning. Narkanda was far more beautiful. Untouched, unexplored and uncluttered, it was really out there.
There was a sense of some relief though at reaching the hotel once again, thankful that the car had held up and we were able to come and go as we pleased. Activities at the resort kept us occupied for the rest of the day � carom, table tennis, tambola, twenty questions, dancing and new Hindi movies ensured that we didn�t feel too cut off from civilization.
On Sunday morning, we left after a heavy breakfast and drove all the way back to Delhi. Three and a half hours of the drive was just mountainous region as we slowly came back down to Kalka. The very sight of people, cars and shops made us want to turn right back as every hour seemed to bring along with it higher temperatures.
It was only when we reached Karnal and I switched back from CD to radio that I realized again with a start how far away we�d been. Where there was no radio, no pollution and nothing to disturb us from being one with nature.
Yep, Shilon Bagh was the perfect place for a relaxed peaceful holiday away from the rising temperatures.