JOIN USMall Road? Jakhu Temple? Scandal Point? Christ Church? Toy Trains? Sounds familiar? Well, I thought so too. The experience, however, turned out to be more amazing than the clichéd images that have been etched in our minds. The capital city of Himachal Pradesh is nothing less than a paradise for nature lovers, like me.
Living in a city like Delhi, my weekend trip to Shimla was a good way to find solace from the hectic life of the metropolis. It was almost mid-July when my parents and I left for Shimla. The town welcomed us with a gusty and dusty weather. Huge masses of clouds appeared in the wink of an eye. An inky darkness prevailed everywhere, cool winds blew and the birds dived up and down on the waves of the gentle breeze. And at that time it seemed as if “Nature is standing in front of us in all its beauty and grace.”
The view from our hotel room was nothing less than sheer beauty. The valley below the hills looked like a big cup full of flowers and flowing streams. The beautiful flowers with their eye-catching colours were dancing in the cool breeze and looking so beautiful, as poet Andrew Marvell says: “See how the flowers as at parade, under colours stand displayed.”
Like any other tourist at the hill station, I was really looking forward to visiting Mall Road. The Mall Road in Shimla has something in it which cannot be expressed in words. The biggest positive point about the Mall Road is that vehicles are not allowed here, which gives tourists a chance to immerse themselves in nature’s beauty while also enjoying glimpses of globalisation with showrooms of high-end fashion brands here.
The butter Maggi and the piping hot chai at Scandal Point (yes, that’s the name of a road having a historical context dating back to the colonial period) alongside the flea market was a delightful experience.
The next day we were on a religious spree, I suppose. We started our day by visiting the famous Jakhu Temple, which is basically a temple dedicated to Lord Hanuman on a hill top, with a gigantic statue of the Hindu god. The entire atmosphere there was very calm and peaceful except the fact that the monkeys there were a bit over-friendly, trying to interact with us at regular intervals! Then on our list was the Christ Church - situated in the heart of the town, it attracts many tourists, as well as the local populace.
We decided to end our short getaway with a scenic journey in the toy train. Our short ride from Shimla to Taradevi, approximately five kilometers, alongside valleys and through the tunnels between the hills was an out of the world experience.
Helen Keller has rightly said, “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched.” This correctly sums up my entire experience in Simla with all the scenic beauty and visual extravaganza!Well yeah, Shimla treated us quite well!
Jigyasa Mukherjee
The writer is a BA (Hons) student at Janki Devi Memorial College, Delhi University.