Shimla Youth Hostel

... Pradesh is divided into 12 districts namely, kangra, hamirpur, mandi, bilaspur, una, chamba, lahul and spiti, sirmaur, kinnaur, kullu, solan and shimla. Roads are the major mode of transport in the hilly terrains of Himachal Pradesh. <br><br>The climate of Himachal Pradesh is cool to cold all the year round and is always inviting the tourists to enjoy a stay amidst the hills and mountains in the panoramic state of Himachal Pradesh.

... aggressive - and climbed to the monkey temple. Queued to be blessed by the holy man in the shrine - a saffron dot placed on our foreheads. The holyman paused in doing this only to take a call on his mobile - new India v old India cliche. <br><br>Leaving the temple we nearly were nearly caught in the cross fire of a turf war between a troop of monkeys and the local stray dogs. Much baring of teeth, shreaks and barks. It was unclear as to who won. <br>

... rail-tracks. <br><br>In Kalka we changed trains for a very different, but very pleasurable, rail experience. The "toy train" up to Shimla. This is something of a colonial relic, a narrow gauge railway that winds its way from the plains into the Himalayan foothills up to 2,150 metres above sea level. Crammed in tiny carriages for 6 hours, through spectacular scenery, an ancient ...

... he turned in the right direction and I could see that his face was dripping with blood and was in need of some medical help. It was at this point that a cursed myself for not having my camera, but wondered if I would have had the guts to take the photos that needed taking - knowing that it would betray my concern for the man and suggest that I had little interest if he was alive ...

... towel in and was questioning my ability to work in IT at all! On explaining how non of the material was clicking with me or making any sense Durgesh changed the lesson plan for the day and spent the first two hours working through the questions I was having problems with and helped me to understand them. This was a real turning point. I had not wanted to take class that day, I was tired, burnt out and despondent. However, by the end of the class I was ...

... which became apparent within a few steps of lugging backpacks up hill towards the area where the hotels hang out. A hot shower later, and emergence from the hotel in search of food revealed what all the Shimla fuss is about. Views from the centre of Shimla, to both the north and the south, are simply stunning. Verdant valleys many hundreds of metres deep stretch away into the distance, where high mountains can be seen to loom. Large birds (of unknown ...

... for a 'I can has lemon soda?' moment. Eventually he arrived with 4. Oh well. I think I've become an honorary member of The Souptjies - some term for chickens, a Flemish in-joke. I've made it clear to the group that they should tell me to get lost at any point, but if they're willing to let me join them that'd be great. And then to bed, under a duvet! Albeit a slightly smelly one. Tally: - Since Abu Dhabi airport I've not got lost, nor lost anything ...

... and ice cream. as i walked towards to edge of the mountain i expected to see the sea but instead saw beautiful green mountains below and snow capped one above. The only thing missing from this seaside town was fish and chips and a pier. i loved shimla and if it hadn't been so bitterly cold, ive have stayed more than the 2 days that we did. Having found out that to get to Varanasi, we needed first to go to Chandigarh, we got the bus to this very modern Punjabi city. i ...

... upset because her parents were supposed to be taking her home for a while but they cancelled. So I was just giving her a cuddle trying to comfort her, when everyone else sitting around decided to join in! I was surrounded by a group of kids and old people sobbing their hearts out, pulling at my sleeves and wiping their noses on me! Eventually I couldnt take the depression any longer and ran away and left them to it! :oS Stop rambling woman... Rishikesh... Well its really ...

... to visit him in India (see below, on the left). Who knows. But in a country like this, where even the concept of atheism is unknown to most, then the pampered, materialistic Western mind is often a hindrance to understanding. I could certainly not live like a Baba - a flooding shower I could deal with, maybe, and the dirty floors and walls and the lines of ants, but a lifetime of homelessness, of handouts and contemplation, and of sleeping on concrete floors like ghat number ...