“So, where do you want to go this time?” asked Dev on a scorching summer evening while he regulated the AC from 26 to 24 degrees.
“Maybe a new place this time,” I replied after gulping down half a bottle of water in a go.
“I might want to explore some new treks, or jungle trails, old temples, some new cafés. I don’t know, we’ll see when the time comes.”
This is the summer of 2022- a fresh new hell in Delhi when the mercury hit 40 even before May. Humans getting impatient and restless; Traffic getting unbearable; cars burning, plants wilting…and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The anticipation of what will happen in May-June- Now, that’s what was killing people.
Almost every year (barring the two dreadful Covid years), I have been travelling to Himachal during summers or even post-summer.
There are two types of travel that I indulge into:
- Discovering a new destination, sight-seeing, exploring, and adding one more place to my “done” list
- Visiting the same place again just to relive the good memories, still exploring something new, spend some time in peace and comfort
So when Dev asked me where I wanted to go, I obviously had both options in my mind. I knew I had to go to the hills, with a minimum temperature difference of 15-20 degrees from Delhi! I also didn’t want to see a new place without Dev being able to. So where would I go? The answer was clear and simple for me!
“Go ahead, reenergise yourself, get your calm back and we can do a new place some other time,” Dev chuckled as he knew where I was headed already!
I booked the HPTDC bus tickets the very same night and dropped a message to Ranju about my dates. That night I slept with a smile on my face. Old Manali, here I come again!
1. Love At First Sight
There was a small café in Old Manali (which has now moved to Hadimba Temple Road) called Bean & Gone. A few years back when I was enjoying their delicious coffee and a sandwich, the owner was telling another Israeli customer, “We have a saying here. Ek baar aapne Manali ka paani pi liya toh baar baar ana padega”. On translating it roughly (which is, “if you drink Manali’s water once, you will visit here repeatedly”), the Israeli girls joked, “But we don’t drink Manali’s water anyway. We only drink bottled mineral water”.
The point is, the saying holds totally true for me. Ever since I visited Manali for the first time in 2010, I’ve been repeatedly revisiting. The first two times, I was a pakka tourist, doing all the sightseeing and completing the checklist. Until I got introduced to the charms of Old Manali.
The moment you cross the bridge on the Manalsu river and enter Old Manali, it’s a different world altogether. You meet more locals than tourists, the stays are more to my liking, the market has cool cafés with good music and coffee, food is better (cheaper and fresher Trouts), the ambiance is chill. The trick is, the more you walk inside Old Manali (or in other words, away from New Manali!), less touristy are the vibes. And hence, more desirable for me. I got hooked instantly.
People I Stay With
Speaking of stays, one of the major lures for me is the Apple View Guesthouse. Rabet Ram Thakur and his family have been running this place since 1994 and they have become like my own family over the years. I have seen the toddlers grow into big girls, shared drinks with Rabet Ram in the evening coupled with his never-ending interesting local stories, found a friend in beautiful Ranju (Rabet’s DIL) who keeps chatting while working on her loom machine or washing clothes; whether I visit with family or travel solo, I know I have a home where I can relax, spend quality time with good people, write or read in peace with stunning backgrounds.
Noise-free, pollution-free (of any kind), market accessibility if you’re willing to climb up and down the hill (which I don’t mind, in fact, that’s one of the reasons behind its peace & serenity), and bottomless warmth! Delectable home-cooked meals and endless teas/coffees just a holler away from the balcony- I know I don’t need more.
Little Far From Humans, Much Closer To Nature
The lesser ventured trails amidst a forest, unnamed hilly creeks, the smell of pine in the air and occasional chirps of Himalayan black bulbul, mountain magpies or fork-tailed swifts, and sometimes giggles from Himachali belles on their way to collect wood from the jungle- what sounds like a page from an exotic travelogue, is basically just another Tuesday for me!
