Mumbai to Manali, the Journey

It's been a while since I've been to Manali, maybe three years. But I'm still sharing the experience, because it was unforgettable. 

Want to know why? Keep on reading.

Mumbai, April 2015,

I remember the day we were leaving. It was 2 pm. We grabbed our bags and headed to the railway station. There I met my cousins who were joining us. We had an exciting talk about the trip. I looked at my watch. It said 6. The time to board the train. It was ten minutes delayed maybe. 

We boarded. 

And the train started strolling on tracks. The night was hard to sleep though. I don't remember the actual time Punjab welcomed us. But it was morning until I remembered. As we went through a travel package, we didn't need to worry about hunting for the right hotel.

Punjab,

We explored Punjab as much as we could until day two. Let's start with the glory of Punjab. The Golden Temple- Amritsar. 

It was the first morning. We all were in our ethnic wears today. The distance from our hotel to the temple wasn't too long. We reached the temple and as we were expecting, it was crowded. Infact, it is crowded almost all the time. Before entering the main gate, we had to make sure our hair was covered.

The temple is so beautiful. It is surrounded by a lake which has tons of fish in it.

We had to walk a long path to the temple surrounded by water. The place just makes one forget about all their worries and teaches them to live in the moment. Getting yourself engrossed in the place, observing the charm of the temple and watching people immersed in their prayers is in itself the most beautiful thing.

But as we wanted to see the reflection of the golden glowing temple in water, we were going to come here again at night if we had enough time. 

And unfortunately, it didn't happen.

Next, Jallianwala Bagh. 

You might know about the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre you learned in History. It has a structure made from red stones and erected in the shape of flame.

Bullet marks in Jallianwala Bagh are marked in white. Still visible. Will we ever forget?

The well in which people jumped out of panic.

Evening, we went to enjoy the huge ceremony at Wagah Border. The main boundary between India and Pakistan. Everyday at 4 pm there is a ceremony which starts with the blustering parade by the soldiers from both sides and ends up in the perfectly coordinated lowering of the two nation's flags. But not everyone is fortunate enough to experience that view because of the crowd.

But I was lucky enough to atleast view the parade.

We finished the day with a glass full of lassi and parathas.

Manali,

Day two, now the official journey to Manali begins. We hopped into our bus. It was supposed to take a day to reach Manali. We all prepared ourselves for a day long bus ride. 

The roads were getting rolled. The mountains were coming close. The weather was becoming cold. And we finally saw the white mountains! 

We reached.

The hotel we were staying at was amazing and so was the view from the room.

Next morning, this is what the view looks like. 

After filling ourselves with a good breakfast, we got ready. 

New day, first destination- Khajjiar, Dalhousie. Also called the little Switzerland of India. 

It was mesmerizing!

It's like a huge open area with a small lake in the center called Khajjiar lake. And the thick trees covering the meadow from all sides. We had horse riding which circled the entire meadow. You can also try the kashmiri get up there. 

We spent the entire day in Dalhousie. Saw Khajji Nag Temple. 

At dark we went down the cold streets for shopping. I got myself a beanie. Went back to our hotel. I was feeling a little weak because of the sudden change in climate. Next morning, I was fine.

Today we were heading to a new destination. And so, we were supposed to spend 3 hours on the bus. The view from the window was great. 

The crystal clear water stream runs swiftly all the way down from the mountains.

We reached the Hidimba temple.

Remember this? From Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (my absolute favorite, just saying) I love the structure of the temple. It's like a pagoda. The whole beauty of the place was unforgettable. Tall trees. Sunlight peeking through the gaps between them. 

And then, there was this park!

Next thing on the list was paragliding.

The next morning,     

                               

Today, the day we all were waiting for. We went exploring the white mountains!

We hopped into a jeep. Hire some outfits to survive the cold. As we were going higher and higher, it was getting pretty chilly. Finally, we reached our destination. Got out of the jeep. And started climbing the mountains. Got out of breath multiple times, so we took a break. And started again.

We did snow fights which is so obvious, I think it's a must do. It was getting harder to walk. We had maggi. 

After spending two more days, we left for Mumbai with a bunch of memories. 

I could just go to Manali ten times more and still not get bored.