Kanifnath Temple via Bopdev Ghat

      Since I am not a very big fan of getting wet in the rains every time I go out, I decided to go somewhere nearby for my blog. So, I went to the Kanifnath Temple in Bopgaon via Bopdev Ghat. The ghat is about 5kms from Katraj and the temple is 21kms. I left my house at about 11:30 AM. The Katraj-Kondhwa road had its share of traffic, then I took a right turn from Khadi Machine Chowk to commence to Bopdev Ghat. 

Bopdev Ghat

       Bopdev Ghat has many hotels and Sinhagad and Trinity College at its foot & as I went up I got a complete view of the city. Its all green during monsoon, but it was just the beginning of monsoon so there was still all dried up grass or hay on the mountains.

view of the city from the ghat

       I then reached Bopgaon and after going further on my left I saw the entrance gate or the 'kamaan' as called in Marathi of the temple. Then I had to ride for almost 15 minutes to reach to the foot of the hill on which the temple is located. The road up the hill is a bit on the rough side. I then reached the parking area.

stairs to go up to the temple

      Right opposite to the parking is the view of Saswad and the surrounding area from the hill, on one side of the parking is a Dutta Mandir, then there is an open space with a small canteen and flower vendors. To the other side are 100+ steps that take us up to the Kanifnath Temple. After climbing up the stairs on the left hand side are statues of a huge elephant and a few saints, which is a part of some story. Then I entered the temple. Now the temple is such that there is an open space where worshippers can worship, but, the main idol of the deity is inside the 'gabhara' and only men are allowed to go in. They have to wrap a orange (bhagva) cloth and crawl in from a tiny space. The orange cloth or 'bhagvi lungi' to be precise is available with the trust office in the temple premises. Many devotees claim of their wishes coming true here.

devotees have to crawl in the small space like this

       In the temple premises are other temples dedicated to Vitthal Rakhumai, Hanuman, Kal Bhairav, Mahadev & Kaleshwari. The temple also serves food to its devotees from 12 PM. I worshipped all the deities and started my journey back home.

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My First Trip As A Solo Traveller | A Trip To Silvassa

      After all the difficulties or struggles I faced, it was finally time to take my first solo trip (to Silvassa). It was the morning of 10th of June. I woke up at around 6 AM as I had a train at 7:15 AM. I was nervous and excited. I got ready. My brother dropped me at the station. The train (Deccan Queen) was on the platform. I had travelled by Deccan Queen many times before, so I was aware of the journey. The whistle blew and the train left the station. I watched the scene through the window thinking about what beholds in the further journey. Thinking about it, I fell asleep. I got up some half an hour before Dadar. The stations passed by, I then got up from my seat as Dadar approached closer, as I had to get down there.

       I got down and not being used to the local trains of Mumbai, was obviously confused. Then after enquiring and taking the ticket, I boarded a train to Bandra. I being a Punekar was amused by the way people in Mumbai keep on rushing. I had been to railway stations before, I had even been in a local train before, but this was the first time I was alone and doing it all by myself. I heard the train lady say, 'next station Bandra'. I then stood near the door as I was aware of the struggle to get in and get off a local train in Mumbai. My luck I must say, Bandra wasn't much crowded and I got down easily. Again I had to obviously enquire about where to go and how to go to take my train to Vapi.

before boarding the train to Vapi

        After enquiring I got to know that I'll have to go to Bandra Terminus which I guess is 1-2kms from the station. I took a sharing rickshaw and reach the terminus. The terminus was the least crowded so it was easy to walk around. I then finally got into the train Paschim Express. My seat was reserved so I went directly to my seat. It was 11:35 AM, time for the train to depart, but it got late by 10 minutes. I then watched the stations and the dry patches that passed by. By around 2 PM I reached the Vapi station & yes I couldn't go further without enquiring. I was a bit hungry, so I had a paratha at a nearby hotel and asked them about how to reach Silvassa. The waiter then called an auto driver from the auto stand which was just opposite to the hotel. The driver said that he'll take ₹170 to drop me to Silvassa. I found that very pricey and asked him about the bus. He was kind enough and said the bus will charge ₹15-20 and he can drop me to the stand if I want. I agreed and he then dropped me to the Vapi Bus Stand.

Tribal Cultural Museum

           Silvassa is 18kms from Vapi. It took the bus almost an hour to reach Silvassa. The hotel that I had booked, Hotel Woodlands Inn was just opposite the Silvassa bus stand. I just had to cross the road. When I reached the hotel, there was some furniture work going on. It was a behind a small building. I had always stayed in 3* hotels before and this was more like a lodge. I had read all the good reviews about the hotel, but since I wasn't used to budget hotels, I was starting to regret my decision about a budget trip. I did all the check in procedure. Much to my surprise, the hotel was quite good from the inside. My room was nice and spacious and clean. The bathroom was a bit stained but was manageable. I freshened up and according to my itinerary went down to see the Tribal Museum. I asked at the reception where the museum and the Our Lady of Piety Church was. It was just 5 minutes away at the main cross road. I visited the museum. I saw all the tribe-related things there. I asked the lady at the enterance if I could meet the tribal people, she said there are some tribes in Dudhani village, you can meet them if you want. I then visited the church and then returned back to the hotel. I had my dinner and went straight to bed.

