It was almost six months that I hardly travelled anywhere. And for an extrovert like me, travelling was a necessity. My nights were sleepless, and needless anxiety for bothering me. Suddenly, I had a call from a friend, and he asked me to accompany him on a trip into the woods. This group had two more boys who were completely a stranger to me.
I had a lot of questions in my mind, “Shall I go?” or “should I stop?” Then the Minnie me said, “What kind of extrovert traveller are you if you can’t adjust to an unknown group?” The Minnie me advised to stop gender prejudicing and think beyond it. So, I decided to join the group and begin my journey to Mussorie, the queen of hills.
It’s a No without these documents!
Before going to Uttarakhand, we require a few enlisted documents now without which we will not be allowed to enter Uttarakhand.
A COVID Negative report ( Computerized)
An E-Pass by Uttrakhand Government
Even if we have all these documents, taking tokens in Roorkee and Dehradun Bypass is also a part of the procedure.
TIP: The token counter in Roorkee is crowded, and starting the journey in the morning is suggested.
An Unknown Route
The road trip was going well when we heard about the landslide on the route. The curious guys with me decided to find an alternative way and took a U-turn towards the Kimari route.
TIP: The route is a little confusing, be careful with the turn else you will be back to the place where you started.
Sharing a room with boys
I never went on a trip with the boys, where I was the only girl. After sharing a room with them, I could easily relate to Kangana from the movie, "Queen". Opposite genders have a different thought process, their ways of enjoying are different, and their conversations are poles apart from that of girls. I had a separate bed, and most of the time, I was observing their activities.
TIP: Keep the gender prejudice aside. It is okay to share a room with boys. Consider them normal humans like you.
Into the woods
Due to the pandemic, there was not too much hustle in Mussoorie. The air was clean and pious, and I could feel it closing my eyes.
TIP: Rent a scooter for Rs. 500 per day to explore the narrow streets of Mussoorie.
Around Library Chowk
The misty days and the twinkling lights in and around the Library Chowk are spellbound, which one should not miss.
Towards Landour
It was pouring, and those tears of happiness were kissing my cheeks. The drenched roads were like a mirage of undiscovered paths.
What to eat?
If you are a budget traveller like me and have a taste for North Indian Cuisine then I will suggest you the enlisted places :
My new learnings
Every journey is learning, and so this was. I learned a lot of things from the locals and my travel buddies.
During the hike to George Everest, I saw a lady learning using her mobile phone. This thing was an inspiration and a perfect example of management with limited resources.
The other thing which I learned was the savvy bargaining skills from my travel buddies.
“The best kind of walk, and this applies to the plains as well as to the hills, is the one in which you have no particular destination when you set out.”
― Ruskin Bond, Roads to Mussoorie
Been to Mussoorie so many times, but on family trips only. Never on an exploratory trip like you. I stand educated!
Dil khush Blog😍