Remembering KASAULI

Entering PARWANOO

PARWANOO AGAIN

Bye bye PARWANOO

tank in the AMBUSH

remember the dog story

early morning in the hills

road to PEACE

morning sun burning bright

Trip To Kasauli: chapter5

Chapter 5

Left the place while the housekeeping was still sleeping. The person at the reception was also feeling hateful towards me for waking up so early to check out. It was 7:00 a.m but people around were still indoors. I went to the same diversion point which is also supposed to be a bus stop. 7:30 a.m I boarded a local bus which was supposed to take me to Chandigarh. It took the road which was other than the one we had travelled to reach Kasauli. This road was wider, better, with awesome sceneries. The bus had almost no glasses on the windows & was running at God’s will. It stopped at a petrol station and didn’t start. Well we all waited for the next half an hour. Meanwhile, I saw a group of bikers stopping at the station for the fuel. I enquired where they were heading towards and if they would mind carrying sumone aas a pillion rider. They were going to Ludhaina, so I boarded one of the bikes and we started for the city I had never seen before.

It is always safer to travel with bikers. They never find any girl more interesting than their bikes. We stopped at few turns to capture the nature. The road towards Ludhiana was a little boring and so was the city. So thickly polluted (fourth among the most polluted city in the whole world) that I could hardly breathe. The city is called ‘ Menchester of India’. Only work, no play. No good food joints either. But hwy was I at Ludhiana? Thanks to the bikers & my feather like nature of going with the wind. But then I remembered a long forgotten friend and surprised her with my presence. It is always so special to surprise your loved ones with your smile. After a brunch with her, she helped me board a bus to New Delhi & in next five hours, I was at the same place from where I started less than 48 hours ago. Back to the same monotonous city but a new Travel Tale.

Trip To Kasauli: chapter4

Chapter 4

While my way upto a food joint, saw a Sikh kid delivering dialogues from the movies of Sunny Deol that too with expressions better than Sunny paji himself. I found the 6 yr old very talented but the people around were not as surprised and impress as I was. It was probably his daily routine. While having my favorite Chinese food I was talking to a dog who was supposed to be guarding the place. Any slight sound or movement would catch his attention followed by an immediate action. He was no less than a CIA agent.

Was enjoying the serenity & the calmness in the wind when my friend called up. He had reached Chandigarh safe(to my surprise) & was advising me to go to my room ASAP. I was happy to see that he didn’t die on the way as I expected him to be. But at the same time was wondering why people feel scared of the things they can’t even see. While going back to my hotel room, I saw a group of college girls posing in the middle of the road under a lamp post and posing for their profile pic on FB while I saw a statue of a black dog outside a liquor shop & found it worth a click. But why a statue of dog outside a liquor shop?

Back in the hotel room, had a cup of tea while watching a very hilarious series which I had never seen before. My friend’s talks had made me a little fearful too. So I kept all the lights & TV on while I was getting into deep slumber of sleep. But when I woke up next morning, I found the TV switched off. There were surely some energy saving entities around

Trip To Kasauli

Chapter 3

I could see sign boards of hotels passing by. Very few people around and everyone watching with amazement. Well it happens whenever a girl roams alone. Finally I reached a point which was the entry to the station. Diversion of a road into three. Took the one going towards Air Force Station. On my way up, noticed a very primitive church with excellent old british style architechture, similar to the one I had seen in mussorie. Found it really alluring. Guard at the Air Force Station gate told me that the entry for the Monkey point(Favorite tourist spot) will open in the morning at 9 am. Looking at beautiful small independent houses around, I came back to the same point of diversion. Met a guy promoting his hotel. Followed the directions given by him & reached a beautiful cozy hotel. HIMGIRI was its name, which made me wonder why was it called so. As I don’t think it ever snows there. Amazed at the variety of forest flowers with varied colors & beauty. Collected some specimen to save in my diaries along with my poems.

