Whistling Pines Resort Shimla

... far another 4 stories. Then we carried then across a road, up two flights of stairs, and into yet another elevator for an additional 7 stories to our hotel office.

We have decided that we need to change our travel strategy. 1. We will now make our own hotel reservations. (our last travel; agent did real well, charging us around $50 a day for rooms, then reserving 25 dollar rooms for us. ) 2. We will now only hire the driver for those periods ...

From Amritsar there isn't a direct train to Chandigarh. There are buses however but if I have a choice I do take trains and avoid buses in India. There is however a train to Ambela (4 hours, Rs 380 - $ 7-8 ) from Amritsar and then from Ambela you may take a train or bus to Chandigarh. It’s about 45 minutes journey – Rs 30.


From Chandigarh ...

On the 10 hour bus from Reckong Peo to Shimla, I got off on the 10 minute break to have breakfast. When I got back on someone had taken my seat so I sat next to someone who insisted I go back to my original seat. He even told the ticket master so that guy was forced to get up. This was lucky for me because a really nice guy sat next to me. We talked most of the ...

... brought the band together has allowed them to groom a sound that mirrors the best of Modern Rock, at the same time combining elements of a wide spectrum of genres varying from Nu Metal to 80's Rock n' Roll. The band has become popular for its signature crunching guitar riffs and pop choruses which gives it a solid, melodic and powerful sound, inclusive of all the right ingredients that define today's modern rock music.' (check their MySpace for a taste ...

... So we rolled back down the hill and went the round about way. Shimla is very hilly. The taxi dropped us off at the foot of a hill where we took 2 lifts and then had to walk the rest of the way. The 1st hotel the tout showed us was horrible (it stank) so we left the bags and the boys and went further up the hill to another hotel which was much better so we booked into there.

... here as were the Indo-Pakistani peace talks. We stayed in Shimla for about 4 days enjoying the last of the cool weather before we headed to warmer climates again. We took 3 trains and over 24hours to reach our next destination. The first train was a miniature train through the Himalayas which was really scenic. We passed through more than 93 tunnels!

... by the trackside. Unbelievable. They line up, squatting with their butts out and a little pile underneath them. For ages and ages, with their chins resting in their palm. India must be a country of constipated people. At Kalka I swapped trains since the one up to Shimla is a narrow gauge toy train. This carriage wasn't aircon and initially I was fine. But then an Indian man asked if I could swap seats so he could be with his family. No problem, say ...

... teacher was encouraging them and so i stormed off in a huff leaving poor old James surrounded! our last evening we also went to a pub, there are many in Chandigarh, and were in invited to join 3 guys at their table. we joined them and they insisted on paying for all our drinks! they were so nice and were a welcome change from the hassle and usual **** i had just about had enough of! one guy was wearing a turban and his friends were teasing him with cigarettes. he ...

... Indiana Jones and 'Welcome to the Jungle' - not that I've seen either of them but Sandra was suitably amused! We went to the house of a woman called Geeta who works in Raphael, which was an interesting experience. She lives in the poor and very dirty area right next to the dry riverbed (aka rubbish dump), which Raphael is situated above. Despite the skankiness of it all, she was absolutely desperate to treat us well, and it was very embarrassing sitting in their ...

... find a place to finish some writing for a few weeks before the real work begins. The choices are seemingly infinite - any hill station or northern town could be suitable, or any tourist spot on the ranging hippie trail, but I set my sights on the Khullu Valley on the fringe of the Himalayas, towards the borders with Nepal and the treacherous roads leading up to Kashmir. Tales of travelling wretchedness are seldom interesting, not once you've endured too many to ...