My First Solo Trip to the Magic Mountains of Dharamshala! | Ayesha Majid

Unlike most of my trips this one was a bit...unplanned....

The original plan was to take a 3 day Vipassana course, head to the mountains with a friend, catch up with another friend, have a typical touristy trip, never ever leave my comfort zone, inhale the fresh air, click enough photographs that would cover my FB profile pics for a year (I did that anyways) and come back.

But things didn't really turn out to be that way....which is always the case with me. The friend who ACTUALLY planned the trip had to cancel...well that was fine you know, I was going to meet up with another friend and trip anyways. But as luck had it the other friend couldn't make it either...and I was told about this minutes before my train stopped at PATHANKOT.

You heard it right! That was the moment I knew I was going to be completely on my own. I was terrified. There was ABSOLUTELY no one I knew in Dharamshala. No clue where I was going to stay... How safe would the hotels be?...How was I going to make it...?

 So what made everything right? How did I survive 10 days of solitude in the magnificent Himalayan Range and came back without a scratch?

Well you have to read ahead to find out....

Home Outside of Home

I was standing at Borivali station at 8 am, my train - Swaraj Express was to reach platform No.5 at 8:30 am. It was a one and a half day trip and just the thought of it gave me shivers.

More than being alone at an unknown place I was afraid of the 28 hour train journey.

What if there was a creepy dude sitting right across me? What if someone flicked my stuff while I was passed out?  Dreadful thoughts kept polluting my mind, but at this point there was no turning back.

As I boarded the train my fears were wiped away within seconds...

[L-R: Saurav (Bride's Mun bola bhai and a total entertainer, Anu (the bride),
Mrs. Agarwal (Bride's Mom), Masi, Elder Cousin, Jiju, Ashish, Mr. Agarwal
and yes the hanging body on top is Sheetal]

 As I began looking for my seat I dragged my trolley bag over every passenger's feet (Yah I was dumb enough to carry a trolley bag to the mountains. Well in my defense I did not have a big enough back pack for all those wintery clothes) and pushed my way through the 2 tier AC coach only to find out that my seat was right in middle of an amazing Punjabi family who was heading for their daughter's wedding to Jammu.

Yup!! There were people over flowing with joy and excitement, and amongst their loving energies I found a safe spot for myself.

 With end less games of UNO and some crazy singing sessions I felt completely at home. Oh and the food! This was the first time in my life I ate Dhoklas from Surat and Aloo Ka parathaas from Jalandhar all in one train journey! I must have put on 2 kgs in the train itself!

                                                             
As if their comforting voices and warm smiles weren't enough, I later discovered that the gorgeous bride-to-be knew me from college and that the entire family lived 5 minutes from my house in Bombay!

That's when I knew all I had to do was enjoy myself and rest would be taken care off....well at least till I reached Pathankot!

One and a half day went away in a blink of an eye, but the I can still taste the delicious food that was fed to me with so much love. I had found home outside of home and that too within an hour of leaving my beloved city.

The Avatar Effect

1 pm, 24th Nov my train stopped in Pathankot. I put on a brave face said bye to my one and a half day old family and got off. I was so scared I could have caught the next train to Mumbai and gone back home.

Right before I was about to get down Mr.Agarwal introduced us to a Table Tennis Champion who was sitting a few berth's away. A cute 12 year old with curly hair smiled and sat next to us, chomping on the yummy aloo ka parathans which had just come from Jalandar (courtesy of the Agarwal family).

She was heading to Dharamshala for a Table Tennis Tournament where she bagged a silver medal. How do I know?

On the way from Pathankot-Dharamshala 

As I walked out of the station I spotted her bouncy locks. I asked if I could tag along till Dharamshala. The entire Maharashtra TT team was present, eyeing me with suspicion. She looked at her dad (who by the way had the exact kind of curls). He looked at me and in his Bengali accent asked "Tum Akela Aaya hain?" I said yes. "Theek Hain chalo hamara saath." A wave of relief flowed through my body.

If you have watched Avatar you must have noticed how the humans connect the end of their tail to the huge tree at the end, the tree that symbolizes the universe. That is how I felt. Like I was so connected with the universe that what ever I thought of came to life. At every step there was someone waiting

Pathankot to Dharamshala

Google says that the bus ride from Pathankot to Dharamshala is 2 hrs 22mins, but don't believe that. It takes atleast 3 to 3 and a half hours to reach.

Well for one the roads are quite narrow and then there is the cattle. Herds of Goats and Sheep are being taken around for grazing, this often causes traffic, but that's just fascinates  the Goras!

We boarded the bus at 2 pm from Pathankot and reached Dharamshala by 5:30. Yup that's a long ride but totally worth it.

Snow Peaked Mountain 

I first glimpsed the snow clad mountains from the bus, The excitement was unbearable. Thankfully Swastika (the TT champ) shared the excitement!

By the time our bus stopped in Dharamshala it was pitch dark and also quite scary at that our. And I was alone again.

With no concrete plan in mind, I decided to ask around. The locals suggested Mclead Ganj was better than and thats where I decided to head.