Kept my stuff in that hotel room but could not rest even for a second. The nature was calling out so loudly that I  just couldn’t stay indoors. Went out with some warm clothes on to the mall road. Very few and organized shops with very few people shopping unlike any other mall road on any other hill station. There were such less number of people that I could actually count them on my fingers

Trip To Kasauli: Chapter 2 Reaching Kasauli

Chapter 2

Moving towards Kasauli, was reading sign boards of familiar names Solan, Kangra, Nangal. I was trying to choose target for my next trip. And finally the mind decided that they all deserve at least a visit & itinerary will be ready once I reach back home.

We had crossed Parwanoo and was 68 kms away from Kasauli when we met a diversion. While the sign board said something else, the police at a chowki directed us towards a very narrow road which goes staright to Kasauli. Very narrow & broken road but breath taking views. Had never seen such beautiful hills and dense vegetation. I always bragged about dense forests in Assam but these were no lesser. Every turn would bring a better picturesque view. The road was evidently very less taken. I was wondering if people actually visit this place. My dear friend kept on reminding me of possible consequences of staying alone in the ghostly place.

We reached Kasauli at 5:30 p.m. even after several times insisting on staying, my friend decided to leave for Chandigarh before it grows darker, as if it was not already. I was not very hopeful of him reaching home safe. With the kind of fear he had in his eyes, even a natural touch of wind could have killed him of heart arrest. He didn’t even enter Kasauli & left me a kilometer away from the city. But to my pleasure, for the first time in my life, I was walking on the clouds and it was literally as if I was walking on the clouds.

Reaching Chandigarh

Chapter 1

It all started with one monotonous morning in the city. Had a couple of days in hand and absolutely nothing to do. Didn’t want to waste even a single minute in any of the malls, when I know I deserved better. A little restlessness inside gave way to the same old spirit of running away. The idea was to reach as far away as possible & then come back next day. Destination was never decided but the route was somehow drawn in the psyche. Remember! It isn’t about the destination, but about the journey. So I thought of the weirdest and most troublesome way of travelling.

A local road ways till Sonipat, auto till panipat, mini bus till Karnal, roadways again till Ambala and finally a school bus till Chandigarh. Well the fellow travelers were more amazed then you are right now. Was trying to make a world record for travelling on maximum number of modes of transport in one trip. I regret not travelling in a bullock –cart, tractor and a truck in my journey. Though I so dearly wanted to but was falling short of time to enjoy such rural luxuries.

Met an old friend at Chandigarh and had lunch together at Paras Down Town Mall (no different than the Gurgaon malls). While our conversation, he said that Kasauli and Shimla were not very far away and can be reached within three hours. though I earlier I wanted to settle down at Chandigarh and return next day, but now I was getting carried away by the idea of covering another 123kms and reach Kasauli. Suddenly, my journey had started becoming useless without touching the hills. How do I get there was the question and the target was right in front of me.  After bribing him of all sort of sweets available(as he has got a sweet tooth like me), he agreed on dropping me there. He was scared of staying there at night as he had heard a lot many Ghost stories of the region. Some incidences which occurred with his friends. Some of them got me scared too. But I can hardly deviate from my target. Sagittarian, an archer by nature. So I simply can’t help it

TRIP TO KASAULI: Prologue

Time passes by and so does the age. Never to reoccur never to replay.

I wish to see the whole world till I am still young

Till I have the courage & strength to follow the most difficult terrains.

Till I still have the right eye sight to look at the amusing beauty around

Till I can still smell the clouds, touch the dew.

I wish to keep running away to destinations unknown.

But it’s not just the destination, but the journey I wish to cherish all my life

So when I will be nearing my death, I will still have the same smile which I had when I first saw the mountains.

And the words which I write now will bring back all the forgotten memories

All forgotten tales of my escapes to these hills

 who have enchanted me forever.

