If I were to put down my account of my visit to Shimla, it would have to begin with the train journey, as half the experience is in actually getting there.
The journey to the beautiful hill station began at Kalka where we boarded the mountain train to Shimla. This ride was truly enthralling, thanks to the rugged terrain and the train chugging into dark tunnels every now and then in the course of its 96 km Kalka – Shimla route.
It was fun trying to keep count of the number of tunnels we passed. I believe they totalled to one or two over a hundred. The best part of it was the longest tunnel; the locomotive stopped just before it got into it, as if to take a deep breath before it went into this dark passage. After a full five minutes in the murky tunnel, the train stopped once again, this time seeming to let out a sigh of relief.
The expedition on these tracks that meandered through hills, conifer forests and in and out of tunnels, not to mention the many little stations that looked like ones out of a storybook, is undoubtedly a must-experience.
Towards the end of the day, the train pulled into the charming little railway station of Shimla. After we checked into a hotel, we made our way to the one place in Shimla that a visitor just cannot miss: The Mall, which is the shopping hub here, with lines of small shops on the slopes of a hill. Our stroll began at the upper mall where we began browsing through branded goods and as we kept walking downhill, we were bargaining for woolens and pieces of jewellery.
At the lower end of the mall, is Shimla’s skating rink. That winter evening, the place was bursting with activity, with boys and girls of all ages whizzing past on ice skates and instructors rendering lessons to the amateurs in the rink. What’s more, there were tourists too `trying a leg’ on the ice. One of the most pleasant sights beside all this hustle and bustle was that of locals as well as visitors squatting around tins of red hot coal, trying to warm their cold hands. Oh what a chill night that was!
Early next morning, we went on a tour to Kufri, an attraction that is about 20 kilometres away from the hill town. There we took pony rides up the hill and I must say the ride was quite an adventurous one, with the mountain trails giving us the fright of our lives, every time the pony walked on the edge of the hilly path.
At Kufri, there was plenty to do. We walked around for a while taking in the picturesque view of the surrounding hills, sat atop yaks to take some photographs and even tried on Himachali outfits to feel like one among the locals there.
On our way back to Shimla, we stopped at a helipad, which is another tourist spot around there. The helipad appeared to be a plateau, bordered with a wooden fence painted in white and beyond it, as far as we could see, there were hundreds of thousands of conifer tree tops.
Back in Shimla, the next day we visited other places including Summer Hill, where the University of Himachal Pradesh is located and the majestic Vice regal lodge.
Situated atop Observatory Hill, the Vice regal lodge is the best proof of that part of history which speaks of Shimla as the summer capital of colonial India. This structure that once served as the residence of Lord Dufferin, later went on to house several viceroys. This magnificent stone building, which is a specimen of the architecture of the Renaissance period of Elizabethan England, is today the Indian Institute of Advanced Study.
Shimla, the beautiful hill station with colonial buildings and English lamp posts, was once a small village that was part of Nepal. This place is said to have been discovered by the British in 1819 was declared the Summer Capital of India in 1864 because it looked like a village in North England.
With its English touch, cool climate and the scenic beauty that the hill station is bathed in, Shimla has become an idyllic getaway for all seasons.