Our Lady Of Piety Church

         The next day I woke up at 3:30 AM. I did my morning routine and at around 4:45 AM left for the Swaminarayan Temple. The earlier day, the hotel travel desk told me that it takes around 15-20 minutes to reach the temple by foot. I started walking. It was still dark. There were people on the road, but since I was alone, there was a slight sense of fear at the back of my mind. After walking for about half an hour I reached near a board sign which read 'BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir'. There was a gate there, but it was locked. It took me almost 10-15 minutes to figure out the entrance to the temple. I went in. I spent almost 3 hours at the temple and then took a rickshaw back to the hotel. I had my breakfast and since there was nothing else to do, I decided to take a nap.

BAPS Swaminarayan Temple

          After waking up I had lunch and spent the afternoon watching TV. Then in the evening, I went to see the Vanganga Lake Garden. It was 6 kms from the hotel, so I had to take an auto. While going there I read a board that said 'Hirwa Van Garden', as this was on the way I decided to go there as well while returning from Vanganga L.ke Garden. After these two gardens I went to Nakshatra Garden which was just besides the Swaminarayan Temple. After visiting all three gardens I went back to the hotel. I wasn't much hungry, so I ate the puris that my mom had given while I watched television. I then went to sleep.

Vanganga Lake Garden   Hirwa Van Garden        Nakshatra Garden

           The next day I got up a bit late. I had my breakfast, I got ready, but I was feeling a bit too lazy. I guess because it was a Sunday. I then went back to my room. After relaxing for sometime I said to myself that I wasn't here to relax. I went down had my lunch and went to the Lion Safari at Vasona. I had to take 2 risckshaws that dropped me to Rakholi and Vasona respectively. I had to walk 2 kms to reach the Lion Safari & after these efforts taken all I got to see was two sleepy lions. I was so disappointed. Moreover, like a moron I  even payed ₹100 to film the lions which was a complete waste of money. My main purpose of a solo trip was meeting the locals. So after the Lion Safari I had plans of going to Dudhani. Luckily, I got an auto which dropped me at the crossroad. There I was waiting for an auto to reach Dudhani, but no one was ready to go there. Then a lady who was waiting for a bus told me that no auto will go to Dudhani, she said that I will have to take a bus. She then guided me and we got into a bus which was completely crowded. Private buses run more than government buses here & they keep on taking people in due to the shortage of buses. 

sleepy lion at Lion Safari

          After the crazy bus ride, I reached the Dudhani cross road. I got down, there were a few houses, but it didn't look like a village to me. So I asked a shopkeeper where Dudhani was. He told me that it was 2kms from that stop. He asked me where I was waiting, when I told him Silvassa, he said that there is a bus now that will go to Silvassa, after that there will be no transport to go back. I will either have to stay in the village then or take an auto which will charge me ₹300-400. But the experience of not getting an auto while coming said that I shouldn't trust that I will get an auto. The bus arrived and the shopkeeper said 'go this is the last bus'. I got in. I then asked the conductor about the buses. He said there are mostly private buses, they start running at 7 AM and run uptill 4:30 PM. He then asked me about my purpose of visit & then told me to come in the morning when the first bus departs. I then reached Silvassa, I went to the hotel had my dinner, watched TV & then went to sleep.

Madhuban Reservoir

        The next day was my last day in Silvassa. I had to go 40kms, then come back 40kms & then go 18kms to Vapi to take the train. So I woke up early. I got ready and went to the bus stand. As the clock was ticking I was thinking what if I miss the train, what if I can't reach in time. It then clicked me that there were many small villages on the way to Dudhani and there was also a lovely view point, so I thought instead of going to Dudhani, I'll get down at that village. That way the main purpose of my trip will be fulfilled without any worry. I got in the bus. It took me an hour to reach that village, it was Wagh Chauda & the lovely sight was of the Madhuban Reservoir.

Lekshi Bhai & Prabhu Bhai

         I met Prabhu Bhai & Lekshi Bhai the locals of Wagh Chauda. They told me about their lives and the problems they face because of the Madhuban Reservoir & how villages are set on the mountains. The main purpose of my trip was fulfilled. I then returned to Silvassa. I had already done the checkout procedure in the morning as I wasn't aware about when will I return & I obviously didn't want to pay extra charges. I then had my breakfast and left for Vapi. 

