Reached the bus stand on time. The ride was long and tiring with numerous stops in the way for refreshment and lunch besides for boarding other passengers on the way. There weren’t any tourists on the Bus or the route, just the locals. May be because it was an off-season, or they must travel by other means.
To Dalhousie
It took 5.30hrs for the bus to reach Dalhousie from Dharamshala bus stand. Dalhousie is a very small hill-station popular with Honeymooners. There were maybe no more than 50 people that I must have seen at the center of the town. We went to the tourist assistance office to get some information on which routes to take and misc. tips. We discussed many options so as to cover everything in 1 day and leave for Pathankot and subsequently to Amritsar.
All figured out, we bought a tourist guide book of Himachal Pradesh for Rs. 25. and went on to book a Taxi, which was easy to do as the Taxi union’s office was right in front. We were told the rates for local plus nearby places. In all we would be paying Rs. 1250. Fortunately for us, the fee was way below our expectation. I was game! Told the driver to come pick us up at 7.30AM next day at our hotel Satpushpa.
Hotel
We had asked around for some cheap hotels, as we just needed a place to crash for the night. Ignoring the touts, I walked up to the nearby hotels and settled for one where rooms were available for Rs. 200.
Evening Stroll
After freshening up, as soon as we were about to walk out, it started raining. To my amazement we witnessed snowfall for a brief period. It was around 3.30PM and it was already getting dim. We waited 30 mins for the rain to stop and immediately went on to discover the local sights. The Mall road – Gandhi Chowk – was a place with few restaurants and shops selling handicrafts, woolens etc. The short trek was along frozen ice on the side of the roads and beautiful scenery of the Valley. There were snow-laden peaks, which was an experience not to be missed. Especially when the last bit of sun shone on them, making it look like a golden crown.
Snacks
We had coffee and some Chinese meal at Cafe Dalhousie and made a move back to our hotel as it was dark by then. It was only 8PM and there was nothing better to do at the hotel, so we went out for a bit. There was a chicken snack shack, where we had some fried chicken for Rs. 80. Pretty good for the amount we were served.
The night was spent reflecting on the scenery that we had seen on the day.
Tags: Travel Trip