The long journey to Shimla

I woke up at 2.09am! With my alarm set for 4.25am, needless to say, I couldn't get back to sleep. So, I was in plenty of time to lug my case up 60 steps and a very steep hill (slowly!), to meet Ramesh on the road at 5.10am 😀.

He was five minutes early, and we made the trip down to Dharamshala bus station in very quick time. As we passed through Mcleod Ganj, there were hundreds of monks walking up the hill from the Dalai Lama Temple. Goodness knows where they were going at such an early hour!

Ramesh dropped me off at the very bleak bus station. The café was open, but sadly they didn't do coffee. We set off just 5 minutes later than scheduled, which I believe is pretty good for India. I was one of only 4 passengers, but that soon changed. In effect, I was on a service bus, so we stopped every five minutes throughput the eight-hour journey for people to get on and off. I was soon regretting having booked an 11-hour journey with the same company on Sunday. I was soon Googling for alternatives. It appears there are none, so I'll be looking into the cost of a private transfer!

The journey was very slow and the poor suspension meant that it wasn't that comfortable either! It took me a good few hours to get warm, despite the fact that there was full sun almost as soon as dawn broke. Am I moaning too much? Probably! 😀

The second half of the journey was worse than the first. We were climbing up and down very winding mountain roads. Whenever he could get his foot down, the driver was overtaking at breakneck speed on blind bends. We were being thrown around all over the place. It felt like I was in a washing machine! I really thought I was going to throw up. The child behind me did!! 

When I caught glimpses of the scenery, it was spectacular. I couldn't take any photos, though, as, apart from the bumpy conditions, there were bars across all of the windows!

Eventually, nine hours after setting off, we arrived at Shimla bus station. I went to the taxi rank to organise transport to my hotel, only to discover that my accommodation is located deep within the 'no taxi' zone of Shimla. The best they could do would be to drop me off a 15-minute walk away. I was annoyed because the hotel hadn't mentioned this, and nor had any of the reviews, which made me doubt their veracity.

Anyway, I had no choice, so I took a taxi to the police checkpoint and walked from there. Now, a 15-minute walk doesn't sound too bad, but I am halfway up a mountain and have to go further up with all my luggage. The hotel proved to be very elusive. I asked several people if they knew where it was - they all sent me in different directions! By the time I finally found it, I'd walked for over half an hour 😃.

Typically, there were lots of steep steps up to reception. I struggled up there and struggled again to get the door open, to find three guys huddled round a one-bar electric fire engrossed in a cartoon on the TV! They were not a bit interested in me or my complaints about the lack of information on how to find the place. One of them managed to drag himself away from the TV to check me in. He showed me to a freezing cold and very damp room. It did have balloons decorating the ceiling, though, so what did I have to complain about? 😃 

I asked if there was another room. He said no, they were completely full. He then told me that he'd given my 'real room' to someone who had arrived earlier than me. I'd got the worst room because I was the last to arrive!! I pointed out that there was no shower! He hurried off and came back with a shower attachment that he screwed on. I said again that I wasn't happy about the damp. I know I stay in budget accommodation, but this place was more than twice the price of where I'd just come from, and yet it was 100 times worse! He said all he could do was offer me a heater. I agreed. When he brought it, I realised that it was the one he and his mates had been using in reception. That explained why he was so annoyed, but I wasn't going to back down! When he 'plugged' it in, I realised he was putting bare wires into the socket, so I told him it wasn't acceptable. He went away and came back with a plug and a screwdriver. He then tried to charge me an extra 500 rupees a day for the heater. Needless to say, I refused!

Once he'd gone, I was already plotting my way out of there. My first impressions of Shimla hadn't been that good, and my plans to book a ticket for the toy train from Shimla to Kalka had come to nothing (unable to book online, couldn't do the trip in one day, etc). So, I've decided that I'll see what I can in Shimla tomorrow and then leave for Rishikesh the following day, a day earlier than planned. I've also decided to book a private transfer. It's costing me 8000 rupees (£65), but I'm sure it'll be worth it!

With that decided, I went out to get something to eat. I found a Chinese-owned hut and had a bowl of delicious chicken noodles. Feeling better, warmer, but shattered, I headed back to the hotel for an early night. There, the guy from earlier told me he had, miraculously, a better room for me and insisted that I should see it, even though I said I couldn't be bothered to move. The room was the same as the one I'm in, minus the damp wall. I know if I agreed, I wouldn't get to keep the heater, so I refused. He really wasn't happy and told me he'd gone out of his way to help me. I said it was his fault because he'd lied to me about not having any other rooms. On the way back downstairs, it all got a bit Basil Fawlty when he grabbed my arm and knocked on another door to introduce me to the woman who had my room! It was very awkward and more than a bit weird!Read more