The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Wow.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 10,000 times in 2010. That’s about 24 full 747s.

In 2010, there were 12 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 15 posts. There were 268 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 45mb. That’s about 5 pictures per week.

The busiest day of the year was April 16th with 240 views. The most popular post that day was First Internation Cricket Stadium in Himachal Hosting Two IPL Matches.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were himachalhotels.in, facebook.com, bestwwwoffers.com, en.wordpress.com, and WordPress Dashboard.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for himachal pradesh map, kullu, himachal map, himachal pradesh, and manali.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

First Internation Cricket Stadium in Himachal Hosting Two IPL Matches March 2010
13 comments

Splurge a Magnetic Honeymoon at Kullu Manali the Most Beautiful Hill Stations January 2010
9 comments

Memoirs of my Winter Holidays in Himachal December 2009
13 comments

Exotic Low-Priced Fantastic Travel Destinations in Himachal January 2010
13 comments

My Epiphany in Rugged Snow Peaks of Sangla Valley January 2010
23 comments

Have a look at some
Click to view slideshow.

wet pine forest

Misty Dalhousie

Singing Peak

way to the Chuch

wood carved table

Today when my wife flaunt that beautiful Chamba Shawl on occasions, or when my friend come over and praise wood carved table, we genuinely smile in our hearts and remember a special trip to Dalhousie.

Himachal-Pradesh-Map

Much need solace from the impossible tangles of laden work and dreading heat. Arms thrown out as I trod myself in happiness, why? I am on an odyssey where mountain kissingly embraces the gushing clouds. My mission 20 days of tranquil in my joy ride the ford endeavor, reclaim the energetic me, food tasting and diversifying the noesis of this rustic land’s culture. The smell of early morning wet earth welcomes the monsoon, as I land in the queen of hills Shimla. Oversize dust colored phirans wearing men charm you with there innocence as you enter Shimla. The architectural building seemed like

Kinnaur

noe-gothic, the deodar forests draped in wet blanket and to all the shop spree lover hit the Mall Road. Yummy food like delicacies consisting rajama, mushroom do payaza of Baljee’s and hand baked pastries of Krishna bakery.

Heading to Kinnaur track are a bit drenched on NH22, but who’s complaining when Satluj is flowing mere 2km away from the road. From Karcham I took a heart stopping road that led me to Sangla valley, my night halt. I took more time to reach why, replete on the way had tantalised

Rajma Chawal

my taste bud. Halted for another day where I visited recong peo, kinner kalash and chitkul. Gorged on kinnauri rajama, salted meat and Chownen. Left early morning to Tabo monastery known as Chogs-hkhor, a one stop for your spiritual cleansing. Visited cave shrines, decorated stupas, extant paintings and ate at Green leaf café. Reached Kaza at night, halted for 2 days and visited ki, kibber monastery and the famous 500 year old mummy. I proceed to Keylong early morning, on the way I visited

Tabo Monastery

Baralacha, Chandar tal lake and Kunzum pass. Stayed at Keylong for the night. Cold wave were passing through, shivering and throbbing me slipped into my cosy bed. To be true i am exhausted, but a visit at tabo recleansed me.

Here is a list of delicacies found in the entire stretch, no matter where you go this will be same- a bowl of tomato soup, thukpa, dry meat, grilled trout, chicken, potatoes, noodels, rice, dal, pateer, chouck and bhagjery. Next on my list Leh the route

Leh

i took was Keylong-Darcha- Sarchu-Pang-Upshi-Leh. Petrol pump are scarce in this area after Kaza, so fill your tank and store cans too. Camped at sarchu for 2 days, the condition are harsh winds will blow head straight. Why, I stayed at Sarchu because it is the only place to stay en-route during the long journey. I stayed indoor, as I got hit by acute mountain sickness by the evening. Next day went to the pang where an army doctor got me back in shape. Reached Leh next evening, woke up late morning. My first task to spent

Sarchu

earned bucks on pashmina and cashmere shawls for loved ones. My spiritual drawn heart calling me to visit 17^th century Leh palace, this building offers a grand tradition of Tibetan architecture, climbed up to Shanti Stupa and encountered brokpa spinning/knitting and dancing.