        I reached Vapi at 12:30 PM. The train Jhansi Bandra Express was at 2:30 PM. I had no option other than waiting. I wasted my two hours there, I could have taken a look around but there was nothing there. The train got delayed by 15 minutes and finally arrived at 2:45 PM. I reached Bandra Terminus at 5:30 PM, from there I took a sharing auto upto Bandra Station and then a local to Dadar. I then went to the Dadar ST stand. At almost 6:45 PM I got a bus to Pune. It was getting late so I did not ask and directly got in. The bus was not non-stop and took a halt at every stand. It reached Pune at 11:30 PM. My dad came to pick me and my first solo trip had come to an end.

      The trip was quite good and I being a solo traveller I did not face any tough problems. Everything was smooth and I had an amazing experience on my first solo trip. 

I have uploaded a video about my trip and what I did while I visited the different places in Silvassa. You can watch it here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2VtXU3rk3A & don't forget to hit that SUBSCRIBE button.

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The Struggles Of Becoming A Solo Traveller

        I fell in love with travelling at a very young age. I remember, when I was a kid, we, that's me and my family would always go on a holiday during the summer vacations. I remember visiting many lovely places all over India every time the summer break came along. Visiting a new place after those stressful exams was such a relief. But as I grew older and started to understand things a bit better, I realised that it wasn't just about visiting a new place or having those stress relieving sessions. What I really loved about travelling was the culture of that particular place. I would always be eager to know what is the staple food of those people, what kind of clothes do they wear, what language do they speak, what is the art or folk form over there, what is that place famous for and so on. Now obviously I would get all the information from the hotel's front desk, but I would always think, wouldn't it be great if I got a chance to meet the locals and get to know about that place from the locals itself. But you see, the vacations we took were limited to relaxing, sight seeing and shopping. So I never really got a chance to do what I wanted to do. I am not complaining or blaming anyone for it. We all would have one break together and everyone wanted to make the most out of it & by most I mean spending the time relaxing as this was the only time that we could drift away from the everyday schedule. 

         So since I wanted to get to know about the place from the locals, which was not possible do to during family vacations, I decided that I will start travelling solo and fulfill all my dreams related to travelling. No no no no no. It wasn't as easy as you think. It wasn't like today I decided to travel solo and tomorrow I pack my bags. I faced many struggles before I took my first ever solo trip. I am very sure that many people can relate to these struggles. 

      The first struggle that I faced was convincing myself. Yes I had to convince myself. When I decided that I want to spend my life travelling, I decided that I'll make a career that will let me travel and also make money. So that way I won't have to worry about what job should I do? Will I get an off to travel? and so on. So I decided to take up journalism and mass communication for my post graduate studies & thought of becoming a travel show host. I did take up and also completed the degree, but due to some unfortunate turns of events I couldn't take up the career that I wanted to. I then started working in a school as an administrator. I know, journalism-administrator, there's no connection at all, but that's a different part of the story. I was doing my job well, but I wasn't happy with it. Everyday I would think that this is not what I want to do. Then instead of losing hope I started looking for careers that will let me do my thing in my pace and time & I stumbled upon travel bloggers or vloggers. 

       Yes!!! This is it, I thought. This is the best option for me & this is what I want to do. But there isn't always success in it. I read an article of a couple who left their high profile jobs to travel the world and how they ran out of money and had to do everything and anything like cleaning public toilets to earn for their daily bread. There were even success stories, but that involved years of hard work. There was no, is no & will never be a legal path to earn quick money. After reading all the unsuccessful stories I became a bit negative and thought what if I end up here? I got scared of taking up travel blogger or vlogger as a career. But, I sat down and spoke to myself. I convinced myself that how would I know if I don't try. I had read a saying, 'Its better to die trying than to live without doing it'. So I convinced myself to do it. I even believe if you have passion for something, you do it with all your heart and soul & when you put your heart and soul in it, success definitely finds the path towards you. So I left my six months old job and started writing travel blogs. For that I visit different places in my city and write my views about that place.  I didn't just want to stick to my city, I want to explore the country, I want to explore the world & for that I need to take permission from my parents, because I'll have to travel alone

      This is where I faced my second struggle. Convincing my parents. Now I belong to a typical marathi middle class family. A family where my dad wishes that I start earning now so that he can retire from his work. A family where my over protective mother keeps on giving me examples of the crimes that we see in 'Savdhan India'. A family where relatives keep on asking what so I do for a living & when I answer them they tell me I have a younger brother & I should set a good example before him instead of doing all this shit. A family where people ask me why don't I work as a journalist and whether they should refer my name to a person who is on a senior post in so and so newspaper. Now I don't worry about the relatives, but I definitely had to convince my parents. When I first told my parents that I want to be a travel blogger & vlogger, the first thing my father asked my was, how much will I earn from it. I had to explain the whole thing to him. I had to explain all the things related to earning money. I told him that I will make money that will let me live a good life & then I had to tell him the bitter truth and it takes many years of hardwork, it is not like a 9 to 5  job where I can get started with 20k as my basic pay.  He didn't directly say anything, but he would always taunt me for leaving my job and sitting at home. That somehow would crush my willpower. Now my father is that kind of a person who is not very fond of discussions. So instead discussing the issue with him, I discussed it with my mother & she explained it to him. He then understood that he should let me do what I am passionate for instead of just forcing me to earn money.

