“He who climbs upon the highest mountains laughs at all tragedies, real or imaginary.”- Friedrich Neitszche
Travelling for some is passion, for some is a hobby, for others it's fun but for me, it's a way of life. To travel is to discover , to understand and explore oneself. Over time, I've traveled with different people to different places and at different times not only to experience everything but also to learn about myself and expose myself to situations that I'd want to learn to deal with. Lessons you teach yourself are far greater than the ones life offers you. Since you now have an idea of what travel means to me and because I'm bored of all the philosophy, I shall move on to talk about my super awesome trip.
I've been wanting to blog about all my trips off late and I've just been lazy. This particular trip happened over an impromptu conversation with my office gang. Somebody quietly complained about not being able to make any trips happen this year and I said why not, let's do it. With that, it just seemed like that was all the push needed to make it happen. Within a week, we had decided destination, travel group and infact, booked onward train tickets. Too soon don't you think??? Well, the heat lasted only for so long.. :P once the tickets were booked, it took almost a month to get the group together to decide everything else.
Destination : Kasol, Himachal Pradesh.
Aim : Kheerganga Trek
Travellers: 7
First Stop : New Delhi.
Two months before the trip: Booked train tickets from Chennai to Delhi by Gareeb Rath after we decided we'd have more energy to travel by train while going and not when coming back. Best decision ever!! You'll know why when I finish the story.
So just like all other trip plans, there's usually drama around who'll make it and who wouldn't and of course drop outs but not this time. We were very strict about all 7 making the trip and no excuses whatsoever so until the last week, threats kept going around about who was coming and who wasn't but in the end we all made it.The perfect bunch of 7 carefree, fun and awesome people.
One month before the trip: Finally made an itinerary, got everybody to put in their thoughts and decide on a suitable plan.
With multiple changes and a million blogs read, we picked the perfect plan. Everything was decided except 'Manali first or Kasol first'. This was an endless discussion because both places were accessible from Delhi. And where did we go at last, Solang Valley.. :P Wanna guess how we decided that?? We were in the middle of the road at Manali after a 32 hour train journey followed by a 14 hour bumpy bus ride when we decided to stay at a place where it snowed.. :D Oh how could
I forget, we had a break between the train and bus journey where we walked about 3Km with our luggage just to wait for half an hour to eat at the tiniest restaurant ever!! Of course, they served amazing food :) These are the little things you can never forget. I even remember the hotel name 'Kake-Da-Hotel'. So, after the meal and the bus journey and landing at Solang Valley, we reach this amazing hotel where there is snow everywhere, even outside our room. The excitement on everybody's face was priceless.
The 32 hour train journey flew by because we had fun playing, talking, lots of eating (the brownies helped too.. ;)) and of course sleeping. So by the time we got to the hotel, we were all set to take on the snow and make the most of it. A quick walk outside our hotel led us to the ropeway that took us straight to the highest point on the snow capped mountain. After endless selfies and playing around in the snow, the walking continued until one of our group members discovered this mysterious board that said 'Shiva Temple' a few KM away. The path was only snow but everybody was up for the challenge. By this time, it was about 6pm and we had slowly started walking towards our destination amongst nothing but snow. I wanted to give up many times because we seemed to be reaching nowhere and it was getting darker and darker. Somehow, nobody else wanted to give up so I played along too. After about 2 hours, what I experienced cannot be put in words. The full moon night, the bed of stars, one little constellation , the endless scenery of snow filled mountains, the silence of the night, the peace and serenity in the air , it took my breath away. Just then, everything seemed beautiful.. nature in it's glory and the calming effect it has on you is just not describable! I wished I could spend the rest of the night there in the middle of nowhere staring at the stars and not worrying about anything in the world. Alas, good things don't last for too long. We had to move because we weren't prepared to stay there and it was getting too cold. Walking back to the hotel, we were all mesmerized by what we had just experienced and it left us speechless.
