Hey Guys!!! I was a little bit bored this time. Why not share an experience when I travelled last time. I am writing this blog, so I can stay inspired to travel till the situation gets normal. Before starting, let me tell you about myself. My name is Bindiya Arora. I am a young independent girl and love to travel. You can say travelling is my passion. Even though by profession, I am a destination expert also. I am a nature lover and love to explore hilly terrains. I cannot travel to any destination in this pandemic. So I am sharing an unlock trip to Manali. Let us take a ride and blow your mind.
AN ESCAPE TO MANALI
This trip is not just a simple travel experience for me. It was more like that unlocking from the hustle-bustle of this metropolitan lifestyle and Covid-19 of Delhi. So, I, along with my three friends had started our journey towards Manali in December 2020. We booked a Volvo that was waiting for us at Majnu ka Tilla, Delhi. We are ready to take a ride to an unlock trip to Manali after the Covid – 19 pandemic. Our journey started, and we did a lot of leg-pulling and enjoyed the sweet memories of our past. The bus continued along its way and bearing sharp turns every other minute, and I saw a beautiful yet scary face of nature that was welcoming me at the same time narrow roads and deep valleys were thrilling us.
AN UNLOCK TRIP TO MANALI: DAY ONE
After a long and tiring journey, we reached the Manali Bus Stop at 10 O’clock the next day. A peaceful town located amidst the Aanchal of the Himalayas. Manali had everything it hunted to grab someone beautiful. So that’s why we decided on an unlock trip to Manali we can get a perfect getaway. In this case, the indefinite pronoun was a city where our shoes had just stepped in. Our driver was already there to pick up and drop at the hotel. After reaching the hotel, we were all refreshed.
A WALK TOWARDS MALL ROAD AND JOGINI FALLS
The Mall Road and Jogini Waterfalls were waiting for us. Although, our hotel was almost a 7 km ride from Mall road. I got an idea that we can walk there as it is only 7 kilometres. We started trekking to reach mall road, but one of my friends was tired after a kilometre, but Komal and I were busy with our photoshoot. You might be aware of how photogenic the girls are. Aww!!! Our legs were crying like we can not handle it anymore after covering almost 5 kilometres. Later on, we catch an auto to reach Jogini falls. Jogini Falls is situated on the Northern edge of Vashisht Village and marks the village boundary. The waterfall descends from a height of approx 150 feet through multiple levels.
JOGINI FALLS
After reaching Jogini falls, now it was time to trek for almost 2 km again. Jogini Falls Trek is one of the best short treks near Manali. The trek route passes through a narrow lane alongside the Vashisht temple and continues through apple orchards, tall pine trees, and small water streams. A few restaurants and guest houses are also available on the way. A gentle walk will take 1 hour to reach the base of the waterfall. In December, a lot of snow was there. We enjoyed playing in the snow. One of our friends was so scared of walking in the snow. Stop being such a spineless bugger! We were on an unlock trip to Manali so everything was unexpected.
After reaching the base of Jogini Falls, we sat in front of the falls and enjoyed the natural beauty. The whole trek route was very scenic over beautiful villages aligned with the sprawling valleys. It was one of the best short treks in Manali to enjoy the local scenic beauty and village life in the Himalayas. Manali is famous for this natural beauty, and we felt the same after reaching the falls. We found a lot of groups over there from different parts of the world. Now, there was a time to fill our hungry bellies. If you are a Delhite, You might be fond of Momos and Maggi. So, we ate delicious momos and the world-famous Maggi. Momos were so delicious that I never ate that kind of Momos throughout my life. Therefore, I got to know why this was an unlock trip to Manali.
THE MALL ROAD OF MANALI
Now it was time for Manali famous Mall Road. The night view of mall road was mesmerizing. It was a Christmas night and additional snowfall, and I do not even have words to elaborate on it. The Christmas Party of Manali was very famous all over the world. The mall road was full of the crowd from various regions of the world. I clicked a lot of snaps over there.
The night was so chilling you can imagine that the temperature was almost one degree Celsius at that time in Manali. We roamed over there for a while. The mall road was full of local souvenirs and handicrafts. Therefore, we found some interesting stuff and bought some souvenirs as the Manali memories. We returned to the hotel after a long and memorable day. Now we needed blazing fire to counter the chilling night. In the hotel, we enjoyed the fire. There was also a medical college group in the hotel, and those students were so astonishing. The night was chilling, and the crowd was young. We enjoyed it so much together at an almost negative 12-degree temperature.
AN UNLOCK TRIP TO MANALI: DAY TWO
We woke up early in the morning. The Solang Valley and the Atal Tunnel were waiting for us. We hired a cab, and the driver’s name was Rangeela even, his personality paired with his name. Solang Valley derives its name from the amalgam of two words like Solang (Nearby village) and Nallah (water stream). It is a side valley at the top of the Kullu Valley in Himachal Pradesh, India a 14 km northwest of the resort town Manali on the way to Rohtang Pass and is known for its summer and winter sport conditions.