        Well I had convinced my father and it was now time to convince my mother. My mother watches a lot of these crime series, so every time we ask her something, she gives us an example from the crime show. Don't talk much with the other gender, don't exchange phone numbers with them, don't stay out late, always be friends with good people, etc., were the instructions that I and my brother would receive when we were younger. Those instructions have stopped now, but my mother is still the same. When I told her that I want to travel solo, she said, why solo? We go on a vacation almost every year then why do I need to travel solo. I then explained it to her that we travel as tourists and I want to travel as a traveller. I then explained the difference between a tourist and a traveller and told her that everyone will not enjoy doing what I want to do. She agreed to it, but my mother, never gives up. She had a second option. She said that I should get married and travel with my husband. I found it funny, because I never thought that this will be an option in her list. Then I asked her whether she was able to do the things that she wanted to do after getting married. Her answer was 'no'. So I asked her what are the chances that I'll get to fulfill my dreams? What if my future husband isn't at all interested in travelling? or even if he is, his work schedule doesn't let him travel often? Will I be able to do what I want to? Will he let me travel alone? Her answer to all my questions was 'no'. 

       So then let me travel solo, I said. She then said that I'm a girl and she is worried about me. She said we see the crimes that take place all over the country, what if something bad happens to me. I told her that she is a mother and it is completely fine to get worried about her young daughter, but, how fine is it to let your daughter crush her dreams due to fear. I explained it to her that if something bad has to happen, it will happen, no matter what. Then I told her a short story, 'once a mother gets to know that water will be the reason behind her son's death. So she doesn't allow him to go on a school picnic to a water park. But, the same day when the school is off for the picnic, the boy dies in his house. The reason for his death, while drinking water, it goes in his respiratory pipe and chokes him to death'. So I told her that no matter where I am, if something bad has to happen with me it will happen. I know that taking precautions is much better than to regret later, but, what if nothing bad is in my destiny? Then I'll regret for not trying the whole time. I told her to think about it. She did & finally agreed upon me travelling solo.

       This all wasn't as easy as it sounds. It took me almost seven months to convince both my parents. Now that my parents were convinced I had to face my third struggle. Choosing a place for my first solo trip. Now since I was going to travel solo for the first time, I thought I should choose a place which is nearby and which won't cost me much. After looking up for it, I finalised Silvassa, the capital of Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Silvassa is a mixture of tribes and Portuguese culture and is even developing now. So I thought that I'll get to see all the sides of it and hence thought of choosing Silvassa as my first solo travel destination. 

      After that I faced a struggle to manage the funds for my travel. I had resigned from my job almost eight months ago. Moreover, I had worked only for six months, so I only had a few thousand rupees with me. So obviously I had to work a budget for my trip. I not only had to spend money for the trip but also had to use the money for my day to day expenses. I took this up as a challenge. I thought what if in the long run I can't earn a lot of money, I then will have to manage all my travel and other expenses in the money available. & being a traveller doesn't mean living in luxury, so I will have to manage in the money that I have. But this was my first time travelling solo, all my life I had lived in 3* hotels. So I had to look for a hotel that was cheap but clean and good. I spent almost 10 days looking up for such hotels on the travel portals. Reading reviews, looking at pictures shared by fellow travellers, seeing whether the picture is recent or old, because obviously an old photo will show a nice image if the hotel was new, whereas, a recent photo will show the recent status of the hotel. I then even saw which portals were giving heavy discounts and cashbacks. Then after looking for all these things I finally finalised a hotel. Then I calculated the other things and booked my train tickets. I said to myself that I will spend only ₹5000 for the entire trip. I ended up spending ₹4460 for four days to be exact for my first ever solo trip.

       Finally, I took my first successful solo trip on 10th June, 2016. These were the struggles that I faced before I became a solo traveller. Now that I have taken my first solo trip, there are very little chances of facing the same struggles again. But, life isn't a piece of cake with tasty icing. I know I will have to face many struggles in the future, but, I know, now that I have jumped into the sea, I have the ability to cross it too.

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Yet Another Confusion In Chandigarh | A Trip To Himachal | Part 4

          When the breakfast is free and when it is good, you should not skip it, never. After all it is the most important meal of the day. So that is what we did on our sixth day of our Himachal trip. We woke up in the morning and had our breakfast. It was going to be a long day of travel, so we left immediately after our breakfast. 

