August 2012
Post by G
There is so much to see and do in Himachal
Pradesh. When we wanted to start exploring the Himachal, the first destination
that came to our mind was Dharamshala.
Of course, I am counting out Shimla and Kasauli, which are quick
getaways from Chandigarh. And, most
frequented as well. Accompanied by our
friends who were visiting us from Hyderabad, we headed out to our first long
drive in our Bolero. It was August and
monsoons had set in. The drive was
expected to be good, but one had to be careful of the rains and the occasional
mud slide as we reach greater heights while driving to McLeod Ganj.
There are really 3 pockets you can visit in
this region –
On this
trip, we mainly focused on McLeod Ganj and spent some time at Kangra on our way
back. Palampur is a trip in its own
right and we hope to go up there sometime soon.
Drive:
Chandigarh – Anandpur Sahib – Nangal – Una – Amb – Kangra – Dharamshala –
McLeod Ganj
Chandigarh to McLeod Ganj is 241 km. Up to Nangal the roads are excellent, and again improves closer to Kangra where you start climbing uphill. The ‘bad patch’ is under construction and hopefully will be upgraded to good condition by the time you undertake the trip.
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Beautiful sunset as we crossed River Beas
55 km from our destination |
We set off on a Friday afternoon from Chandigarh. We stopped at a roadside Vaishno Dhaba in Amb. It was run by an elderly couple who cooked
lunch for us. It was very tasty and in
some sense helped us carry along all the way to McLeod Ganj. The terrain changes after Amb and the climb
begins. We were driving out of the sultry
weather in Chandigarh and the cool breeze that awaited us as we climbed was
most welcome. For those of us who are
thinking of Dharamshala and want to actually go to the place that Dalai Lama
has made famous, we are actually referring to McLedo Ganj (or upper Dharamshala). Dharamshala is more the administrative
capital of the Kangra district while McLeod Ganj is the capital of the Tibetan
Government-in-exile. We reached McLeod
Ganj by nightfall. The place is
unimaginably small and you will be past the town in 5 minutes flat. But, therein
lies the charm! At the downtown square, we encountered the vibrant night life
of McLeod Ganj. Like any downtown, there
was a traffic jam of sorts even late in the evening.
We stayed at
Flourishing Flora, a small B&B run by a family. It is on the Dharamkot road, opposite the
Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts. The
stay is quite light on the pocket and if you are ok with ‘only one towel per
room’ policy of the place, then I would highly recommend this. The place also
doubles up as a nice nursery and their food is very good. Since the family runs
the place, you will have to plan your meal timings in advance. That said, it is an excellent choice and we
have no regrets with the place. We
rested the night and it was a well deserved break after the 7 hour drive from
Chandigarh.
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| View from Cafe Illiterati |
On Saturday
morning, we set off on foot to the Dalai Lama’s temple. I have to confess that this is no
architectural marvel, but the place holds much significance to the Tibetan
population worldwide. It is a sanctuary of sorts. Once inside, you will find
the devout going about their prayers and tourists like us clicking away
photographs. We spotted the residence of
the Dalai Lama. It is quite an
unassuming quarter within the temple complex.
But, heavily guarded though. We were
told that the Dalai Lama enjoys protection provided by the Para Commandos, Intelligence
Bureau, Himachal Pradesh in addition to the police of the Tibetan government in
exile. While in the temple, you cannot definitely miss the loud chanting of
prayers by young Buddhist monks on one side, while their colleagues try and
distract them. This, we are told, is to
help strengthen their concentration. It
is quite a sight to see young boy-monks in orange and red robes going about
their religious training with such diligence. The ornate carvings inside the
temple where the statues are kept are quite intricate and detailed. The road leading to the temple is quite a
shopper’s delight. You will find vendors on both sides of the narrow road,
selling religious curios, sweaters, handicrafts, silver jewellery, beads and of
course, delightful eateries dotted the path.
The temple has a book store which can be very attractive for someone
into Buddhist studies.
After the
temple, we decided to walk down to the Tibetan Library on the Jogibara Road. On
the way, we spotted a cafe with an unusual name, Illiterati. We made a note to
visit this place on our way back. The
library is situated within the offices of the Tibetan Government in Exile. It was interesting to see the various office
of the government – Home, Foreign Affairs, Education etc. They even have a department for Chinese
Language Studies. Ironical of sorts, don’t you think? The library was closed
since it was a government holiday and we quickly made our way back to Cafe Illiterati.
This place has lots of books an excellent menu.
But, what takes the cake is the view from the balcony. We ordered some tea, pasta and sat there far
longer than we planned to. What is the
point of going on a holiday, if you can’t relax and take things as they are
offered?
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| Map of McLeod Ganj |
We decided
to spend some time shopping. When people found out that we are from Bangalore, their
reaction was very warm. A lot of them
have been to Bangalore and have stayed there.
The proximity of Bylakuppe, another Tibetan settlement, to Bangalore is
another important reason for this affinity.
We often wondered if the migration of Tibetans to India is a subject of
the past. We found our answer here. One
of the assistants in the shop barely spoke Hindi or English. This was strange. While paying the bills, when we asked the
shop owner she said that this girl (in her late teens) had just reached
Dharamshala about three months ago from Tibet and she is in the process of
learning the language. When we think of international relations and the human
struggle for identity and existence it is stories such as these that stand out make it
all worth it.
There are
quite a few places to see in McLeod Ganj – the Dal late, the Bhagsu falls, St
Johns Church, maybe a quick trip to Dharamkot. We chose to drive down to the Bhagsu
temple – a shrine of Lord Shiva also called Bhagsunath. Like most other
structures in the region, this temple was destroyed in the great Kangra earthquake
of 1904. It has since been rebuilt and enjoys the patronage of the local units
of the Indian Army.
Tired as we
were, our interest was still very much high.
For dinner, we went to a Tibetan vegetarian restaurant.
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| Where Gods descend to play. Dharmashala Cricket Stadium |
We checked
out early Sunday morning. Our
destination was the Kangra Fort. We
stopped at the Dharamshala Cricket Stadium.
It has to be one of the most picturesque cricket stadiums in the world. Don’t blame a fielder if he drops a catch at
the boundary, for he may be admiring the beautiful Dhauladhar ranges in the
background.
The Kangra fort,
like many of its counterparts, is maintained by the Archeological Survey of
India. It is supposed to be the largest
fort in the Himalayas. At the ticket
counter, do look out for a staff of the royal family selling audio tour of the
fort. It is Rs. 100 per person and
completely worth it. Without the accompanying explanation on the head set, the
visit to the fort will do utter injustice to the rich past. The views from the fort are breathtaking to
say the least. It can get very hot, so
please do take a bottle of water with you and a cap is recommended. At a quick pace, you need about 2 – 2 ½ hours
to tour the fort.
The drive
back to Chandigarh was pleasant.
Enroute, we saw groups of devotees going to the Jwalamukhi temple. The mighty Beas cuts across the high way at
some point and it is worth a halt. The entire
route is dotted with dhabas who serve excellent food. Don’t bother about the calories. Load ‘em up! :)
We were back
in Chandigarh in time for dinner.
In case you are planning a trip, here are some of the stay options -
HP tourism has 3 properties.
Hotel Kashmir is supposed to have really good view. Since it is govt. run,
service may not be top class. But recommended for superb location and view http://hptdc.nic.in/cir0302.htm#htbud