Stayed for 2 days then headed to Zanskar, the route I am following

Kargil

Leh-Lamayuru-Kargil-Rangdum(Suru valley)-Padum(Zanskar valley). It took me three days to reach Zanskar, halts between for night was like a much wanted requisite. Zanskar, I got glued to this splendid place. This rugged buddhist valley’s isolation arduous my weeks long treck. Ice chokes the mountain passes and the valley sits under a silent blanket of snow during winters. I visited karsha, the biggest gompa then rolled up to the spectacular Zanskar Canyo were I enjoyed white-water rafting and kayaking. Had 2 days of pure fun, then left back to Kagil, next destination back home, Delhi. The route I am following Kargil-Drass-Sonamarg-Srinagar-Jammu-Chandigar-Delhi. It took me 5 days to reach home.

Women dancing at Padum

Zanskar

Fresh Snowfall in Kullu

Scorching heat, body drenching weakness! Yikes, its furious summer time in India. Just April and we’ve seen temperature rising to 43°C. Survival of the fittest, as many homes do not have air conditioning and survival becomes a challenge. A suggestion, why not travel to mighty Himachal to enjoy a spectacular holiday. The high hills of Himachal have received fresh snowfall and downpour of rainfall on lower regions. Plummeting the temperature of the region. This is a perfect time for enjoying adventure tour to the snow capped peaks. Destination like Shimla,

Sunbathing on Fresh Snow

Lahaul-Spiti, Kinnaur, Kullu/Manali and Chamba are exotic and offer exciting adventure sports activities.

Cool breeze flowing in your hair, freshness in the ambiance that how you will feel when you enter the foothills of Himalayas. Trust me travelers, it does feel heaven. As you enter Shimla, the magnetic aura of lush green valley is bound to take your breath away. The famous summer festival is being organized by the government at Ridge, Shimla. The celestial tribal music and dance performed by native artist is a must watch. For all those shopaholic, The Mall road one stop place. Branded clothes/ shoes/ bags, traditional handicraft and handloom, antique book and exotic food are some of the must eat and buy

Way to Kinnaur

thing to do while in Shimla. Let’s move to Kullu and Manali, as talked in previous post its home to verdure valley of pine trees and vista’s that inspire poets. Fresh snowfall has made Kullu home to several frozen waterfalls and destination of adventure activities for mountaineering, trekking, para-gliding, golfing, skiing, zorbing, camping.

Every season, tourists from all the country come here to trek and explore

Shimla this Morning

new dimensions of adventures. The great himalayan national park is located in kullu district. This national park is home to 300 bird species and more than 30 animal species. There are some famous temples like Raghunathji, Bijli Mahadev and Hidimba Devi. I know, I promised to post about some fascinating myths and facts of old historical temples in Himachal. I’m undergoing some research study, will post it in coming week. Camping is the best way to learn about local culture and people. Beware of littering on the mountains, as

Polythene banned in Himachal

plastic polythene bags are strictly forbidden. Natural waterfall formed into ice needle is a normal sight in Kinnaur. Tibetan origin centric tribes are predominantly residing here. Sangla valley, all those who have visited will agree it is an old romantic hollywood movie scene.

The best time to visit these destinations is from April to October. At Lahaul and Spiti snow is covered almost all round the year. The culture of Lahaul and Spiti is rich and mosaic. Spiti valley is considered to be the center of buddhist monasteries. Ki Monastery and Tabo Monastery are located in Spiti which are one of the oldest monasteries in the world.

Snow scooter in Manali

We welcome you to visit, world’s mightiest mountain ranges that are blessed with stunning spectacular landscapes. Its cascading deep gorges and misty woods make Himachal a destination worth visiting.

Heaven

From dark to light

Today I am posting to inform the readers about new undiscovered places like Chindi, Kala Tope, Malana, Naggar and Chitkul. Some of these undiscovered places have an ensemble of fascinating mix of jungles, historical landscape, lakes, waterfall, ancient temples and massive orchards. The clear waterfalls and exotic wildlife make these stead simply irresistible for travelers those longing to spend some eminence moment amidst virgin Mother Nature. These undiscovered places, are considered to be gems by himichali and the natives even now do not want their abode to become an overcrowded place. The government has maintained some terms for the tourists such as one cannot practice littering and anyone caught

Road Untaken

scathing the landscape would be penalized. This does not refer that, travelers are not invited. Himachal’s are considerer to be authentic, reliable, have intricate heritage and are fascinating mosaic by nature. The hospitality is divine and they are ready to share their meager morsels with abundance of generosity.