         Our journey from Manali to Chandigarh had begun. The road to Chandigarh from Manali was just so so amazing. The lovely Beas river flowing all over. It was amazing. We were driving non-stop and only took a halt at 3 pm to have tea. I mentioned about the breakfast, we were so full that we didn't even stop for lunch. Then after having tea, we got on the road back to Chandigarh. As we were about to cross the Himachal border, it started raining, but, soon stopped as we crossed the border. We had reached Punjab. Lovely farms and gurudwaras welcomed us in Punjab. 

        After going a bit further, we saw a few young boys stopping the vehicles. At first, we thought what was this, why were they stopping everyone? Because in Kullu, a man stopped our car as if there was some emergency & when we stopped he asked us to visit his shop. So we felt like even these boys were going to do something like this. But as our car reached near, much to our surprise, the boys were serving langar to everyone. It was so kind of them. We took the langar and started our journey ahead.

                                          langar served at Punjab.

           We then reached Chandigarh. What a city Chandigarh is. Well planned roads, lush greenery, people following traffic rules, it was all really pleasing to the eyes. Our hotel was at Zirakpur, almost 20 kms from Chandigarh. So we first decided to go to do some shopping at Chandigarh. We then asked where the market was, but, till we reached there, it started raining heavily. We had to therefore carry on with our journey. We reached the hotel, Hotel Sapphire, at around 9 pm. My dad went in to do the check in procedure. I went and sat on the sofa in the hotel's lobby.

          My dad called me, because there was yet another confusion regarding our stay. Now when a person books a holiday package or a hotel, the travel portal sends a voucher to the customer and the hotel. Here the hotel staff said they hadn't received any voucher and hence they hadn't booked any room for us. Then we called the travel portal and the lady said she would like to speak to the hotel staff. I handed the phone to one of the front desk executive. He asked her when had she sent the voucher and said that he is checking but cannot find any mail from the portal. But what I could see in the mirror behind him was that he was just scrolling the page up and down. So I insisted on checking for the mail. He allowed me to check it. After checking their email, I found a mail which had a list of guests who had booked the hotel in that month and it had my father's name as well. They had all the details, the name, contact number, check in & check out date, number of rooms booked and moreover had also received the payment. I think it was very irresponsible of the hotel, if they had received the details, it was their duty to call the portal and ask for the voucher. But we had to face all this mess and confusion. 

         The hotel manager then called up another hotel and arranged two rooms for us there at the same price. We then left for the other hotel, KC Cross Road. The hotel was quite big and looked nice from the outside. We then went to our rooms. Sadly, the rooms were not at all well maintained. There was leakage, stained toilet, water seeping through the wall. It was in a very bad condition. Moreover, we got a corner room which gave it a haunted feel. But it was a matter of one night so we decided to adjust. We then went down to have our dinner. The service was extremely slow, they took almost 20 minutes to bring us a spoon. But we had no other option other than adjusting. 

at Hotel KC Cross Road

            The next morning we woke up early as we had a flight from Delhi at 1:30 pm. The staff was kind enough, they packed some sandwiches and fruits for us as the breakfast was going to start at 7 am. We then left at 6 am. We then left for Delhi. On the way we took a halt at Karnal Haveli. It was a lovely place with an amazing outdoor.

at Hotel Karnal Haveli

            We reached Delhi well in advance. We then went straight to the airport. The sick feeling I had while coming started to haunt me. So I took the medicine. Then the check in procedure started, we got on our flight and had a safe journey back home. And that was the end of our Himachal Trip.

at Delhi Airport

Watch my Manali to Chandigarh to Delhi Vlog here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vP-P-NU4Hz4 & don't forget to hit that SUBSCRIBE button.

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We Fell In Love With Manali | A Trip To Himachal | Part 3

       This day started at 4:30 am. We woke up got ready and left for Manali at 5 am. What a lovely morning it was. Rising up before the sun, was truly splendid. We all were enjoying the scenic beauty as our car passed the hills of Shimla. But soon we all started craving for breakfast, but all the hotels and dhabas were closed. Then at around 6 am we saw a hotel which was opened. We went in and asked if they can serve us breakfast. They said they can serve parathas, but it will take some time. We then enjoyed the lovely view till our breakfast was being prepared. We saw the sunrise a few peahens and some other lovely birds. Then we had our breakfast and left for Manali. We all dozed off soon as we were up early. But, you know, one just cannot sleep well in a moving car on a hilly road, at least I can't. I opened my eyes to look out of the window and saw these lovely pinecone trees. I wanted the pinecones. So I started looking for branches that will be in our reach as all the trees were in the valley. I finally found some. Then we picked up a few pinecones and continued with our journey.