A 30 min bus ride from Dharamshala to Mcleod was all it took for me to feel alive again. The mountains were laced with tiny diamonds. Small houses were situated all over the Himalayan range, replicating the starry night sky.

After a nervous 30 mins I finally reached Mcleod Ganj! Oh What sight! Unlike Dharamshal (which by the way freaked me out a little ) McLeod was fabulous. The amazing streets and beautiful houses sent a wave of relief down my almost frozen toes.

I walked down the lively lane full of fascinating shops, delicious Momo stalls and a large number of tourists.

A number of Hotel guys followed me around I obviously picked the cheapest one. At Rs.400 I had a TV, an amazing balcony with a magnificent view, hot water and I could call for warm water how many ever times I wanted.

Where to go? What to see?

The first legendary landmark I visited was The Dalai Lama Temple. The Dalai Lives there! It was a Monestary!  It was a 15 min walk from my hotel room! Oh Ya! I almost forgot, you know when I thought there was no one I knew in Dharamshala, turns out I knew a guy who knew a guy who could help me out with stuff!

The Main Temple

And it so happened that this guy Manish was a Himachali and a Super sweetheart. He offered to
show me around. Since it was my first time alone I did not hesitate to take the offer. . But before that we took a quick tour of the residence of the global spiritual leader. HImachalis are amazing hosts, they treat their guests really well and also make sure they are safe,


The Tibetian Architecture immediately captures your attention. As you keep walking through the streets of Mcleod, you will witness Monks strolling in their maroon overalls. I am thinking that is what Tibet feels like.

Dalai Lama's Personal Quater

Security at the temple was quite high. I still can't over the fact that the Dalai Lama feels protected in India!! We make the world's spiritual leader feel safe.

As I strolled through the temple I was lucky enough to witness the Monks debating while their teachers assessed their performance.

Monks Debating 

The Himalayan Water Fall - Galu

Once I had explored every little corner of the temple. I was ready to head to the one of the highest points of Dharmashala - Galu. And a superb bike ride to this place is all that you need to feel beauty in your veins.

View from Eagle Crest (Eagle Crest), Galu - Dharmashala.

Just the mesmerizing winding with oak trees welcoming and acknowledging my presence were enough to make me fall in love with the place. And when I reached there I was dazzled by the beauty.

I checked into a beautiful guesthouse named Eagle's Crest. The rooms were enormous, clean and the bathrooms, let's just say you won't really miss home. There was hot water and a superb caretaker named 'Bagga'. He was my super hero. Whatever I needed was there. Be it hot water, yummy food, clean sheets or just some friendly banter. He told me about the bears and the Snow Leopards that wander the mountains. Apparently bear's don't really attack women.Weird but the locals said it was true!

After settling in I was too excited to miss a single moment in the mountains. I immediately asked

The Blue waters of the Himalayan Waterfall

around about the beautiful places I could visit and zeroed down on the Himalayan Waterfall. It was an hour-long trek from the hotel. It was quite a tricky trek and you ca

 go there by car or bike. You have to trek it up. 

After breathing like an hold woman and groaning all through the trek I finally saw one of the most serene waterfalls ever. Since it was an offbeat place there was no one around. I lay on the rock, closed my eyes and enjoyed the sound of the water gushing by. Sun on my eyes and the cool stone made me lose myself in the comforting arms of the magnificent mountains!

Also the trek had tired me out so I had to take a 30 min nap!

Hot Water Spring  - Tatwani

The next extraordinary spot I visited was the hot water spring 52 kms from Galu. To tell you the truth I expected something amidst the mountains, with hot steam coming out of the pool.
But since this is India and everything miraculous is a gift of God this place was converted into a temple. And it was how do I say a wee bit dirty. I was reluctant to get into the natural Jacuzzi, but I had ridden 52 kms on a bike, there was no way I would go without taking a dip. After slurping up some hot noodles I decided to do it. Fortunately by this time there were two more girls in the pool. Also the girls and the guys get to soak in different Jacuzzis. The guys have the hot water spring and ladies so that there is some privacy are sent to the other side, where the water flows in from a small hole. A wee bit unfair you might think, but its so that women can soak themselves in peace without men ogling at them. 

Hot-Water Spring at Tatwani

The girls from a local village told me to have faith and slide in and so I did. And man that was the best decision I ever made. The water was just warm enough to relax my muscles. Even the geysers at home don't have such a controlled temperature. I took complete advantage of the hot water tub, letting the hot shower fall on my back and calm my soul. Once I was done I quickly got out changed into some dry clothes and headed out.

And that is where I saw the baby from Ice Age 1. There she was running around with her cousins. She came up to me and said something in Tibetian. I didnt get a word so I picked her up and began showering her with kisses. Just when I asked

someone to click a picture of us the other munchkins came running to me and clung on to my leg. Oh! what a feeling that was! A warm bath and beautiful warm hugs! My day was complete. I put on my jacket (trying to preserve the warmth till I reached Galu), sat on the bike and headed back to base camp.

The same morning right before I was leaving for the hot water spring, I met Nolan from Modern Family! He was as shocked to see me as I was to see him. I looked at him and ran like a psycho person.