Chindi

Exploring cool pine forests is an incredible ways enjoy a perfect vacation. Chindi is 62Km from Shimla an undiscovered beautiful and unspoiled destination popularly famous for its aura of apples. Chindi is collection centers of apples, when apple season arrives apples are brought here to be packed. Its amazing twisting roads pass through beautiful green fields and pine forested slopes.

The traffic is minimum all year round. When I visited Malana, the thick winter

Malana

snow surrounding the mountains had retreated from the top. Malana is situated closely to the Jari village of Kullu. It is said Greek origin is in their blood and its existing democracy is the oldest in the world. Their houses are built out of wood that has been intricately curved. I still remember our fellow team mates asked us to stick to our agreed paths and not to touch any of the walls, houses or people there. This is

deities temples

an advice to all those visitors to reinstate this when you visit. One can undoubtedly gasp at the theatrical scenery and those treacherous roads bring out a jive.

At Chitkul the travelers can see a glimpse of the snow splotched mountains standing at a distance and a gash of shining blue sky surrounding around it. The natives wrapped in heavy shawls and doing chores is a regular sight seen. Travelers can hear the crystal clear and haunting tones of a wooden flute that is broken only by the occasional moo of a cow. Himachal is known as the dev bhumi and himichali have firm faith in their village deities often called as devtas. Almost every village in Himachal has a temple where they congregate their respective deity. In my next post I shall

wooden temples

talk to you about them in elaboration. Himachal Government Tourism Development Corporation rest houses andhotels are a perfect match of sheer style and elegance. Visiting such undiscovered places is an excellent opportunity to learn and understand the sheer diversity, character and history of Himachal Pradesh.

Dharamshala Cricket Ground

Yes it’s a six, Hurray! Go India Go….. Since my childhood, I’ve seen my father and younger sibling chanting this mantra each time we watched the match. As a native of Himachal we could never think of visiting a real cricket stadium the problem being we didn’t had one in Himachal. Metropolitan cites fall far away and the idea to visit was not feasible. Recently we were informed that winter capital of Himachal Pradesh, Dharamshala is the venue for two matches hosted by Indian Premier League (IPL). A dream comes true for my family, most forth looking is my father who is a great cricket buff. An international stadium does brighten prospects of cricket in Himachal. Here we have great potential player, but due to lack of facility their future was in vain. As for now new prospects are visible.

IPL-Logos

The third season of IPL is on the role, new players and venue are put to test. Two matches of Kings XI Punjab will be held at Dharamshala Cricket Stadium on 14/04/10 and 16/04/10 consecutively. Preity Zinta is the co-promoter and chairperson of the board of directors at Kings XI Punjab. A venue such as Dharamshala is an ideal spot for the cricket and nature lovers. Dharamshala is the home to Nobles Laureate, his holiness the ‘Dalai Lama’. The cricket ground has seating capacity of 18,500 visitors. It has separate boxes for corporate and media.

Dharamshala is nested high in the pristine ranges of the mighty Himalayas. Tibetan monasteries, snowy peaks of Dhauladhar, Triund

Monestary

located in the foothills of Dhauladhar are some of must visit destinations of Dharamshala. This beautiful valley has plenty of peace and pleasure to offer. Visiting monasteries of this destination provides a heavenly touch. Mcleodganj the abode of His holiness is crowded all year round. Another famous destination is Tawani famous for its hot water springs. One can experience calmness and serenity at Dharamshala in the Kangra valley of Himachal Pradesh. The region near Dal Lake is an unusual heaven.

