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Rejuvenated: Part 2

Read Part-1 here.
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The night after the barefoot trek was quite something. There was a sharp pulling pain in my feet and I couldn't bear it any more. My feet were frozen and I couldn't even sit. The super cold weather and the barely there room heater was not helping either. While I was looking around the room to find something to warm my feet, my eyes fell on my hair dryer. Half an hour and a few blasts of hot air later, I was feeling better. By then the hot water was ready and I soaked my feet in a bucket for a good hour. The pain soon turned into a burning sensation before finally turning into moderate relief. A good night's sleep helped heal better too.


The next day we visited a Buddhist monastery in Manali, before heading towards Shimla. I find Buddhism fascinating. It is a simple and no nonsense way of spirituality. If I did believe in religion, this one is what I would follow. The place was so quiet and serene that I did not want to leave. We walked around for a while and enjoyed the bleak heat of the sun. And then we were all packed and back in the car for our journey towards Shimla. We stopped by Kullu on the way for some shopping. Winter clothes are available at very good rates there and we ended up buying a few things for our parents. There also was river rafting in the area, but we just went to the location and clicked a few pictures instead. The water level and force was slow, so we were not too sure if we'd enjoy the rafting.

Yeah, I'm an SRK fan!

We passed by Pandoh in the Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh and we knew that we had to stop the car and breathe in the scene around. It was so beautiful. It felt like a mirage when the earth has melted into the water. The green color of the trees perfectly complemented the pure turquoise of the clear water culminating into a peacock blue that refused to leave the eyes. I embraced the air around as you can see in the picture. This view will never leave me for the rest of my life. Next, we stopped by the green valley to check the dense mountains and their lush greenery. After being a part of the concrete jungle for such a long time, any view of green is always welcoming. We reached Shimla by late evening and checked into our hotel and freshened up.


Our hotel was at an elevation and we could see the whole of Shimla city from our balcony. Thankfully it was not too cold here, around 3 degrees. Or may be we were just used to the cold of Manali by then. Soon, the hotel staff brought us dinner which was clearly fit for royalty. By the time we were done, we couldn't lift a finger. When we woke up the next day, breakfast was ready. It was huge too. After stuffing ourselves we went for a drive to Kufri which is around 25 kilometers from Shimla. Strangely there was not a speck of snow fall in Shimla or in Kufri. Kufri reminded me of a beach minus the water. It was barren and yet the air was cold and soothing. There was a telescope point from which they showed us a few important places, including the Indo-China border. Cal and I walked around a lot and ate a lot of street food available there. The ride to this spot was on horses and Cal and me had a wonderful time riding our respective horses Chotu and Lajwanti. I even managed to sit up on a yak and get some shady pictures clicked. No, I'm not sharing them.


On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at the famous mall road of Shimla and strolled around quite a bit. This stretch of the road was so beautiful and peaceful in spite of the crowd. The sun was faintly bright and we indulged in some ice cream. We walked passed the famous 3 Idiots spot and shopped for some post cards and books for our flight the next day. The mild breeze was soothing and we spent a couple of hours here. We stopped at a fruit juice center and had fresh carrot juice. The carrots here are crunchy, sweet, juicy and incredibly long. Freshly made unadulterated carrot juice was priced at just 20 bucks a glass and was absolutely delicious. Finally, as the sun started going down we made our way back to the hotel to pack up and leave the next morning.

Our luggage was organized by the OCD freak in me. One case held all our clothes and toiletries. The other held all our winter clothes along with the ones we had recently shopped. After yet another heavy dinner, we got some good rest and left to Chandigarh early next day. We were again awed by the city and the peace it offers. We met a few friends for coffee before leaving to the airport. Since our flight was delayed by half an hour, Cal and I got enough time to look back at the wonderful vacation that we had just had. It was the perfect break and the perfect thrill. The minute we stepped into Bangalore, familiarity greeted us along with a warm gust of air. Bangalore has always been home to us, and this time we embraced it more as we were thoroughly rejuvenated.

Comments

  1. Shimla is fun.. Isn't it? Horse ride is interesting as well.. and Yak as well? I gotta try that!
    A break like this is always an energy booster!
    Glad you're back with even more zeal..
    See you around more :)

    Cheers

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    1. Oh it was awesome! And such a needed break.

      Thanks Geet! :)

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  2. You're a luggage OCD freak too? How do we have SO much in common? :D The pictures look absolutely breathtaking and you've clearly had a wonderful time! Really happy for you and I rarely say that to people, so you know you're special ;)

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    1. Oh yeah, I actually am an anything freak!

      Thank you my dear, I'm glad I have a place in your heart :)

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  3. You've obviously had a wonderful time and since we met recently, I'd also say you look thoroughly rejuvenated :)

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  4. Sat on a Yak? I managed to conjure up my own pictures and I bet they're shadier than your real ones :-). I've been to Shimla once long ago and have some sweet memories. I love Chotu and Lajwanti but I'd be dead scared of sitting on a horse. Oh and that SRK pose - big thumbs up to that.

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    1. Oh yeah yak! Poor thing had to bear my weight.

      SRK pose, thank you! :D

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  5. Seems you both had a wonderful time around nature's beauty :)
    Beautiful clicks...especially the one in SRK style ;)

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  6. WOw! So nice to read about all the fun you had! Your 2016 began on such a high note :D

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