-          Nandita Prakash

Delhi To Leh- 100 Rupay Jeb Main : From Travel Agents To Roof Top Restaurants

Found a lovely hotel, a little away from the  main market. Almost on the outskirts of Leh, home like interior, warmth & an excellent view. A trip for all travel lovers – always find a place to stay in the outskirts of your hot tourist destination. It’s not only relatively economical but it also gives you that peace & view which you would require once you are tired after the daily travel. It also gives you a beautiful view of the entire area around. I have tried it in Manali, Mussorrie, Shillong & now Leh.

After freshen up, we went out to the main market  to find out certain possibilities & some food. Possibilities of moulding our journey ahead. Since it was getting too much time consuming & tiring, we were divided into two minds- To ride ahead or to stay & go back. The first travel agent we met was a middle aged Ladakhi guy who laughed at us when he heard that we had come there all the way from Delhi. He told us that when he was young, he had travelled on his scooter from Leh to Delhi & then he had to lie down on his tummy for the next fifteen days. Thank God, our situation was much better. He said it would be unfair if we don’t see the place & go ahead. He suggested us to send the bike through some transporter & roam in and around Leh. He also suggested a transporter with the name “ Chinar”.

Checked airfare with a couple of travel agents, But still in double minds. Surprisingly,  nowhere could we see any restaurant. A very wired observation but do people really eat food here or do they all have the problem of lost appetite like me. Then another observation that the place had the beautiful trend of terrace restaurants. Fresh food with fresh air & awesome view of the entire city. Lovely combination.

On the same terrace, amidst a number of groups of foreign tourists, I saw a Ladkahi couple sitting in a corner table & looking at each other with dove like eyes. College lovers may be. Small town love story. I could not comprehend their language but could see them very much in love.

Breaking the calmness around, I could hear the shrieking bikes rushing in the town. The three musketeers were in the town now. We were separated on the way but now could see them again. We waived at them but they could not catch a glimpse.  We knew they would meet us again. The town wasn’t that big.

Delhi To Leh - 100 Rupay Jeb Main :The Toughest Night & A Pack of ORS

It was getting darker and stormy too. Crossing a single kilometer in that stormy sand was getting laborious. We were in the middle of cold desert storm. Not very far from us, could we see a couple of tents. We found one of those musketeers waving at us. They suggested us to stop for the night & rest in the tent itself. The locals had all the arrangements for the night stay. In the middle of that desert storm, it was not possible to move ahead either. And there was no other night shelter available for several kilometers. The guys had already negotiated the price with the tent owners. Rs 50/person & food extra.



Soon we were joined by another group of bikers from Maharashtra. They had shipped their bikes till Chandigarh & were on roads since then. We shared our tent with this group while the three musketeers were in a smaller tent. We kept our luggage inside & came out to see the view. We found several tents at a distance from ours & a Gypsy parked outside each tent. They were shepherds. Shepherds with the 4X4 cars. I was impressed. My country has definitely developed. We were advised to leave early morning as after 6a.m, a river comes & floods the area every morning & vanishes by noon. Strange! Not anymore. By now, we were pretty much accustomed to such amazing natural theories.

We packed ourselves inside that tent & warm beddings. It was a luxury for us which we had never expected that too in the middle of this deadly desert. I & my friend, we both were turning ill. He refused to have food, got a medicine & fell asleep. But I could not do the same. I was feeling nauseous. I started feeling breathless too. The cold wind blowing outside was ferocious. I could hear her roar. At numerous times, I felt that she would take the tent along. As soon as I try to lie down, I would feel as if someone was trying to choke me to death. I was very tired & my body needed rest. But it was not getting enough oxygen to relax. Everyone else seemed to be fine. I could even hear those musketeers snoring in the adjacent tent. It took me the entire night to make my body adjust to the lower availability of oxygen. After crying for several hours, I finally slept at around 4 am



In the morning, I woke up victorious. Alive but still nauseous. Then one of the musketeers gifted me the life saving pack of ORS. Since I had not been eating or drinking properly, my body was deficient of all important ingredients. I got the solution in a bottle & kept on sipping it for the rest of the journey.