This “Little Lhasa” tranquil the travelers, the spinning prayer wheels and fluttering flags spread the message of peace and universal harmony. There are many hotels in Dharamshala that offer best facilities and make the stay of the guests very comfortable. Himachal Hotels has created an itinerary for all cricket lovers, who can enjoy the game as well as enjoy the captivating beauty of this picturesque hill stations. You are requested to go through the detailed information given below:

Dharamshala

Cottages In dharamshala

Come for a holiday trip to hill station Dharamshala in India and witness the much-awaited Indian Premier League (IPL) two cricket matches going to be organized on 16^th and 18^th of April in the year 2010 at HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala, Kangra. Himachalhotels.in offers special IPL package for those who wants to catch the great opportunity to mix Cricket with Holiday and enjoy the scenic-beauty of Dharamshala.

Suggested itinerary:

14^th April, 10: Delhi / Chandigarh – Dharamshala

15^th April, 10: Visit McLeodganj

16^th April, 10: IPL First Match of Dharamshala

17^th April, 10: Visit Lower Dharamshala

18^th April, 10: IPL Second Match of Dharamshala

To know more about the package visit:  http://www.himachalhotels.in/IPL-2010-Dharamshala.html

Just mail us at: marketing@himachalhotels.in or booking@himachalhotels.in

You can also call us at 91-177-2860601, 2661073 and 2002155

Mobile Number: 09318599232

on our way to manali

Zero temperature and fresh snowy terrains seemed like a good place to begin my first ever experience with skiing at winter sports at Manali. I always had a notion that uphill of Himachal bestrode intrepid medieval pilgrims. This trivial thought of mine was changed when I visited the most mysterious and romantic place called

Couple on Ridge

Manali. My partner lives for the thrills and is always up for a rugged adventure. As for me I always dreamt of traveling around, but never thought I would receive calling from the treacherous yet tenacious mountains. Now I come to think of my previous vacations without him, all I can recollect is shopping sprees, eating joints, luxury, spa and the list goes on. Last week he surprises me with an envelope saying “I have found my adventure in life and that’s cherishing each new day with you, this Valentine’s Day I want to give you a glimpse of adventure filled with thrill on the winding white slopes of Manali.” I was totally wooed by the breathtaking invitation. He told me every thing was planned and booked, all i had to do was bring the loving me to experience an escapade of lifetime.

our cottage

We left from Delhi at night and reached Shimla early morning. We stayed for a day in Shimla because I wanted to visit the famous Mall Road. Next day early morning we boarded a car to Manali. We headed to the place less traveled where winding roads, cool breeze and scent of pine wafting along us. The lush slopes were covered with fresh snow fall. As we reached at a knoll for a cup

fest

of tea the wild landscapes of Himachal seemed utterly dramatic, vibrant and breathtaking. The mountains, cliffs, endless snow creates such spectacular scenery capable enough to amazes even those thick-skinned urban enthusiasts insensitive to the nature’s charm. We reached late night to our destined hotel. We booked our hotel near to the venue of winter carnival being held in Manali. We were informed next morning that winter skiing carnival will start a bit late due to intermittent snowfall at Solang.

Love of my Life

We were suggested to take a beginners lesson as I never really felt snow and

At night

ice before. We stated the learning process and rented some equipment. I had never received such free fall in my life ever before, so did he. I can say for me that I had a fabulous time though the free falls were embarrassing. I had an arm looking out for me, each time I splayed. The winter sports of Manali were inaugurated and over 250 people from across the country came to participate. We spent entire two day Skiing. I liked the skiing even though it was crowded because I got to spend the most precious time, with him. My partner is just fantastic. He is such an adventurous person and is up for anything. We were laughing, falling and he got me onto a couple of runs that were way above my skill level. It must be said i never thought this would bring out the best in us.

lake view

The next two days, as planned by him we spent it on nature gazing, relaxing by the fire, snowflakes blowing across our faces, fast-food picnic on a snow dust hills, lake view from one side of the mountain, champagne and boxes of gourmet chocolate the list goes on and on.  I had a fabulous weekend and a great valentine’s day. Trust me people don’t have to blow a small fortune on a vacation to some faraway high lavish places. Himachal Pradesh is loaded with affordable, adventurous, amorous weekend escapes for lovers.

Our Equipment

Happy Valentine's Day

Here are some pictures of fresh snowfall in kullu:

kullu

fresh snowfall

Snow Dust

Snowangels anybody..

Snow Laden Trees

White Forest