Mussorie: Beyond the Library chowk

Hello travellers,
Hope your doing just fine. Today's was a super chilly morning. There was light mist and dead silence. The weather reminded me of the first ever mountain trip I dared to do.
I was just one of you, hostel dweller, a college student with mind full of dreams and empty pockets. On top of that my travel plans were buried deep under the curfew timings and strict rules of the Hostel. But one fine day, the traveller in me decided to break all the rules and flee to where all life feels small: The Himalayas.

Luckily I had two of my best friends accompanying me. The place we chose was MUSSORIE: the queen of hills. All three of us were offbeat in every sense and so was our travel plan.
Mussorie is a beautiful hill station located in the Gharwal Himalayas near (34 km from) Dehradun, Uttarakhand. The drive from Dehradun to Mussorie can be taken via a cab (costs around INR 1250/-) or a local bus (preferred and way much cheaper) and is extremely scenic.
Now there is a very slight difference between being a tourist and a traveller. The former is mostly about visiting places while the latter is about feeling the essence of a place. We were travellers (still are😅) and so we decided to hike through the town and its out skirts. We were keen to spend time amidst the beautiful pine trees and splendid mountains away from the hustle and bustle of the Mall Road. And believe me, we had a stupendous experience waiting for us.

In the morning, we started our journey from Dehradun towards this beautiful hill town via a public bus. It was our first time on the twisted mountain roads so nausea and headaches were quick to attack us. But as the bus moved closer to our destination the feeling of being mesmerized by the sights took over all the nausea I had. The lush green mountains against the brilliant blue sky were a sight to behold. I was lost in the beauty of the scene as our bus wiggled slowly on the curves of the hills.

Eating some 'masala' chips and orange candy on such  journeys can help a lot. Finally we reached the 'Library Chowk' of Mussorie town. Now where we actually got down was the busiest area of the town. People all around, vehicles honking like anything, so many shops, cafes, hotels and lodges. You know I personally don't like crowded places that much, my only good memory of Library chowk is the cool March breeze that was caressing my face gently.

Anyway we decided to explore the place. The first thing on the list was finding a place to stay. This was quite easy for us as March is considered off-season time there and the prices of staying and eating are reasonable. So we checked into a lodge nearby the 'Mall road' which is about half a kilometer away from the Library chowk.

By the time we freshened up, had breakfast and took rest for sometime, it was already afternoon. Then we started our quest  of exploring the town. Instead of going in the market area, we walked on the 'Camel's back' road, went up the inclined footpaths to quite a height. As we wandered more and more on the wild flowers lined roads the sounds of the crowd got fainter and fainter. When we reached a considerable height, we decided to stop and just admire the beauty of the place where we were standing.
People would tell you to visit Mussorie in deep winters or in summers. But I suggest you to atleast visit this place once when Spring is in its full glory. The otherwise green forests turn into reds, yellows and shades of pinks in spring time and their beauty increases manifold. We stood there awestruck by the beauty of the scenic delight that nature had shown us. For a while I forgot everything, my mates, where I came from, what was I supposed to do and everything else. I just stood there dumbfounded by the show of nature. We sat there for sometime, none of us spoke anything. We were just enjoying the warm sunshine and the cool breeze swishing past us. We even gave up the idea of clicking pictures because not even the best camera could do justice to the beauy of the place.

After some time we came back to the town. It was already late evening by then and half the shops were already closed. All of us were tired but our eyes were glittering. As we approached the almost deserted Mall Road, my mind sensed something soothing in that usual sight of the street. It was the smell of coffee. After a bit of looking here and there I spotted a CCD cafe. We got a cup of Cappuccino each and sat on a cold green metal bench on the side of the road facing the valley. The valley looked like a big cauldron full of fireflies from that spot. Eventually we got lost in our own thoughts sipping on our Cappuccinos and enjoying the view.

For me, this was Mussorie, a quiet little hamlet of unmatched beauty on the Gharwal Himalayas.

Juliet Of The Mountains ❤️
Ananya Mahanta 💞