Me: "Oh My God! Oh My God! You are ...you are that person from Modern Family.

Nolan: HI! I am Nolan! Nice to meet you ...

Me: Ayesha! And your name is (Yes I was dumb enough to say that) I just watched your latest episodes before I came here. Oh mY God! I dont remember what I said after that, but I dont really think it made sense.

Nolan and Me

He just smiled after that. First time ever in my life I was STAR STRUCK!! He had come down to Dharmashala to shoot a documentary on that place. Also he didn't believe I lived in India. That was one crazy start to my day!

The night that followed was one I shall remember for the rest of my life. The temperature had dropped and the moon was covered with dark clouds. No stars shone that night. I ate my dinner and retired to my room. Only to wake up at 4 am with crazy thunderstorm that made my doors and windows rattle. It felt like air bombs were being thrown on my hotel roof and all I could do was hide deeper into the warm igloo I had created out my mountains. The previous afternoon looked something like this

But the next morning I woke up to the most mesmerizing sight I had ever witnessed in my entire life.

The mountains peaks were snow white which meant I couldn't trek to Triund that day! Not that I really cared. Instead of the trek uphill I decided to move to a much warmer place called Dharamkot.

Bhagsunag Waterfall - Bhagsunag

After settling in I took off to another adventure to the amazing falls of Bhagsunag. It is a 20-25 minute trek downhill from Dharamkot. And having spent so much time with the locals I had learnt to find my way through the forest! 

It is a 700 mt. climb up hill but the sight is totally worth it! And you will not believe whoI bumped into on the TOP of the waterfall. It was the TT champion who had just bagged a silver and had come sightseeing with her family. What are the odds of bumping into her 3 days later at the peak of a fall.

On reaching the top I saw a few people going even higher. I was like there is no way I am going up there. I have seen the waterfall now I am going back and heading to Shiva Cafe. 

And then I read a sign that said Shiva Cafe and the arrow pointed to the exact place where I thought I wouldnt climb. 

As I got closer to the cafe I could hear trance revebrating in the mountains! I couldnt wait to get there. Right next to the waterfall there was this superbly built cafe that served Hookah and gave a total hippie feel! I was in paradise! This place hidden so well in the mountains was something I wouldnt have missed for the world.

Shiva Cafe - Bhagsunag

Market in McLeodganj

My trip ended with a long day of shopping from Mcleod Ganj. You get everything in these amazinf streets. Jewellery, clothes, paintings, bags, statues, you name it! There are also a number of Cafe's where you can enjoy a soothing sunset while sipping on some nice rum! This picture marked the end of my crazy, life changing journey! I emerged stronger and calmer! 

Weather

Everyone told me it would be freezing out there. Well in Dharamshala it wasn't really cold, you could easily hang out in a light overcoat. As I climbed higher the temperature kept decreasing and the amount of clothes I had to wear became inversely proportionate.

Dharamshala was the warmest with 25 degrees (I didn't think so before I reached Galu)

Dharamkot - This was warmer with 22-17 degrees

Galu - When I reached there on the 24th it was around 15 degrees and as the days passed by the temperature went to 5 degrees

Where to stay?

Dharamshala you can just get out of the bus stand and look for a place. It was a bit expensive, but you will manage to get a place for 600 per night. That's the minimum in November.

Mcleod Ganj - This place has  a lot of options. You can  get a room for Rs. 300. I stayed at the Lord Krishna Hotel for Rs. 400 a night (I still think I over paid. 300 was more than enough). You can also find a dorm in Mcleod where you can stay at Rs.250 per night.

Dharmakot - There is a secluded guesthouse with a beautiful view called Paul's House. I paid Rs.400 per night. Only to later discover that there was a homestay right next it at Rs.100 per night.

Galu - 10 kms away from Triund (Highest point of Dharmashala). Stayed at Eagle's Crest at Rs.300 per night.

P.S - These rates were only available because it was off-season or else the price per room goes upto 1500.

Some Handy Tips

- Don't wander around after dark unless you are in a bright well lit place like McLeod Ganj or        Dharmakot.
- Always carry your pepper spray
- The himachalis are amazing, it is the Delhi, PUnjab tourists that may pass some comments or stare.    DO NOT I repeat DO NOT react to anything they say. Keep your safety above your ego.
- Carry a flashlight and Pepperspray at all times
- Keep your phone charged
- Pack atleast 2 jackets and a blanket
- If your hotel doesnt have a restraunt pack some food, since you cant get out in the night and you might feel hungry in the middle of the night.

- Be vigilant.
- Don't get over friendly with the locals
- Keep someone from home informed about your whereabouts
And Ya Have a BLAST!!!

How I reached Dharmashala

Mumbai-Pathankot - 28 hour long train journey

Pathankot-Dharamshala - 4 hour long bus ride

Dharmashala - Mcleod Ganj - 30 min bus ride

Mcleod Ganj-Galu - 20 min taxi ride

So if you are planning to take a trip by yourself dont hesitate for a second! If I cna take unplanned trip I am sure you can plan one and experience the mountains for yourself!

There is liberation and strength that comes with travelling solo! So dont just sit there and PLAN go ahead and make that super solo trip happen!