THE TRAGEDY OF MY LIFE
Oh, our bad luck! On the way to the Atal tunnel, we were stuck in a traffic jam. There was a good thing that there was a lot of snow. I had never seen snow in my life before that. We all went and enjoyed playing in the snow. Alas! When I took the first step over the snow. I slipped away, and my nose was injured. I was faint at that moment. All of my friends were scared, and I was not conscious. One of the strangers gave me CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) treatment then I came into my consciousness. Thanks to the stranger!
ATAL TUNNEL: THE LONGEST TUNNEL
After all this, now, it was time for the Atal Tunnel. We headed towards it with our favourite, Rangeela. It is the longest highway tunnel in the world. The strategically important tunnel is 9.02 km long, and it connects Manali to Lahaul-Spiti valley throughout the year. The valley was earlier cut off for about six months every year due to heavy snowfall. When you cross the Atal tunnel, then you realize you will come to heaven. The natural beautiful scenic view after passing the longest Atal Tunnel. I can’t even explain to you in a word what I felt after observing the beautiful sight. It was a feeling of blowing your mind to all nature lovers. I would suggest you should go once in life in winters only.
SISSU VILLAGE: THE LAST VILLAGE OF INDIA
There is a Sissu village known for its beauty and located in the Lahaul Valley on the banks of the Chandra waterway in Himachal Pradesh. Walking into the Sissu Village means watching heaven and the last village of Himachal Pradesh. The distance of this village from Manali is about 40 kilometres. Our favourite Rangeela Bhaiya was an astonishing driver and took us to the Jammu and Himachal Border. The view took away my breath for a second, although, I cannot explain it in words. It was like a dream come true after observing this beautiful view. I was thinking about my childhood when I went to Manali in the winter and felt that view. It was also like a dream come true after crossing the Atal tunnel. We spent almost two hours in the snow and had a lot of masti with my friends. I was no more surprised why should I call it an unlock trip to Manali.
STARVING LIKE HELL
After a while, now it was time to leave this heaven. We returned, but again we got stuck in a traffic jam. OOPS!!! However, It was not a regular traffic jam. We had been stuck in that traffic jam for eight hours. We were starving like hell and roamed around looking for some food. So we can fill our hungry bellies. Alas! Everyone told us that no food was available. We could not control this hunger and no option left. So, we started walking to look for food. After walking approx 5 km, we found something to eat in Solang Valley. We ate Maggie over there and felt some good after starving so long.
At that time, I found a new stranger with a cute smile. He was so good looking and dashing. I even got flat on him after a glance. Have you ever heard of love at first sight? You can say that I was like that damn. Ohh! He was also from Delhi. Irony! We never met again till now.
THE SIZZLING NIGHT IN MANALI
After a long and memorable day, we returned to the hotel. We were so tired, but we were on a travel plan. How could you think of sleeping? Did you remember that medical college group? They were still there to accompany. I got a chance to meet someone special in this group. His name is Chakshu. He is a very innocent and cool guy and still in contact. This time was to do more masti and get high in your world. We had a lot of fun, even though we felt like time was running equivalent to Usain Bolt.
When I looked at my watch, it was already 3 am in the early morning. The night was so chilling, and the crowd was young. We had a good time flirting with each other. I do remember we even had a night walk at a -14° C temperature. We were starving, and we got an idea, especially from someone special, Chakshu, why we should cook Maggie for all. We cooked Maggie using the hotel kitchen without knowing the hotel staff from 4 am-midnight and had a lot of fun together. I wish I could live those days again.
RETURNING HOME: DAY THREE
I woke up in the morning and straight away went to the reception for tea. I met with the medical college group again and went on a morning walk with Chakshu and Pulkit. So, it was time to check out from the hotel and back to the hustle-bustle of the metropolitan city. They checked out from the hotel, and after a while, we also checked out from the hotel. We grabbed our luggage and went for a ride to explore the mall road. However, when it was time to take the bus, we got so late. The bus had already left from there. Oh, Damn, God! What is this Blunder!!! Hurry Up, Guys!!! We had to catch that bus. We hired an auto to take a bus, and after having so much trouble. Thank God! Finally, we did it.
In the end, I only want to say that an unlocked trip to Manali was so memorable for me. I met so many strangers over there, made new friends, a lot of snow, and my lot of dreams came true. I saw heaven on the earth as Walking into the Sissu Village means watching Paradise was my favourite spot and a lot of fun on this unlocking trip to Manali.
Thanks for Reading!!!
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Story By: Bindiya Arora