Father of India

Part of a 2 week holiday back blip starting here on October 14th...

Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of India, a man famed for his compassion and his non-violence, a man imbued with a sense of humanity that very few of us could ever begin to imagine. And I've managed to make him look evil.

Back into the hills, away from the humidity of the plains, warmth in the sun during the day and a coolness to the air in the evenings. Time to relax again. A lot ess hassle than further south in the flatlands, though more so than we had in Darjeeling. And it's hard not to compare this place to Darjeeling. Both up in the mountains, both with views of the Himalayas, both accessed by winding 'Toy Trains'.

It's maybe unfair to compare, but we still preferred Darjeeling. That's not to say Shimla wasn't great, but the people seemed more welcoming in the east, the views of the mountains were a little clearer and more spectacular, and the Toy Train itself was more interesting winding through towns and over roads, whereas the ride to Shimla was more straightforward on this version of the train.

Shimla is also well known for its monkeys. They are EVERYWHERE, and a bit of a menace to boot. 10 minutes into my first wander and I'd seen one threaten a lady walking down the street. Oh, and 'down' is the right word, as would be 'up'. This place is precipitous in the extreme. We'll be combining the gradients and simians the following day by climbing to the Jakhu Temple, a temple created for the monkey god Hanuman...