the scenic beauty on our way to Manali

     We were dozing off in between and enjoying the scenic beauty in between. Then we reached Kullu, I don't remember the time when. There my father made sudden plans of going for rafting. Then my parents and my brother went for the rafting as I waited and watched them drift with the water in the boat. It took them almost an hour and a half to return. Then we went to have our lunch & Kullu was the only place that did not have any taxes on food. Well some many saved there. Then we left for Manali. And OMG!!! what a lovely view it was. Beas river flowing on one side and lovely green mountains on the other. It was a view worth a million dollars.

rafting in Beas River

      We then went to finalise the next day's Rohtang Pass visit. But up on reaching there we found everything very costly. ₹5000 just to see the snow & ₹250 extra for each person for the jumpsuits and boots. & moreover, get up at 3 am and travel in the dark. Me & my mother just didn't find it worth. Then a few locals told us that you can apply for the permit online. Now only 1200 cars (800 petrol + 400 diesel) are allowed to go up to Rohtang, to save the environment. So if you want your car to go up you have to apply for a permit at least 4 days prior, because it depends on the availability as only 1200 cars are allowed. It costs ₹600. But because we looked up for it an evening before, we did not get the permit. So we dropped our plans of going to Rohtang. We then planned of visiting Solang Valley, Gulaba & then of course go for some shopping.  Then we left for our hotel. It was just 30-45 minutes ride, but we got stuck in the long que of cars that was returning from Rohtang. The road was single & all the cars were in the que from a very long time. So there were very few chances of overtaking & our driver was even worried about the challan. So despite of my father and brother forcing him to overtake, he did not move for quite a long time. But my father and brother just wouldn't stop. They kept on saying, 'overtake from the left, there is space ahead, we can go, come on, move it, blah, blah, blah'. & then something got into him and the way he overtook was damn!! We covered almost one and a half our of the timing. Then from there he started overtaking little by little. But then, a police came fined the car in front of us, that is when we all said lets not overtake now.

         The hotel was just 15 minutes away then. We started thinking about the hotel. After that disaster in Shimla we were really worried about how the hotel here will be. All the hotels in Manali seemed very sophisticated (if that's the right word). But still we were worried about how our hotel will be. Then we reached the area where the hotel was located. We stopped in front of a posh newly built clean hotel and asked where was 'Summit Chandertal' & the watchman was like, 'this is it'. It won't be wrong if I say that we were lovestruck. We took a sigh of relief & went in. I might sound gross but after the first day, this was the day that a had a proper bath. Then we had our dinner & planned for the next day.

view from the hotel

       We then went on to have a very very good night sleep. The next morning I woke up & went in the balcony, and man, the view was to die for. I looked in the watch and wondered how didn't my mom give us a wake up call. I then went into my parents room & woke them up. I showed them the view as well & even they were awestruck. We then moved our attention from the view & got ready to get going. If the hotel is good, the breakfast has to be good & when the breakfast is good you should eat till your stomach bursts. That is exactly what we did. We then left for Solang.

       Upon reaching Solang there were many, salesman. Everyone asking if we want to go in the snow. Then after a few minutes of discussion and bargaining we decided to go. So they took us in this jeep and left us near a small hill. We then had to trek up the hill for about 10 minutes. Then from there, we went up by bikes. We reached this place called 'Dhundi'. All this trekking and biking had to be done because Dhundi falls in the way of Rohtang & non permitted vehicles are not allowed up. So these people take some other root and bring the people up. We then trekked another mountain for about 45 minutes and then finally reached the snow. It was left over and not as great as the pictures of Rohtang. But this cost us ₹4000 and we even got to play in the snow. We had an amazing time there. Then we came down and I and my brother went on an ATV ride. My brother was riding the ATV, when he gained a bit confidence that he can control it he increased the speed. Guess what then, he lost control and hadn't the driver been with us we would've  gone straight down in the valley. But thank god, nothing as such happened.

beautiful Dhundi

     After the ATV ride, we headed down to Manali & yes, again got stuck in the traffic. Now our driver fed up of my brother and father, handed the car keys to my father and asked him to drive. & as soon as my father began to drive the cars started moving. We were in Manali in just a few minutes. We then went to the market & did some shopping. The trekking, the walking, the shopping, made us all very tired and hungry. We then had our dinner and left for the hotel. We then ended the tiring yet lovely day with a good night sleep.