So next time I carry my wallet or no, I am going to carry several packs of ORS for sure.

Delhi To Leh- 100 Rupay Jeb Main : If This Is Paradise, I am Better Without It.

Now we were amidst huge peaks covered with snow which never defreeze. One can see huge black mountains but in a second look, one would realize they are glaciers painted with pollutants. Pollution created by us can affect places we can’t even imagine. It destroys the beauty we couldn’t even see.

The roads were getting bad. Water from the melting glaciers was making the road slippery, filthy & muddy. Even a 25km drive was taking hours. It was frustrating. No vegetation, no humans, only a few bikers who can be seen now & then.

Every biker who passes from the road gives a thumb up to the other biker. A very crazy tradition which I was absolutely unaware of. With every biker passing by with a thumbs up, I asked my friend if he knows them. He smiled & said that I would know them too. But then the tradition infected me too. Every worker working on the road also waves at you. Amazing. It is probably the spirit of adventure they wave at, not u or me. it is the same spirit which unite nationals of different  nations  among  this killing terrain.

Then we reached Sarchu which is half way between Manali-Leh. I was getting impatient. The monotonous terrain & lack of oxygen & time consuming bad roads - they all were making me extremely depressed. When we got down at Sarchu for a Police Check, I was fuming & the target was everything around. What made the situation worse was the knowledge from the Hawaldaar at the post that the road ahead was going to be even worse. Leh was now 252kms away & I had to reach there before I die. The beautiful terrain could no longer hold my attention. But since no one dies of boredom, I survived.

Amongst all these depressing issues, I saw a sign board which said “Welcome to the Paradise on Earth”. Yes we had touched Kashmir. The Kashmir I had seen in magazines was so different from the one I was experiencing now. Believe me, it was no Paradise but a scary hell & the devil was doing everything possible to make us stay there forever.

In the very next curve, we found a bridge broken & hanging midway. It was a big bridge & repairing could have demanded at least two days. What irritated me the most was people saying around “all this is common here”. Well now those common thing s were going to take away my precious two days. But then as they say “ no one stops bikers” we saw a group of bikers pushing each other’s bike through a ditch near by to reach the road on the other side. We followed them & saved out two days from getting wasted.

 It was there when we met a small group of three bikers from Delhi & became friends instantly…...

Delhi to Leh : 100 Rupay Jeb Main – Tandi to Jispa( I proved my smartness again)

It was 5 o’clock in the morning and we could hear the army trucks moving out of the camp. We felt so ashamed of sleeping till late. A peaceful breakfast at the officer’s mess & we left the comfort behind at 5:30 a.m. Next stoppage was a petrol station few kilometers away from Tandi. The precious one as the next one would be available after 365kms. If you miss this one, you will be out of fuel in the middle of a desert. It was 6 in the morning and the station was locked. Unlike other filling stations, this one remains closed at night till the owners come at 6:30 in the morning.



Meanwhile we met a middle aged man who had come in a fragile looking 120 cc bike & cans & bottles for petrol. A yellow flag “ Om Namah Shivay” written over it. He was a part of a bike rally which starts from Jaipur to Amarnath shrine every year. He has been a part of this rally for the past 11 years. People can be so incredibly crazy. The road ahead took us to an unseen journey among beautiful & rare terrains & absolutely breathtaking sceneries. We could also see some amazingly planned villages & small monasteries.



On our way, we had to cross several natural springs ‘nalas’ as they are called. Some were very light & could be crossed while still riding the bike but some had such force that we had to get down from the bike & drag ourselves through the water pressure. I was almost about to get swayed with the flow a couple of times. We were all drenched in water up to our waste. My feet had started freezing. I was advised to keep my fingers moving so that they could continue to feel & do not freeze.