The next day, we were en route to Kasol when we suddenly decided white water rafting on Beas river would be fun!! Me, I'm terrified of water but I decided to play along and the only time I've been happy about being bulky was then because I was made to safely sit in the middle of the raft when everybody else was clutching onto the rope sitting on the edges!! Neverthelsss, it was awesome fun and it was definitely worth getting all our thermals wet.. :P
About 2 hours later, we reach the quiet town of Kasol. Finding accomodation was a little painful but we managed to. All set for the trek next day, all we needed was a good night's sleep. Our day started early with everybody geared up to take on the huge task ahead of us - the 28 Km trek. A quick cab ride took us to Barsheni, foot of the mountain where chai , maggi and aloo paratha made up all the strength needed for the trek. There began our long 7 hour climb to the mighty Kheerganga. After panting, struggling, picture taking, resting and admiring the beauty of the parvati river, we finally reach the top of the mountain just before sunset.Not to forget the friendly village children we met on our way up. They played holi with us in exchange for chocolates that we were carrying. The smile on their faces made up for all our fatigue. No matter how tired our muscles were or how thin the air was, the scenic beauty made up for all of it. We were all cooped up in one tiny wooden room with one Bhukari to keep us warm. Slouched under layers of blankets and learning the art of smoking a chillum was the highlight of that night!! A small two foot wooden cubicle with open roof as the loo was the best. Must say, it was the most amazing view I've ever had when peeing!!! The hot spring up that mountain was just a wonder and the bed of stars at night will remind you that you are just a speck in the vast universe we belong to. The next day, the descend was quick and not as taxing as climbing up the mountain.
Now all that was left of our trip was to chill in Kasol, eat some amazing food and do some shopping. To our surprise, that quiet little town suddenly turned into mayhem with a million people landing there for the long weekend. Boy were we glad we left that day. Although with a heavy heart, we left to Bhuntar that day to take our bus back to Delhi. It was a quiet journey back.. not only because our trip was over, it was because we finally got an awesome bus with awesome seats so we could sleep well.. :P
Singing , dancing, eating, smoking, smoking up, drinking, pub hopping, sleeping, walking, shopping, fitting in, posing, clicking.. the list is endless and so was the fun we had. A trip is not just about the places you visit but also the people you are with. I was lucky and I've always been :)
This will be one of my most memorable vacations for more than a million reasons. To many more to come!!
-Sharanya
Travelling for some is passion, for some is a hobby, for others it's fun but for me, it's a way of life. To travel is to discover , to understand and explore oneself. Over time, I've traveled with different people to different places and at different times not only to experience everything but also to learn about myself and expose myself to situations that I'd want to learn to deal with. Lessons you teach yourself are far greater than the ones life offers you. Since you now have an idea of what travel means to me and because I'm bored of all the philosophy, I shall move on to talk about my super awesome trip.
I've been wanting to blog about all my trips off late and I've just been lazy. This particular trip happened over an impromptu conversation with my office gang. Somebody quietly complained about not being able to make any trips happen this year and I said why not, let's do it. With that, it just seemed like that was all the push needed to make it happen. Within a week, we had decided destination, travel group and infact, booked onward train tickets. Too soon don't you think??? Well, the heat lasted only for so long.. :P once the tickets were booked, it took almost a month to get the group together to decide everything else.
Destination : Kasol, Himachal Pradesh.
Aim : Kheerganga Trek
Travellers: 7
First Stop : New Delhi.
Two months before the trip: Booked train tickets from Chennai to Delhi by Gareeb Rath after we decided we'd have more energy to travel by train while going and not when coming back. Best decision ever!! You'll know why when I finish the story.
So just like all other trip plans, there's usually drama around who'll make it and who wouldn't and of course drop outs but not this time. We were very strict about all 7 making the trip and no excuses whatsoever so until the last week, threats kept going around about who was coming and who wasn't but in the end we all made it.The perfect bunch of 7 carefree, fun and awesome people.
One month before the trip: Finally made an itinerary, got everybody to put in their thoughts and decide on a suitable plan.
