First we went to Kolkata from
Hyderabad. There one day we visited a litchi orchard. It was fun to see the raw fruit green
in colour hanging in flocks from the trees. During my next visit to Kolkata a
fortnight later, I learnt they would be ripe and red and fit to eat.
From Kolkata we travelled by a summer special train which was supposed
to reach Delhi next day at 2 pm but all the staff in the train were vouching it
would be at least 4 hours late. Such is this train's reputation! An uncle came
and took our order for dinner. He told us that dinner would be served between 5
to 6 pm. He also told us an interesting fact about this train-most trains stop
less and move more, but this train is just the opposite.
Just as the train entered
Durgapur, there was a hailstorm. I saw white ice on the station. It was a new
experience for me and I just loved it.
This is really a very special
train which finally reached Delhi Anand Vihar station after an almost 7 hour
delay. We hurriedly took the metro and reached old Delhi station and boarded
the Mussorie Express after a well-deserved dinner at Mcdonalds. If the special
train had been a little more late, we might have missed this train.
The next day after alighting
from the Mussorie Express at Haridwar, we went to Elephant Brook Resort near
Rishikesh. It is a beautiful campsite on the banks of river Hyule, a tributary
of river Ganga .There I had a lovely time wetting my feet in the brook,
watching the trout under the water and eating breakfast in the middle of
nature. In the afternoon we went to Dehradun and the rest of the day was spent
in the hotel resting and readying for the trip to Auli.
Tuesday May 6th we
started for Auli from Dehradun at 8 am. One hour later just as we crossed
Rishikesh, I felt like vomiting. Then my
mother told me a secret by which I could stop the vomiting. I followed it and
for the next ten hours journey to Auli, I was just fine. We finally reached
Auli at 8 in the night. The last part was through thick jungles where Sunil uncle
had spotted a leopard just ten days ago crossing the road. After reaching we
had to walk in the darkness for about fifteen minutes to reach Devi Darshan
Lodge. When Sunil uncle asked if I still wished to see a leopard, I quickly
said “ NO!”
Wednesday we went to Gorson
meadows, first by chair lift and then on horses. At Gorson top, there were
still snow on the mountain and it was fun to play with the snow. With us was a
family from Pune. There were two girls, Kanchi and Saheli and we became friends.
We had a lovely time playing on the snow and sliding down the green slopes.
After a picnic lunch we returned to our lodge and played carom and ludo.
The next day I went with my
mother and Sunil uncle to the site. It had a lovely view of the snow peaks. We then
visited a lovely old house in which lived a lonely old man. We spent quite some
time there and I got a little bored with the non- stop talk.
Finally the time came to
goodbye to Auli. We got back to Haridwar and boarded the train to Jodhpur. The
next morning there was only sand and sand outside the window. We were crossing
the Thar desert.
What a grand holiday! I want
more such holidays. Yeh dil mange more!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
