Kullu -Manali Travelogue

"A good traveller has no fixed plan and is not intent on arriving" said Lao Tzu. I think the more you travel, the more you get passionate about it. This time me and Himanshu packed our bags and decided to visit Kullu, Manali and surrounding areas. Having your own car is no doubt an added advantage, you not only save some excitement but even som time. It took us seven hours in all to reach Manali, our first destination. Having started off late in the morning, we reached there by night and unpacked our bags at Snowcrests Manor, a warm traditional hotel with modern facilities.

It was next day, that we started for Hadimba temple which is 1.5 kms from Manali. Built in 1553 A.D by Raja Bahadur Singh, the temple is dedicated to Goddess Hadimba, the wife of Bhima. The temple has a four-tiered pagoda shaped roof with a doorway carved with mythical symbols and figures on wooden block. The carving here is unparalled in art and this is one temple that speaks for itself. Later on, we drove to Rohtang Pass (3978 mtrs) which is one of the most popular tourist destinations which generally opens in the month of May or June, being closed the rest of the months due to heavy snow and inaccessible road. Our next destination was Nehru Kund, 6 kms from Manali.The name of the place is associated with Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru as this was one of his favourite places. One can enjoy the crystal clear cold water gushing out from the hard rocks, though the beauty of place has been devastated during the major floods in 1995. After enjoying the scenic view, we went on to Kothi, which lies 15 kms from Manali. The place has rich beauty surrounding it, with the ups and down of landscape making it all the more enchanting. Our next stop was Gulaba, 20 Kms from Manali. Gulaba has picturesque beauty and is calm, you won't find many people here and the large variety of wild flowers can excite anyone. An ideal place for picnic, we also begun our trek to Brighu lake from here.

On reaching Marhi, 35 kms from Manali, we ate at a dhaba. One can enjoy food and drinks here as a number of dhabas mark the place and lush green grass and flowers are unmatchable. Romance on the white sheet of snow and make your holiday unforgettable. Finally reaching Rohtang Pass, we explored onto find a wide range of precipitious cliffs, high glaciers, piled moraines and deep ravines. Late at night, we checked into Quality Inn River Country resorts, another awesome resort with a staff that welcomed us with a smile.

Next day we begun our trail to the Tibetan Monastery, which is within a walking distance from Mall. The pent roofed Buddhist monastery, the mighty image of Gautam Buddha and some exquisite Tangkhas gives you a kind of mental peace and it was the first time, I personally understood the call of a monk life. One can also buy carpets and Tibetan handicrafts here, which are famous worldwide. Our next stop was at the Vashisht hot water springs. The village here is assoaciated with the vashisht Muni and its believed that the epic hero Laxman had fired an Agni Baan on ground from where hot water sulphur spring gushed out. The water is believed to cure acne diseases. Soon, we found out our way to Naggar, a plac where you see divine nature. Naggar was province of Kullu during the reign of Raja Jagar Singh in the 17th Century .In 1860, the capital was shifted to Sultanpur. The Naggar castle, built by Raja Bhosal is now an HPTDC hotel. Our visit ended with Nicholas Roerich art gallery, a landmark of Kullu. The gallery exhibits some of his paintings and in itself presents a scenic ambeince to relax and mould yourself into the world of imagiation and art.