With multiple changes and a million blogs read, we picked the perfect plan. Everything was decided except 'Manali first or Kasol first'. This was an endless discussion because both places were accessible from Delhi. And where did we go at last, Solang Valley.. :P Wanna guess how we decided that?? We were in the middle of the road at Manali after a 32 hour train journey followed by a 14 hour bumpy bus ride when we decided to stay at a place where it snowed.. :D Oh how could
I forget, we had a break between the train and bus journey where we walked about 3Km with our luggage just to wait for half an hour to eat at the tiniest restaurant ever!! Of course, they served amazing food :) These are the little things you can never forget. I even remember the hotel name 'Kake-Da-Hotel'. So, after the meal and the bus journey and landing at Solang Valley, we reach this amazing hotel where there is snow everywhere, even outside our room. The excitement on everybody's face was priceless.
The 32 hour train journey flew by because we had fun playing, talking, lots of eating (the brownies helped too.. ;)) and of course sleeping. So by the time we got to the hotel, we were all set to take on the snow and make the most of it. A quick walk outside our hotel led us to the ropeway that took us straight to the highest point on the snow capped mountain. After endless selfies and playing around in the snow, the walking continued until one of our group members discovered this mysterious board that said 'Shiva Temple' a few KM away. The path was only snow but everybody was up for the challenge. By this time, it was about 6pm and we had slowly started walking towards our destination amongst nothing but snow. I wanted to give up many times because we seemed to be reaching nowhere and it was getting darker and darker. Somehow, nobody else wanted to give up so I played along too. After about 2 hours, what I experienced cannot be put in words. The full moon night, the bed of stars, one little constellation , the endless scenery of snow filled mountains, the silence of the night, the peace and serenity in the air , it took my breath away. Just then, everything seemed beautiful.. nature in it's glory and the calming effect it has on you is just not describable! I wished I could spend the rest of the night there in the middle of nowhere staring at the stars and not worrying about anything in the world. Alas, good things don't last for too long. We had to move because we weren't prepared to stay there and it was getting too cold. Walking back to the hotel, we were all mesmerized by what we had just experienced and it left us speechless.
The next day, we were en route to Kasol when we suddenly decided white water rafting on Beas river would be fun!! Me, I'm terrified of water but I decided to play along and the only time I've been happy about being bulky was then because I was made to safely sit in the middle of the raft when everybody else was clutching onto the rope sitting on the edges!! Neverthelsss, it was awesome fun and it was definitely worth getting all our thermals wet.. :P
About 2 hours later, we reach the quiet town of Kasol. Finding accomodation was a little painful but we managed to. All set for the trek next day, all we needed was a good night's sleep. Our day started early with everybody geared up to take on the huge task ahead of us - the 28 Km trek. A quick cab ride took us to Barsheni, foot of the mountain where chai , maggi and aloo paratha made up all the strength needed for the trek. There began our long 7 hour climb to the mighty Kheerganga. After panting, struggling, picture taking, resting and admiring the beauty of the parvati river, we finally reach the top of the mountain just before sunset.Not to forget the friendly village children we met on our way up. They played holi with us in exchange for chocolates that we were carrying. The smile on their faces made up for all our fatigue. No matter how tired our muscles were or how thin the air was, the scenic beauty made up for all of it. We were all cooped up in one tiny wooden room with one Bhukari to keep us warm. Slouched under layers of blankets and learning the art of smoking a chillum was the highlight of that night!! A small two foot wooden cubicle with open roof as the loo was the best. Must say, it was the most amazing view I've ever had when peeing!!! The hot spring up that mountain was just a wonder and the bed of stars at night will remind you that you are just a speck in the vast universe we belong to. The next day, the descend was quick and not as taxing as climbing up the mountain.
Now all that was left of our trip was to chill in Kasol, eat some amazing food and do some shopping. To our surprise, that quiet little town suddenly turned into mayhem with a million people landing there for the long weekend. Boy were we glad we left that day. Although with a heavy heart, we left to Bhuntar that day to take our bus back to Delhi. It was a quiet journey back.. not only because our trip was over, it was because we finally got an awesome bus with awesome seats so we could sleep well.. :P
Singing , dancing, eating, smoking, smoking up, drinking, pub hopping, sleeping, walking, shopping, fitting in, posing, clicking.. the list is endless and so was the fun we had. A trip is not just about the places you visit but also the people you are with. I was lucky and I've always been :)
This will be one of my most memorable vacations for more than a million reasons. To many more to come!!
-Sharanya
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