ATV Ride

Watch all the fun we had in Manali here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OWe8gBxlOA

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The Disaster In Shimla | A Trip To Himachal | Part 2

        So we reached Shimla at 9:30pm. Our hotel was on Mall Road. We asked a passerby where was it exactly located, but he was confused. So we went a bit ahead and saw a board that said Hotel Amar Villa (the one we had booked) rooms starting from ₹599. My brother went in to enquire about the exact location & came back after five minutes. He said that the manager of the hotel is sitting in and he is saying that he has no information about our stay. Then I and my father went in. The room was filled with smoke out of a cigarette and there was smell of alcohol in the room. I guess they were having a party there. We showed them the voucher that we had received from MakeMyTrip after we paid the money. He said like us even the hotel receives a voucher but he hasn't received any voucher. He then said that they have a few super deluxe rooms & he will adjust us there for one night. The next day we will be allotted deluxe rooms (the ones that we had booked) & if we want to continue with super deluxe rooms for the next day as well we will have to pay extra charges then. We were OK with that. We then asked for his name & when he told his name we realized that this man had given us a call a few days ago asking us whether our booking was confirmed. Now if he did not receive the voucher why did he call us? How did he come to know that we had booked the hotel. However, we did not pay much attention to it as he was alotting us rooms. 

       We then reached the hotel, or should I say foot of the hotel. I had read in the reviews that one has to climb some 100 steps to reach to the hotel, so I was prepared for it. But just climbing and climbing with a bag that weighs almost a kilo makes a big difference. Yes, there was no bellboy to carry our luggage & it was impossible for us to carry all the bags, so we had to hire a coolie. Tired and exhausted we finally reached the hotel. They offered us water and when we got our breath back, they showed us a few rooms. We selected two rooms & then the receptionist told us that they were super deluxe rooms and we will have to pay extra for them. My father then said that we have spoken to the manager & he said that we will have to pay extra if we continue with the rooms tomorrow, tonight we don't have to pay any extra charges. But he just did not agree and started saying we cannot alot you those rooms as you are not ready to pay extra. 

        Even we did not agree to take any other room. I mean why should we? He then called the manager and had some conversation with him & then handed the phone to my father. The manager then started quarreling with my father. He said we will have to listen to what the receptionist is saying and if we don't want to agree we can leave the hotel, he doesn't care if we stay there or not. This phoning session went on for about 45 minutes & then after all the calling and quarreling they gave us the rooms that we had selected. They try to loot money from you, but you should stay firm. Nevertheless, we went to the rooms, freshened up & then went to sleep. 

       The next day we got up, got ready and ordered breakfast. I had read bad reviews about the food here but it was quiet good than what I had read. We then left for Kufri. On our way the driver told us that a lady came in the morning where the car was parked and demanded ₹250 for the parking. The driver asked for the receipt, when she handed the receipt it was written ₹120. The driver then said that he will pay only ₹120 because that's what the receipt says. She then started quarreling with him and then at last said that he will have to pay ₹150. We then reached Kufri Adventures, a small amusement park. It had some rides, some adventure sports and some indoor games. Then we went on the Kufri Hill. Now here at the hill there is Himalayan Zoo and Indira Bungalow at the foothill & then one has to climb the hill to see Mashu Peak, Fagu Valley, Apple Garden and a few other points. Then hill is often covered with snow and when the snow melts the road becomes very muddy making it difficult for people to climb. So they have ponies for taking people up. Now the people with the ponies start stopping the cars almost 2 kilometers ago from the foothill. But we did not stop. We went up till Himalayan Zoo. After taking a walk in the zoo, we decided to go up. The pony ride costs ₹500 per person. After having the most scary ride on the bumpy road sitting on a pony, we reached up on the hill. Entry fee, fee to see the apple garden, fee to see the main points, fee for this, fee for that. Damn!! this costs a lot of money. We did not spend much and tried to see everything from those points which did not have the 'thekedars'. After spending some time there, we went down. Our plan was to reach Shimla and then take a stroll in the market, have dinner and then go to sleep. 

       But,  we lost our way & it took us about one and a half hour to reach Shimla. On the way our driver told us that there was a point, if we had parked our car there and hired ponies from there, the parking would have been free and they would even served lunch to our driver. But because we did not stop our car, they charged the parking fee as well as charged money for the lunch. Sigh!!

       We then reached Shimla at around 7pm. On our way we encountered some rude traffic police. Nothing much to say, but the way they were controlling the traffic was very rude. I guess they were taking out their frustration on the people. We then took a walk at Mall Road and had our dinner at Jashan Restaurant. It was an amazing restaurant with good food. The ambience was really nice. Their were a few flaws, but that was OK. After dinner we headed straight to the hotel and went to sleep as we had to leave for Manali at 5am the next day.

      To be honest, Shimla has got rude people, it is very costly & there is nothing much to see. We did not like Shimla at all. But we thought instead of cribbing about it, we'll enjoy the time we are there. 

And yes I have made a video log about my Shimla Travel as well.
Watch it here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfCJi4kSQYg

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And Our Plane Got Stuck In A Turbulence | A Trip To Himachal | Part 1

        In my last blog I had written about our last minute trip plans. So the packing was done and we were all set to leave the next day. Our flight was from Mumbai. We left for Mumbai in the morning at 9. We took a halt at the food mall, otherwise it was a nonstop journey from Pune-Mumbai. We reached the airport in time. After all the check in procedure we ate some sandwiches as we weren't too hungry. Our flight was at 3pm. So we were waiting in the lobby watching the other flights take off. At around 2:45pm I asked when was the boarding going to start, they said the flight has been delayed at it will take a while. The boarding then started at around 3:15pm. As half of the passengers boarded the plane the authorities said there was some problem & that we all will have to board another plane. Then the buses came and took us to the other plane. 