During my entire stay at Old Manali, I wander around the villages looking for routes that take me into a forest. Whether my quick morning happy run– or a long trek to the breathtaking Jogini Falls, I always take the jungle route. At one point before reaching Bahang, there are two rickety wooden “bridges” (if you can call them that!) over the Beas River. The flow of Beas here is inversely proportional to the sturdiness of the bridge. Or so it seems. On my very first encounter with this marvel of a bridge, I observed a local Himachali couple clutching onto each other nervously crossing it and heaved a big sigh of relief upon reaching the other side. You can imagine the drop of confidence I felt after witnessing that! I crossed it anyway with shaky feet. The sound of the raging Beas doesn’t help either as any assurance. Watch this video:
Having said that, I’ve never missed a chance to visit the same forest, cross the same rickety bridges with my shaky feet or simply sit by the unnamed creek and listen to the birds ever since.
Happy Birthday Hadimba
Every year roughly around 13-16 May, the whole town celebrates its biggest festival of the year, the Dungri Mela. Manali being the birthplace of Hadimba Devi, the festival is in its grandest on the Hadimba Temple premises. There are large processions where Himachali men dressed in traditional outfits, carry huge palanquins of Gods and Goddesses to a common platform. They dance and sing in circles for hours to the tunes of pipes and beats of drums wearing vibrant floral headgears. Since it’s a “Mela” (or fair) there are games, giant wheels that overlook the mountains, sweet and jewellery shops, and all kinds of fun stuff that you indulge in while being on a fair! Beautiful Himachalis dress up in their bests and the entire place just brightens up. This festival is yet another reason I plan my trips during May. The vibrancy of the festival adds the perfect amount of balance to the calm and quiet mountain vibes.
And this year the Hadimba Mela was way more exciting and fun for me. I asked Ranju to let Rishika (her 8-year-old daughter accompany me to the Mela). Rishika was obviously too excited with the proposal and just kept praying, her mom lets her go with me. At around 2:00 PM, Rishika came running to my room bearing good news with an ear-to-ear smile! We were ready for the Mela fun! We stopped and shopped at almost every stall buying gifts for ourselves and others; shared an ice cream and Bhutta (roasted corn) and even earned some goodies at the “aiming rings” counter. I couldn’t have spent this year’s festival in any better way!
Travel Local With The Locals
Why do we travel to any place that’s far from home? To see, know, learn and experience something new, right? And I feel, the best way to do that is to talk to the locals as much as possible. Take public transport instead of a taxi to visit a nearby temple, castle, or any major spot. Walk around aimlessly and ask the locals for faster directions instead of Google maps. Personally, I’ve learned about new and untouched routes to visit any particular spot only from the locals.
Walk to the Manali Bus Stand and pick any bus to Kullu or Mandi. Get down at a random location, wander about the nearby village, find some local joint to eat lunch, then again walk to the bus stand to get back. And when you’re travelling alone, you won’t believe how helpful people can be. All you have to do is talk to them and get comfortable. Also, you can always make new friends with fellow travellers to make your journey all the more interesting.
If you’re feeling like taking a longer trip, there are buses to Keylong, Sundernagar, or Reykongpeo. Plan and research a little ahead, and then take the bus to any of the towns. They are all gorgeous anyway!
People often ask me, “Why do I go to the same place again and again?” I tell them, “the same reason you visit your family or friend’s place again and again!” It’s true. The feeling is exactly the same. Sure I love exploring new destinations and make sure I travel to at least one new place every year.
But as far as Old Manali is concerned, it feels quite like home to me. My comfort nook; I feel exhilarated and come back regenerated every time.
It’s not a travel plan for me. It’s a spiritual detox.
All images are clicked by Alakananda Bhattacharya
Amazingly written I must say! It feels like a lifelike storytelling session from a friend. And agree with so many things you said about going back to the same place to re-live memories and make new ones. I have not been to Old Manali and reading this and watching the videos made me feel like as If I am already there. I so want to wander around the forest now and listen to the roaring Beas. Also, you have given such good tips about travelling/travelling solo. Keep up the good work. Eagerly waiting for your next piece