Mcleodganj-A city close to my heart!

Mcleodganj, fondly called “The Little Lhasa” of India due to a huge population of Tibetans- I can attest for, also was the residing place of the 14th Dalai Lama. But my reason to visit this city was completely different.

On 17th July, upon reaching Mcleod bus stop(from Delhi) at about 6 am we noticed it had started to drizzle lightly. Worry settled in regarding being able to check into the hotel at such early hours as we had reached way earlier than our scheduled arrival. But our anxiety dissipated the moment we looked out and took in the city with its scintillating beauty.Oh! it was so serene with its narrow roads bending this way and that, lined with pine trees on one side and mountainous rocks on the other. Rolling my window down I felt the breeze that brought drops of water with them. In that moment, I knew that this city could never fail anyone.

Tip one: better rent a scooter for internal transportation(you can ask any local there) and not make the same mistake we all made by choosing to go by cabs to every-which place because they have a fixed rate for every destination which is equivalent to 100 Rs for every 2 km. Never the less we didn’t spend much on traveling by cabs or rickshaws as every now and then we preferred to walk. And as the weather was pleasant or more than just pleasant, (I just couldn’t keep a check on my happy hormones) it permitted long strolls without exhaustion. Our first half of the day went in doing what we were all best at-SLEEPING!

We had chosen Mcleod keeping in mind that it had small quirky cafes (source: Insta), a city which provided everything from- peace of mind to discovering small joys of life and basically a place that allowed us our own time to explore its hidden gems.

Waking up at around 4 pm(!) we started feeling hungry and we stepped out of our hotel and headed towards a cafe called Illiterati Books & Coffee- one of my favorite kinds, where I am able to read and even eat lip-smacking food(which they delivered quite well).

This cafe had such powerful vibes, they were hard to ignore! The entire cafe had glass windows and doors which were kept open to give it an airy outlook and it felt as if clouds were whispering in our ears. Small buildings were seen through the open doors and windows with a backdrop of mountains half covered in clouds. And as we adjusted our sight from the spectacular view we discovered that the cafe even provided many different board games which kept us busy for a while. And the moment our food arrived- a spread of Arrabbiata pasta, Jalapeno cheese poppers and lemon iced tea everyone just seemed to forget the game and attacked the food!

The moment I was done hogging on the food I noticed 3 monks praying in a house just in front of the cafe (above picture). I was so stumped that something so simple could mesmerize me and make me ponder upon life being very easy but nonetheless, we always try to complicate it. And as I just stared at this scene unfolding in front of me for several ticking seconds, the colors of the sky started changing from sky blue to orange and then finally a shade of the darkest blue with millions of sparkling white dots embedded in it. A sense of belonging spread all over my body. That is what this city does to you.

Incidentally, we were the last ones to leave the cafe at around 9:30 pm.We resigned to our beds with a full heart and stomach.

Mornings are always the best in Mcleod and it doesn’t take long to figure that out. On the next day, though it was raining, through the gray of the sky, I could still see the city’s unparallel beauty.

The above picture is a personalized map a friend jotted down for us. And as we were already staying on the Bhagsunag road we decided to walk it out to Bhagsu Falls. On our way to the Falls, we encountered many small souvenir shops, desi boutiques selling all hippie clothes and much more.

The sound of water gushing down greeted us even before we could see the Falls. There was a cobbled pathway right up to the top of the waterfall. And cobbled pathways have always had a special place in my heart simply due to how other-worldly they look. It was a small hike but a very scenic one.The stones were quite slippery due to rains and my crocs had a difficult time finding a strong footing. All kinds of people from all over the world were there to witness the Bhagsu Falls.One such couple was visiting Mcleod with their newborn in a pram on the father’s back. This particular baby kept on smiling whenever we looked at him and it was the cutest gesture ever given out by babies.

As we reached the top of the Falls the road bifurcated into two and the latter one went up to Shiva Cafe. The way up was through domes of climbers and vines entwined together and then voila-there it was a small house covered in moss and paintings of Krishna with Radha. 

As we walked towards the backside we saw that there were many random paintings done on flat stones and they adorned the Shiv Murti that was kept in the middle. It was a very unexpected setup for a cafe.

It was a hub for smokers but also for people who were looking for an offbeat place with good food! Interior of the cafe was decorated with paintings of-sayings by famous men, age old bands, and singers. This cafe had a range of cuisines – all from Indian, Israeli, Mexican to Italian. But if you ever plan on visiting this place do try their veg. enchiladas.We didn’t expect much out of it but as we put the first morsel in our mouths it just melted, it was so creamy that we couldn’t resist at all.

Meanwhile, the rain had stopped and the sun was shining, causing the rays to bounce off the water droplets all over the cobbled steps sparkling on every stone as if it were a diamond.As we neared the end of the steps we could see the city again and it looked so surreal that for a moment I wished I could settle there itself with 15-20 kids and grow old (it’s too big a number-but a girl can dream can’t she?). “What’s up with me and Himalayan cities! I always end up feeling like this. And they undoubtedly are very pretty and dreamy that I can’t help but feel attached to them”.

When we passed the souvenir shops- where they were selling dream catchers, a particular one caught my eye.  It was woven in the form of the Evil Eye-the blue colored talisman originated from Turkey. And when I asked the price I was mildly surprised because it was quite cheap as compared to what we get in our metropolitan cities nowadays.It was just 120 rupees for a medium-sized dream catcher- a good deal.

As we reached the main square it was packed with monks in their saffron robes coming out of the Buddhist temples walking about the streets. Again there were more shops and even kiosks selling different Tibetan trinkets like neck pieces, anklets, wind chimes etc. in abundance. For dinner, we again went to a cafe (well I made everyone go to cafes- as you have already seen that I am obsessed with cafes) which was overlooking the Dhauladhar range of mountains and even the small kiosks.

As we neared the end I felt more and more uncomfortable. We were debating between not wanting to leave this place and continuing with our further plans to another city. But reasoning won and we decided to carry on with our plans and leave this city with a heavy heart. It had won our hearts over with its beauty and I decided that I’ll visit this city once again in the future come what may!