MUMBAI AIRPORT (CSI)

WAITING FOR OUR PLANE

          We all got in and made ourselves comfortable & the plane was ready to take off. The pilot announced that due to some technical errors the flight is delayed and the time will be covered up in the air. 'OK', I thought for myself, 'we will reach in time that means'. As the plane geared up for a take off I got goosebumps. I was sitting in a plane after five years after all. The first hour was smooth enough. We were even served with snacks. Then, after almost an hour of take off, the pilot announced that the weather in Delhi is bad & the airport officials haven't given a landing slot to any of the planes landing in Delhi, so we will have to hold the plane till we get a slot. Now I didn't really know what does holding a plane means. I had never been in this situation before.

         Shortly after this announcement, I started feeling dizzy. I asked my mom to call the air hostess & ask her for an air sickness bag. She did so. & I just couldn't help myself. As soon as she came with the bag I threw up everything. I don't want to sound gross, but I threw up everything that was in my stomach. The air hostess pointed out of the window & said, 'the weather is going to get very bad, here are a few more air sickness bags & some after mint'. She then explained to me what should be done if I get more dizzy & said that the crew won't be able to reach to me because of the bad weather. I dumped my head into the air sickness bag. After about 10 minutes, our plane got stuck in a turbulence.

          OMG!! This was the first time I was having this kind of an experience. We were going up & down, the plane was shaking & we were having a feeling of riding a bike on a very bumpy road. Children crying, people screaming & I, busy throwing up. This continued till the plane landed safely, almost an hour late than the scheduled time. As we landed everyone applauded, that is when I looked out of the window & thought, 'Thank God'. I wasn't worried about the plane crashing or something like that you see. I was worried about my sickness. 

DELHI AIRPORT (IGI)

        But it was all over now, the plane was on the ground and everyone was smiling in relief. We then got off the plane did the check out & left for our hotel. But I was hungry, we all were hungry. So we decided to have dinner before we went to the hotel. Then we went to this hotel Hot Chimney, somewhere in Lodhi Colony. Now here in Maharashtra some dishes have a certain sweetish kind of a taste to them. Those are our favorites, so we ordered Paneer Butter Masala, one of the sweetish kind of dish. But, the taste of that dish wasn't at all like what we have been eating since our childhood. It was different. It was more like spicy & sour & the dry manchurian was six balls of manchurian on a bed of fried onions. That is when we knew that we aren't getting things that we have been eating since childhood here. But, we had to adjust & we were ready for it.

        So after a day full of travel & having dinner we headed straight to the hotel. We asked the driver if we could do the sight seeing tomorrow. He said he doesn't have any problem if the travel portal & the taxi owner agrees to it. We then reached the hotel, Hotel Rockland. The staff here very very alert and extremely co-operative and very quick in service. Upon reaching the hotel we called the portal, but didn't get any response. We then thought lets go to sleep now & try calling tomorrow in the morning. So we did that, we went to sleep. 

          After waking up and getting ready the next day, we went down to have breakfast, there we had a discussion that we'll directly ask the driver to take us for the sight seeing of those spots which were on our way. Then we had this lovely healthy continental breakfast & checked out of the hotel. Our driver said that the owner did not agree for the sightseeing. It takes almost 10 hours to travel to Shimla from Delhi & the road isn't very good & we also had a halt in between to see Pinjore Gardens, so the cab owner said no sightseeing in Delhi. But we requested the driver to show us things that were on the way. He somehow agreed to it. But he didn't stop anywhere. So Delhi was completely on the run. We saw everything from the moving car itself. We then left for Pinjore. But before that, we took a halt at 70 Mile Dhaba for our driver to have breakfast. Even we had lassi.

BREAKFAST +Hotel Rockland 

@70 MILE DHABA

             We then reached Pinjore, which was almost 3 hours before Shimla. We took a round in the Pinjore Gardens saw everything that was around & then had our lunch there. We then left for Shimla. Shimla was just 75 kms from Pinjore, but it took us about three and a half hours to reach there. All thanks to the hilly roads. We reached Shimla at around 9:30pm.

@PINJORE GARDENS 

         After this long tiring journey we didn't know that we will have to face what we did in Shimla.

         So this was the first part of our trip to Himachal. To know what problem we faced in Shimla, you'll have to keep some patience, because I'll tell about it and more in my next blog.

I also have uploaded a video log about our trip- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5VPx7jKfAs

Please make sure to watch that as well. & don't forget to hit that SUBSCRIBE button.

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