We had crossed Kelong & were somewhere between Gemur & Jespa, when we saw an extreme high spring flowing over the road. We could also see few bikers drying themselves up on either side of the spring, I had already given up. There as no way we could cross that gigantic spring. But my friend said it was possible. I didn’t wanted to risk my life so I got down & stood at one side to see what was coming up next. He got off the bike too, with full throttle, he got into the water. The next second I could neither see him or the bike, but we could still hear the bike roaring. Two bikers from the other side jumped into the water & pulled the bike & the rider out. And there they were on the other side of the spring, water dripping all over. Now that is called being courageous. I was happy to see both of them alive.

Oops! But now it was my turn. Well I might sound like blowing my own trumpet but girls have always been smarter & so am I. I waited for another couple of minutes till I could see a truck approaching. Got a lift till the other side of the spring. SIMPLE. You don’t always need to have courage. Sometimes even brain also saves. I could see all the bikers smiling at their foolishness & my smartness

In the middle of all these brave acts, we found two Australian cyclist crossing the same spring on their cycles. Now that’s called being extra courageous. We all clapped for this undying unfazed spirit of adventure.



We took an idea about the road from those bikers & moved onnnnnnnnnnnn………….

Delhi to Leh: 100 Rupay Jeb Main :Manali –Rohtang-Tandi(107kms of mud, rocks & no oxygen)

The room was familiar. Last year, on my runaway trip to Manali, this guest house was my escape & the same Room No 205 was my haven. When I woke up next morning, it felt as if I never moved out of that room. That I never went back to Delhi. That I have always been there. That I always belonged to that bed & that cozy smell of wet woods. Never felt so secured & safe as I did rolling under those white sheets & velvet blankets.

But then to taste the adventure, one must leave all sources of comfort & simply plunge into the stream of impossibilities which then turn true. I was as fresh as I was when we started from Delhi. No pain, no tiredness, I had started tasting adventure. My friend wanted me to rest that day as it was my first long route experience. But I was getting impatient. I had seen Manali several times but this time I wanted to go beyond & see more.

We carried an extra can of petrol & started for Rohtang at noon. It was bright, warm & sunny. As we moved up, the clouds became very heavy. Rohtang has never been fair to me. Previous two experiences had been deadly but this time I had to win. There were fresh landslides at different places. Mud till the knee & sometimes even above it. Dangerous narrow roads. Traffic on both the sides was still, yet all bikers were somehow moving. I had to walk several meters with the luggage as the bike had to appear lighter to cross the swamp. Those few meters made me so tired, exhausted & breathless as if I had been walking since Delhi. The clouds had settled on the ground. Zero visibility & killing chill & there I encountered snow for the first time. I have been to many hill stations but could never see snow. On one side of the road, there was a huge chunk of snow, black & white. I touched it, kicked it. It was exactly same as the snow in the frost freezer. Or like the ones “Chuskis” are made of. We had crossed Rohtang & those dense clouds too. Two of my dreams were already fulfilled.

The terrain had entirely changed. There were only rocky mountains around & almost no habitat. We had no idea about our next stoppage. The landslide at Rohtang road had taken up a lot of time. It was going to get dark soon. We stopped at Khokhsar to sip a cup of tea & get an idea about the road ahead. The ladhakhi guy at the tea stall advised us to go to Tandi. It had camping sites & an Army Transit Camp as well. It was almost dark when we began to see a well constructed colony from a distance. White lights & shelters made of plastic & tin. It was a transit camp. With few approaches we got a permission to spend the night at the transit camp. So we night stayed with almost 600 soldiers from three regiments in a transit camp. And what a camp it was…………………….

Delhi to Leh: 100 Rupay Jeb Main (departure morning) : G.T Karnal Road: Worth a Chapter

It was still pretty early on G T Karnal road, when I realized that people of my city appeared to be more health conscious than I thought they were. People of all ages & genders were walking, running, jumping or working out on both sides of the highway. It also made me realize the grave unavailability of community parks for these health conscious people who had to come to a highway to take in fresh morning breath.

