A day away from chaos in Shimla

Realizing its morning, opening an eye and checking the clock, you still have 10 minutes to get down from your bed. In the meantime, while checking your social media and some news you prepare yourself for shower. Then running to office without having breakfast is how your day kick start. Spending a hectic day at work, heading back home and then sleeping after a dinner typically a day’s schedule of a working Delhiite.

Amidst the chaos and after Diwali pollution, we decided to go to Shimla. We needed a break from the monotonous life and a serene place to be at. Shimla appeared to be the best option for the weekend trip as we had direct bus from Majnu ka Tila to Shimla and an overnight journey to cover. And since, I am not a winter person, this was the best time to be in Shimla.

We started our journey from Majnu ka Tila by boarding a bus at 10:30 pm and reached Shimla at 7:00 am. Instead of heading to hotel, we took a detour to a café for breakfast. After checking out a few cafés, we decided to sit in Honey Café. The small and cosy place made me forget about the tiring journey and helped me feel fresh and energetic. It was as if, it has induced some extra energy in coffee that was served to us.

After the sumptuous breakfast, we headed towards the Shingar Hotel which was located near Clarks. And since, we were early for check-in, we were asked to wait for another half an hour. We spent that half an hour in having hot and creamy tea, without which starting a day seems impossible.

We finally got the keys and saw our room, it was way more beautiful than the pictures and was perfect for the kind of weekend we wanted; dim lights, extremely clean, tranquil and yet so modern. We got fresh and started off our trek to Jakhoo Temple. This is a very famous temple of lord Humana and you will see a huge statue of him standing tall on a mountain. A place where you can sit for hours in silence and calm yourself down.

After noon was followed by a trek down to Shimla Heritage Museum and then back to hotel. We then went for lunch at Choice Chinese Food, since this becomes mandatory when you are on a hill station. A trip without Chinese food and Maggie is not considered a good mountain trip. Strolling through the mall road, we headed to the Lakkad Market, and then through a tunnel we went to Tibetan Market. It was almost a 3 hour trek, since strolling through these markets is a tiring task. We ended up sitting in front of Christ Church, which seemed to be the best evening. The dawn, chilled weather and the lighting across Shimla became cherry on the cake and happened to become one of the most memorable evening.

We ordered some booze and pizza to give this day a signature end. And we fell asleep in the middle of the reminiscing the old days and discussing how life has changed. The next day started early, since we had our bus at 1:45 pm. Ordered tea, forced ourselves to get out of bed and somehow managed to get ready on time. We checked-out and left for the mall road to visit it for the last time. Maggie, coffee, sun and a little cold breeze by the side of the road on a bench… What else would you need to end such a beautiful trip?