Weekend Getaway – Shimla

Reposting on #throwbackthursday about our trip to Shimla when we were much younger :)! Guest post by Kapil Sood

View from our hotel room

For 9 to 5ers like us, the travel bug bites us ever so often and then one has to get away. One such time was the summer of 2009 when we decided to head to the hill station of Shimla – an extremely popular, populated, and touristy travel destination in northern India.

So what’s so great about Shimla?

Shimla was established by the Britishers as a summer capital. Unable to handle the famous Indian Summer and wanting to take a break from the looting and plundering, they needed an R ‘n’ R destination. They chose Shimla and connected it to the flatlands by a beautiful ‘Toy Train’ journey that takes about 4-5 hours from Kalka. This train still runs today but getting tickets is impossible. We took a taxi instead.
Today, even with rising temperatures and over-the-top expansion, Shimla still continues to attract summer crowds from Delhi and around.
On my way to Shimla back in 2009, I was confronted boldly by all that I was trying to escape. I saw Dollar Stores proudly selling stuff for more than a dollar, Famous Coffee shops like Cafe Coffee Day and Barista at even the smallest of towns on the way, and of course eateries like Mcdonald’s and Subway. It made me wonder if Shimla had retained any of its original old-world charm or had just let the new world take over.

Mall Road in Shimla

Shimla Church

After a 3-hour car drive, we reached our hotel and settled down. The first place to check out was the happening Mall-Ridge Road. As I had feared, it was full of people and there was some shopping fair going on. Being a woman, Vipula obviously ignored why a shopping fair was not a good thing and jumped into the crowds to shop. We came out buying socks!
Despite the crowds and the modern cafes, Shimla still has old-world charm in the British buildings and it’s not a stretch to imagine life in the days of Raj. If you can ignore the crowds then you can actually enjoy Shimla and see an old world still surviving between the new globalized world.

Most of the British buildings are being used by government offices and so we can’t go inside but from outside you can enjoy the architecture. The one that we loved the most was the Viceroy Lodge that is converted into Centre for Advanced studies.

Things not to do in Shimla

Also, most important thing to do to enjoy Shimla is to avoid taxis. These taxis will show you some fixed touristy points which I find to be complete waste of time.  I personally do not see a point in seeing suicide point unless I am serious about jumping off.

 We pretty much walked everywhere and really enjoyed it too.

Enjoying Shimla

Take walks. Walking through the roads of Shimla is tiring but gives a great chance to enjoy the beauty and some breathtaking views. Hike to Jakhu temple is an excellent way to know how healthy you are. Apparently there is a board on the way that tells you your health status based on time you take to climb. I was fit.

Other must see places are Viceroy Building and other heritage buildings.

Reaching Shimla

You can take a train to Kalka from where you can continue journey in toy train or take a taxi to Shimla. Toy train tickets are difficult to get so you need to book them in at least a month advance.  We travelled from Delhi to Kalka in the Kalka Shatabdi that takes 4 hours and was quite comfortable. There are many Volvo bus services that operate to Shimla. You can check about them at HP tourism website.

Staying at Shimla

I would suggest staying at a hotel that is close to Mall road. Far off hotels also offer free rides to and fro to Mall road so you can try that as well. Do your research before booking a hotel. You will find hotels in all budget ranges so there is not much problem.

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