Shimla me Bimla – a charming travelogue
Are you looking for a destination to get away from the hustle and bustle of the Delhi city? A place to breathe in fresh air and enjoy the scenic beauty? Look no further than Shimla!
So it is time ! when I talk about Shimla , its all easy and smooth . excitement takes over me . and it is all I need to start packing up. February end , delhi to Shimla means “ subabh-shaam Thanda, dopahar Garam. So, a bag of winter wear and a bag of summer wear and I am all set.
And it’s a fresh 5am morning and all my family of 4 is ready to be loaded in car.
Our first stop for a scrumptious breakfast was - at the original Murthal ke paranthe at Amreek Sukhdev. Its worth the wait, paranthas with lots of Desi makhan. Khate-peete, chalte-rukte, 4 hours later we stopped at this amazing view hotel – hptdc-Kiari Bunglow, the staff was humble and the lunch was excellent, fresh preparation indeed. With semi full stomachs we headed for our joy ride to the much awaited Shimla Hills – twists and turns of the vaadiyan , a slight pukish feeling with that vegetarian tandoori khana, but I managed that with my mumma’s homemade churan. As opposed to what I saw 5 years ago, the mountains had changed to my surprise- it was not as green . the mountains were scraped and the trees were shaved to make the roads broader for more travellers like us. The sun hit direct on the naked mountains , it did hurt to see – what should we call this progress or environmental sacrifice ? It was an endless debate in the car starting from the mountains to the politicians .After an extensive session, finally a visual delight- we could see some Natural beauty.
AAAh! Windows down ! thandi hawa andar aane do !
And there it was ! My sweet old Shimla ! we parked at the multilevel parking near the lift and climbed up with our bags. My family took the lift to the ridge while I took that 10 floor staircase , exhausted yet standing straight, Yoga Pays off ! I waited at the lift exit.
and we all hiked up to our Homestay near the Ridge-Triveni , initially it looked like a container but the minute the caretaker opened the door , it was the cutest 2bhk I had seen ! The space is optimally used with the perfect sasta , sundar and pahadi interiors. The historic tape recorder was the “Shaan” of that place . We all rested for a bit and then went up to the much awaited Shimla Ridge- what a beauty – with a fully packed, head to head crowd on a Monday evening, So much love for Shimla !
we haulted bit by bit for eating at our old hunted spots, starting with the street side cheese tikki burger and then moving on to the shoppers stop of Shimla- Lakkar Bazaar , wow ! I did a lot of wooden shopping -wooden trays to interesting carved showpieces, at mostly 200-500rs per item. After a long walk, We had an awesome dinner at this new found restaurant, StreetRasoi- fresh & crisp rotis from Tandoor , thanks to the lovely google guides who upload their reviews to help others, and hey ! I am one too !
Shimla mall road & Ridge is a long walk with some scenic beauty and chilli mountain breeze. We were exhausted so we retired to bed early .
Day2 : Early morning sunrise peeping through our homestay’s glass window was a beautiful surprise . Inspired me and my bhai to play our old way with mumma k hath ki garam chai – ukelele and some soft singing, a walk down our bachpan ki gali.
9am and now we were super hungry , we got dressed and hiked up to the mall road and again thanks to google reviews we found this old age desi chole bhature restaurant-sharma Chat Shop estd.1937, mithi saunth topping on the chole is the bonus point . our taste buds couldn’t stop at one plate . After some full stomachs, we went for a long walk and for my tiny munchkin, I hired a pram on day’s rent – I must say that’s an awesome business idea to encash rentals from an old pram-customer bhi khush .
So we spent the day roaming up and down the lakkar bazar, lower bazar and all the lefts and rights tasting street food and HPMC lithi juices. An evening horse ride was a sweet detour at the ridge, the horses are well-kept.Finally, We retired to bed with a handful of dreamy photographs.
Day 3 : Next morning was time to prep for some self made breakfast of maggi-eggs-bread and tea . we packed up our luggage and our new fresh memories and headed back to the car, saying a warm goodbye to our homestay.
we took the lift and the stairs to the multilevel parking and as we settled , I waved a long goodbye to these mounatins of Shimla – to be back someother year, someother day !
On our way down the slopes the weather just made our trip more dreamy with those flowing clouds and dripping rain . The shaved mountains didn’t seem so dull anymore , although we cant hide behind the reality of progessivenss but the rain did us a favour to atleast halt the yet again started debate in our car. The amazing 90’s songs , the car ride , the thandi hawa and a bye bye to Shimla.
Almost halfway the mountain ride, my mother was inspired to be a tech-savvy and find our lunch hub on google maps. And I must say she did a splendid job in finding “ foodmistri” – having a sip of lemonade sitting in the arms of hills with a tangy bite of panner tikka was photogenic .
So moving on we took our last beverage stop at a local vita diary booth and grabbed a few milkshakes to go.
8 hour long drive, Gaane, baatein, khate-peete here we were back to our sweet old delhi.
Ps: Shimla , u shall always be my first destination crush !
Shimla is undoubtedly a charming and serene place, perfect for a peaceful weekend or weekday getaway. If you're looking for a vacation destination that's not only scenic but also has a rich history and cultural heritage, Shimla should be on your list. Plan a trip soon, and you won't regret it!