Next was a filling station with semi-naked attendants. We had disturbed them pretty early. But arn’t they supposed to be serving 24x7. Next was the most atrocious thing one can do. The cruzer had to undergo a pollution check before we move ahead to stranger destinations. The poor guy responsible for the check was sleeping in his 5x4 cabinet with only loose underwear on. Must be really deep in his dream that we actually had to stuff ourselves in that cabinet, shake him well to get up & do the needful. He must have cursed the infiltrators the whole day.

It was getting cloudy. The roads were all wet. As if the rain was preceding us & guiding us towards the hill

Next stoppage was for the breakfast. The only Mc Donalds on G T Karnal road, opposite famous Cheetal Dhaba near Kurukshetra. So what is so special about a Mc Donald’s outlet? Well a Mc D corner in city matters nothing but a Mc D corner in be wilderness means a lot. It somewhere symbolizes modern day civilization. God knows, when will be the next “Aaloo Tikki burger be available?

We were almost going to miss it, when I saw the familiar “M” hiding on the other side of the half built flyover. Nice complex with other familiar food outlets like Subway & Sagar Ratna and some swans floating around. But only Mc Donald’s could offer food for early travelers like us. We even took an advantage of Mr Mc Donald sitting outside his own outlet & went inside to see how those egg muffins were made. We were probably too fond of infiltrating.

Newly arrived books, looking through the closed glass doors of those book shops. As if they wanted to come along. Break free from those glass cages & runaway with us to the real world. It was then that I decided to write a travelogue when I return.

Witnessing pollution coming from all big & small industries, we reached the famous city of Chandigarh. I had never seen this city before but had heard a lot. Well planned city, where sector 2 comes after sector 1 & not sector 10. So well planned, that every round about has a liquor vendor for sure. It surely shows the effect of joyfulness of the state over the state government. The traffic jam was very similar to that in Delhi.

The lunch was at Punjab- Himachal Border. The journey on plains was good but the difficult time was ahead……..

Delhi to Leh: 100 Rupay Jeb Main (departure early morning)

For all those who know me & my fondness for running away, would also remember my last “ Runaway trip to Manali”. It was almost the same time of the year, when I could not live the city life anymore & had to run away to destinations unknown. This year, it was again full of exhaustion . frustration piled up since one year. Working for weeks back to back, no fun, no time for oneself & absolutely no existence.

I am a Sagittarian. a traveler by soul. Vacations for me are not as they are for you : mere pleasure time. Traveling for me is like Oxygen is for you.

This journey was absolutely unplanned, as all my trips are, but yet it was exceptional from the rest. The trip was planned by my destiny. It was almost as if someone wanted me to visit specific selected places of His choice. The most beautiful places out of beautiful ones. The trip made me question my own limitations & the height of courage

I cannot move ahead without telling you about someone who made this ‘Best ride of my life’ possible. Someone who made me realize that I have much more substance in me than what I thought I had. For all the curious ones, who would be eager to know the name: ok! I am not telling

But what I am going to tell you now is the beginning of the journey. Slept early the previous night. As we wanted to start the journey early. It is always advisable to complete the journey of plains before its noon.
4 a.m, Day 1 is when we started from my home. Not much of luggage. A saddle bag on the cruzer, two separate bags for us & one tent.

Again the curious ones must know that in this trip, I was strictly a pillion rider. The Delhi roads seemed to be so calm at those early hours. Had never seen them such ever before. Gurgaon to Dhaula Kuan, to Azaadpur mandi to G.T Karnal road- it took us less than half an hour.

Hey , would like to digress here. Anyone interested to know the story behind “100Rupay Jeb Main” ? Well, for the curious ones, this was the only amount I had in my wallet in the whole journey. I was never able to withdraw any money from my account, nor did this “100 Rupay” got spent. Thanks to my notorious bank who bluntly refuses to give money even if you hang on to an ATM for hours. Again I m not going to disclose the name, but what I am going to disclose is that we must get back to our track, our travel tale. Which will now resume in the next day coverage…………………..