The Oberoi Cecil Shimla

From Manali, at the base of Rohtang pass, we had our driver make our last big road trip in Himachal Pradesh. We drive to Shimla (or Simla) the former hill station of the British Raj.

We left Manali and the cannabis lined roadways of the Kullu and Parvati valleys and drove for over 8 hours. The roads were never straight, never wide enough, and at times had sheer cliffs on one side or the other. Whenever we needed to climb a hill , our driver would ...

... is only one direct bus to Kasauli at about 8.30am from Sector 43 bus stand.

However, you may take a local bus to Dharampur (almost every half an hour) – Rs 50 - $1 and from there change to a local bus to Kasauli or take a taxi (half an hour, $5-6)… or take a train from Chandigarh to Kalka and from Kalka local bus to Kasauli or Dharmapur ...

... his nickname is Sam, he is 24 and is a Physics teacher at Rampur. He lives in Mehli with his 2 sisters in a suburb of Shimla. Later he invited me to have dinner and stay the night at his cousin Yog's (Yoghesh) apartment. It was really fun to spend the day with his extremely friendly friends and family who made extra effort that I feel comfortable and at home.

... are we?" - (i dont even know why!!) and i think she started to get annoyed especially since she didnt have a clue where we were either!!! we are now in the capital city of shimla which is nice but very cold, having to wrap up warm!! it feels very english here with the typical english tack stalls and a massive catholic church bang in the middle of the city ...

... are interested in an IT training experience! Following my exam I have spent time relaxing and soaking up a bit of the town which I have not really been able to do so far. On Friday night my friends Bryan and Steve, also from the course went to a bar on The Ridge called Rendez Vous for a drink and a bite to eat. After a while the owner joined us and was a friendly character who had spent some time living in Sydney, Ausralia. I had had one too many strong ...

Nachdem meine kleine amerikanische Ersatzfamilie abgereist ist, habe ich mich allein auf den Weg nach Shimla gemacht, eine abenteuerliche Fahrt in einem Klapperbus mit kotzenden Kindern auf meinem Schoss. Shimla (2200m) ist die beruehmteste aller Hill Stations, da von hier aus einst -zu Zeiten, als Indien noch das "Juwel in der Krone" des britischen ...

... and the sun never rose, due to said cloud. Meh. The only good thing was that I arrived back just in time. The heavens opened and it rain solidly all day. The buggers in the internet place [the spurned trek organisers from yesterday] felt the need to tell me than a) the guide at the other place is a drunk and b) inner-line permits must be applied for in person not though the organisers. Maybe ...

... tired of being cold and dirty and in desperate need to comfort and cleanliness, insisted that we found a nice hotel and not tourist guest house. We stayed at Corporate Inn, which cost around 13 pounds per night (an extortionate rate for India) but it was well worth it. i had hot water 24 hours a day and a clean toilet with toilet roll - luxury! I didn't feel like i was in India in Chandigarh as the shops are all Nike, Reebok, lacoste, pringle, Levis and tommy hilfiger ...

... a proper culture bunny (think I just invented that phrase!) and visited the City Museum (very interesting, lots of crazy tapestries and paintings and phallic sculptures), the High Court (**** and closed) and a 'Fantasy Rock Garden'. This was amazing - it was absolutely huge and consisted of rows upon rows of human and animal figures made of rock, plastic and pretty much anything the nutter who designed the place could lay his hands on - even broken bangles! Some ...

... that the girls would let them carry their bags. It was an exhausting trek, not least in my Delhi flip-flops. The scenery and vantage was dazzling, but clearly there was no way I could stay here and write. The guesthouses comprised of mattresses on floors, and the restaurants had the distinctive names of tourist-tailored cliché; the Third Eye café, the Evergreen restaurant, and the familiar German Bakery. Tosh, like everywhere else in Parvati Valley, was ...