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| Hotel Peterhof Shimla |
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| Peterhof Lawn View |
We were staying at Hotel Peterhof a HPTDC establishment at Shimla. I had preferred this place for 2 reasons.
First, being away from the hustle and bustle of the market and crowd (4Kms)
Second, because of economy (Rs. 2500 for a twin sharing room), easily accomodating 3 persons
Hotel Peterhoff could have been a great hotel. It had a lot going for it. Great location with stunning views of the lower Himalayas, great architecture which is a mix of British+Himalayan architecture and a beautiful garden with Deodar trees. However, the service was bad.
On further plus side, the rooms were big and spacious and although the rooms and bathrooms do not have the accessories or the luxury associated with big hotels, we overlooked it just because of the history of the place. (At least we did)
In the afternoon, we played cricket in the big lawn of the hotel
Next day, early in the morning, we left for Fagu, a beautiful and exotic hamlet on our way to Narkanda
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| Hotel Apple Blossom |
Fagu
Fagu lies amidst the enchanting mountain ranges of Himalayas and attracts you with its unmatched landscape. It lies at a distance of 6 Km from Kufri and 22 Km from Shimla and it is situated at height of 2,510 above the sea level. Although Fagu is not a major destination, its beauty just can’t elude you. We were struck by magnificent mountains, amazing orchards, nice trekking trails and vast forests.
As we reached by 9 AM, we decided to trek to see nearby interesting places
Banthia Devta Temple
Bantha Devta is the name of the local god in Fagu. It had beautiful wood carving over the surface of the temple.
Katir
we went by car to see this awesome camping site at a distance of 13 Km from Fagu.
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| Morning at Fagu |
Morning at Fagu
The moon was still visible in the sky although the sun had begun spreading its rays across the vast expanse of mountains around me. The Cold winds whirled around as I stood atop a small tableland behind our hotel,
Apple Blossom. A sheer excitement of travelling again to
Narkanda, perhaps woke me early. Ronnie, my grandson was thrilled in anticipation of playing the snow. Being from Delhi, he had never seen it.I looked at the surroundings of
Fagu, its serene ambiance, awesome scenic views... and was lost
NH 22 to
Narkanda was broken in parts but it was okay as we were engrossed in the passing picturesque landscape. Leaving behind
Theog town, we reached
Narkanda by 10 in the morning.
Narkanda
Wow! The picturesque village
was tucked at the height of 2,708 meters commanding a unique view of the eternal snow line and the dense forest. A quaint sleepy hamlet. We had tea at
Hotel Hatu, a Himachal Tourism establishment. Ronnie happened to see few mountain bikes and was insistent on riding one. It had four gears and used on the mountains especially in winter on the snow.
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| Hatu Peak under snow |
Hatu PeakAfter an hour we left for
Hatu Peak, a 8 kms drive from the hotel. I remembered my last visit. Got breathtaking views of the snow clad Himalayas. Two kms before we were stopped, near a pond on route to
Hatu Peak.
The snow had covered the road. Ronnie jumped out from the car and ran on the snow and obvious happened. He slipped and started crying. I laughed and he responded appropriately with being louder and louder and throwing snow balls at me angrily!
We had to trek a uphill distance of 3 Kms on a snow covered road and it was difficult but a thrilling experience. On the top, it was a magnificent view! The rest house, temple and awesome 360 degrees heavenly view! I had a great spiritual peace visiting Hatu temple
We spent about an hour and trekked back to the pond where our car was.
Well, it was a great day with Ronnie fully satisfied. We returned by evening and went straight to
Shimla, a 3 hours journey for our dinner. In Shimla, took a
mechanical lift to go to the Mall Road,
from the road, some thing unique for a Hill town in India.
Dinner
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| Dinner at Shar-e Punjab, Shimla |
We had a great dinner at
"Sher-E-Punjab" restaurant and enjoyed
"Chicken Makhani" (Boneless Butter Chicken),
"Bhrvan Baigan" (spices stuffed eggplant) and
"Tandoori Butter Roti". Hotel bookingsUpdated Post of 14/ 05/2009