A winter weekend in Mussoorie
Every few months some food item, not local to me, becomes a favorite and I cannot seem to have enough of it. By the end of 2015 it was Momos for me.
A quick search for some of the best momos in the country revealed a tiny restaurant in the shopping streets of Mussoorie — Kalsang. Tons of reviews and blog posts sang praises over this little place having just around a dozen tables.
A few other things fell in place. Republic day happened on a Tuesday, which meant a 4 day trip was possible. Initially planned with a group of colleagues quickly turned out to be solo travel. I was a bit excited at that opportunity.
Mussoorie is an over-commercialised hill station with a collection of boring touristy places. All the reading over the Internet and speaking to people around me confirmed the same.
With further research, I narrowed the list of places to visit to a handful which did not seem popular among tourists.
My first choice was the Happy valley. Just a few kms from my hotel, it was quite easy to reach there. Not crowded — lesser wait for people to clear to get my shots properly. It was all that I needed.
But travel is as much about the journey as it is about the destination. Solo travel has its own set of perks for everyone — for me, it was that I did not have wait for anybody or others did not have to wait for me when I am trying to get a click right.
South is way too different from the North, and I wanted myself how flexible in making myself comfortable with all the conditions that were alien to me. Language is a huge barrier. My Hindi is only better than the “Ek gaav main ek kisaan raghuthaatha” guy.
Chennai’s seasons were as simple as they can get — Just Hot, Hotter and Hottest. Real chilly winters seen only in Barfi and other movies. I still the remember this, the minute I stepped out of the Railway station in Dehradun to board the local bus to Mussoorie, I caught cold. Just 2 minutes were enough for me to get introduced to winters were really in the North.
Now lets the pictures speak for themselves.
George Everest house is a lonely place again not too crowded. On a fine weather day without haze, beautiful vistas of the valleys and mountain ranges will be available to you.
If there was one definite plan I had in mind on this trip, it was to get to Lal Tibba by the sunset. A long walk from the Chaar Dukhaan in a well paved road accompanied by birds chirping and cool breeze, I reached Lal Tibba just minutes before sunset.
For a few seconds when the haze relented a bit, I caught the magnificent views of the snow capped Himalayan ranges. The binoculars kept there were not of any use. Before I could grab my cameras to cement that moment, the haze was back.
As the sunset, I could feel the temperature dropping by the minute. I did not have it in me to walk again. Quickly called a cab (waaay toooo expensive on weekends and holidays) and got back to my hotel.
The easy accessibility from the nation’s capital ensured the hillstation lost its charm pretty quickly. Except for yummy momos along with other tibetan cuisine at Kalsang and the Lal Tibba sunset, there is not much Mussoorie has to offer.
