Dharamshala

Firstly, thanks very much for all the hearts over the last couple of days; I'm afraid I just don't have time to thank you individually at the moment but they are very much appreciated.

Today we have pretty much been travelling.  We travelled from Amritsar to Dharamshala in a convoy of four cars because we were told that the roads weren't good enough for a coach.  Boy, were they right!  The journey was around 120 miles (200 kilometres) but took us eight and a half hours, including a stop for lunch and a couple of comfort breaks.  There is a new road being built for most of the way but the old road is just rubble and stone, so the ride was dreadful.  Quite an experience though!  Dharamshala is a good climb up into the foothills of the Himalayas and the hotel is on the top of a hill, so just before darkness fell we could tell that we had a pretty amazing view from the room.  We're looking forward to seeing it properly in the morning.

Being in the car all day means I have only managed a few photos with my phone either through the car window or on one of the stops.  This one was taken as we arrived at the hotel.  As Dharamshala is the home of the Dalai Lama it seemed appropriate to use Buddha, with a view of the hills in the background, for today's blip.