May 19, 2007 10:19 AM
12278 Views
(Updated May 19, 2007 11:30 AM)
I belong to the group who believe Shimla is over crowded and certainly not a perfect place for a summer break. Phew... I had to change my perception when I finished my trip. It was a near compulsion to choose Shimla, when trip abroad got cancelled.
After a brief google session, I could find some very helpful information on a Shimla trip. The information are on booking your ticket in Volvo on Shimla-Delhi route, booking your ticket for the toy train, a suitable accommodation, sight seeing options and even on how to take a very small travel bag to Shimla.
Let me take you thru some quick fact on Shimla, before narrating my experience.
No vehicle is allowed inside Shimla (the main Mall and ridge area)
Shimla is a zigzag topogtaphy, where you need to continuously climb UP-n-DOWN.
A biodegradable conscious city (clean but crowded old city)
A visitor friendly city
- Can be the hub for tours to Manali, Dharamsala, Mc-Loidganj, Chail etc
- Daily trips from Himachal Tourism to the places of preference
My trip plan started with the booking of much talked about "TOY TRAIN" from Kalka to Shimla for three (Me, My wife and my kid). Toy trains are nothing but the wide window 12 seater trains running on 96km narrow gauge track on Kalka-Shimla track. The most talked about train among them is the Shivalik Delux Express (Trn. No. 241) leaving Kalka at 5.30 in the morning (most of the time it leaves late because of the late arrival of the sourcing train i.e. Howrah-Kalka mail leaving Delhi (hang on... its old delhi railway station near chandni chowk) I too booked the HOWRAH-KALKA MAIL as the connecting one thru https://irctc.co.in. For retun journey I took online ticket from Shimla to Delhi Volvo Coach ( http://www.himachalhotels.in). Now the only thing left was accommodation. I tried and succeeded in getting an accommodation at YMCA Shimla (Rs.900 perday).
My trip started with a little pain in going to Old Delhi railway station and then waiting for the train (2 hours delay) in an overcrowded platform. I came to know that normally the train arrives late. Anyways "No pain no gain"...we decided to have a mindset of enjoying the trip irrespective of the odds.
The real pleasure started when we boarded the 6 coach toy train. It was virtually waiting for us to cover the the 96 km route with very slow pace to allow the sight seeing pleasure for the tourists. It covers 103 tunnels and a solid hill track with one stoppage at Barog to have some hot snacks (ok type). Since we took a good slip in Howrah-Kalka and had brushed teeth just before it arrived Kalka, we were fresh and ready to enjoy the trip to shimla. The track was really an engineering marvel and a scenic miracle to provide ample happiness. This also includes watching newly wedded couples going for their honeymoon (sometimes having it enroute).
We were mentally prepared (very light back pack) to take on the hilly Shimla. Took a cab (Rs 60) to the lift (Rs 7) for mall & ridge. We then walked thru the mall road (no vehicles) up to the ridge (YMCA). It was 1 pm and the scenic environment in YMCA forced us to relax for sometime after having lunch. We spent a nice three hour in the afternoon near the ridge watching around. visited the nearby HPTDC office for a city map and sightseeing leaflet. The information is also available at https://hptdc.gov.in. Local spots like Kalibari Temple, State Museum, chadweek falls, Sankatmochan Temple apart from mall walk and ridge loitering took a day for us. Places of interest (if you want Shimla a hub) include Mashobra (13 km) Naldehra (23km), Tattapani (50km), Kufri (16 km), Chail (45km), Kasauli (110km), Barog (55km), Solan (59km) are some of the options. Local cabs will offer you a trip to Kullu-Manali. Since we planned for a break and not much of sight seeing and traveling, we preferred local places and one day trip covering Kufri-Chail-Kariaghat (hptdc trip3). Walking along mall road looking at the crowd was a good thing not to ignore. Local potters with small child-trolley will take Rs.50 to carry your kid (if you have) for an hour.
Overall Shimla offers a good climate to escape the hot summer. The 6 hour toy train journey coupled with the customized (as preferred sight seeing trip) made it a decent break.
Heyy !!! Go ahead.... n break the perception (if any)........ No conditions apply
