Scribbled on a cold silent night - 27.3.2010

Had to beat the sun ! Barely made it, and we drove out of delhi in no time. On the way, the sun lazed out of the slumber. Crossed Ghaziabad, and on to Meerut. An interesting mix of Bullock carts, good looking girls riding Scooty’s, grumpy uncles driving to office, and others crossing the road at leisure. If you haven’t hit a couple of them, you’ve been slow ! Meerut left behind, and past Bijnor. The road got strikingly beautiful here. Smooth as silk and dry leaves scattered all over. Beautiful sight indeed. We arrived in Kotdwar, and finally we got to see the mountains in the horizon.

From Kotdwar, its an upward climb. The usual mountain roads. The Garhwal Himalayas look dry and dusty at this time of the year. An hour and a half later we were in Lansdowne (spelt “Lensdowne” on several of the boards on the way).

We had booked cottages in some “Jungle Resort”, which apparently none of the locals knew about ! We spent another 30 mins trying to find the way to the hotel. We asked 4 locals, and were sent packing in different directions. Finally, my phone managed to grab some odd network from somewhere, and I could call the “Resort” and get the directions.

Not a bad place at all. Quiet, serene, and not crowded. But to reach this place, you will need to drive through the most terrifying terrain ! A narrow winding path, dusty and very scary, and stretches 3 kms ! Finally, when you get to see the Entrance to this place, you’re a very happy man !

Rice, Dal and Kadhai Paneer for lunch, and we were off scouting the nearby area for some photo opportunities. We finally located a “sunset point”. This place is on the edge of a cliff. A nice place where you have a place to sit, and look around. Tall Pine trees all around, and its as peaceful as heaven. Not a sound to be heard, except the wind hurling through the Pine trees. Close your eyes, and you could imagine yourself sitting on a beach and hearing the waves break, forever. I sat there, alone for a while. It felt strange, and I missed my daughter, wanted her to be in my arms, and let the breeze gently brush her cheeks.

Got some interesting shots as I made my way down the slope to another vantage point, some 10 feet below. Interesting patterns, and silhouettes. The sun began to set and some more shots were taken.

KKR vs Kinds XI Punjab in the evening (IPL somehow manages to show up on all my posts). As I am writing this, KKR is playing some good test match cricket ! A nice dinner on the cards, have ordered Kadhai Chicken, Dal and Rice…Hmmmmm ! Will be starting for delhi tomorrow post lunch. A nice break on the whole. But I’m missing a lot of things here, and that includes the mobile phone network, and the Internet (seriously kidding !).