Triund

We hiked up to Triund from Mcleodganj. A somewhat steep climb for about 4 hours brings one to a beautiful grassy pass with views of nearby peaks. It's a lovely way to get away and it's not a tough walk.

Dalhousie

We took the bus up to Dalhousie from Dharamshala (7am, 120Rps., 5 hrs.). It's a beautiful town, quiet and peaceful, high among the hilly approach to the Indian Himalaya. The ride up was spectacular and at times harrowing as the road ran to the edge of vertical drops hundreds of meters high. Dalhousie is a great alternative to Bhagsu and Dharamkot for quiet and isolation. Though if you're looking for traveling community, judging by the souvenirs, Dalhousie is an Indian tourist location, and you won't find too many shops catering to westerners. This was refreshing and added to the place in a way that allowed one to disappear a little in to the quiet. Though only disappear a little; there's a lot of staring and attention to be had. From monkeys too, of which there are hordes of Macaques. I accidentally made eye contact with a big one as I was coming up some stairs and it rushed me. I ducked at the last moment and it bounded off my back and up into a tree. From there it perched and made very menacing faces at me until I threatened it with a stone and the toothy beast hid behind a branch, peeking out, hissing. So be careful of the monkeys, but for real peace and quiet (especially in the off season now), Dalhousie is it. It's not as convenient as McLeodganj, so bring whatever you need and chill out for a while.


a gigantic Hanuman near Kajjiar, 22km from Dalhousie

Agra, Taj Mahal

Decided against a "tour" package to visit the Taj Mahal, and instead acquired train to and from the city, in the morning and early evening. The train was the Taj Express (~180INR round trip), leaving from Nizamuddin station, a 30 minute rickshaw ride from Paharganj (80INR morning, 120 evening), and arriving at Agra Cantt.
The Taj Mahal costs a whopping 750INR to enter and the ticket appears to provide access to 4 other sites around the city. This is not the case; the "ticket" just gives a small discount, so you can visit Agra fort for 250 rather than 300. We had also paid a rickshaw driver 300rupees to take us around the city all day to visit these sites, and avoid the hassles of haggling every time we wanted to move. So, being on a budget for long and wide travels, this was a costly day, even having skipped most of the places. However, we came to see the Taj Mahal and see it we did, and it was magnificent, even as we tire of "sightseeing".
Its translucent marble (shine a light close in the dark of the interior), and intricately carved panels and details were lovely, though it was simply the imposing brilliance of the whole scene, dazzling white, that left a strong impression.

To Delhi International Airport from Paharganj

Hard to find information about this relatively easy trip, so here is how I went round-trip to pick up S and bring her into the Delhi madness.

Taxis will "quote" you prices between 200-600rupees one way, which is ridiculous. Rickshaw's as well will likely demand far more money than the trip is worth, and good luck getting those "shameless fellows" to use the meter (quote thanks to local stranger who helped us out).

Take the bus, and avoid all the haggling hassles.
Walk down to the East end of the Paharganj Bazaar and cross the street into New Delhi train station. Take the footbridge over the rails and exit the Ajmeri Gate. Walk through the parking area to the main road where buses are parked, near the New Delhi station metro entrance. I'm not sure of the times, but about once an hour, a big green ISBT bus will roll up, marked on an LED screen that it is an airport bus. Ask and make sure that it goes to the Indira Ghandi International Airport (or the Domestic Terminal if that's what you need). The fare is only 50 rupees, and barring traffic... only takes about 45 minutes. You can also catch the bus somewhere in Connaught place, but I don't know where exactly.

Going into the city from the airport, go straight through the doors in the arrivals lounge and hop on the same big green bus and ask for Connaught, or New Delhi station.
Or take a pre-parid taxi, but the bus is easy, clean and convenient. No need for hassles--Delhi will provide enough of those...

Ranighat; Tansen, Palpa

The walk to Ranighat is well worth it. It's long, but beautiful, and the path is more or less easy to traverse and follow. From the top of Tansen, near the Shreenagar hotel, you can begin your walk, or from the East side, if you prefer, a slightly longer route along the ridge of nearby hills is possible. I walked down and up the same way, not having enough time for the whole loop, but was still happily satisfied by the journey, though exhausted by the end.

The walk down is about 3 hours, and the walk up about the same, I found, though I took a wrong path, went left instead of right near the top of the hill and found myself in a town to the west rather than Tansen and had to walk around the hill. So the return took 4 hours. Take little paths that cut down the hills for short cuts; be careful, it's tough to sense direction in these winding trails, but ask people you meet and you'll find the quickest way. Oh, and don't give pens to the kids. Especially not when they accost you with: "give me pen!". How did this start?

I was on my own, and happy to be there in the daylight. Though even with the sun shining in, going up into the attic was spooky experience and you can attest to the creaks and thuds that this old buildings emits when you make the trip yourself. I would suggest to anyone, dare anyone(?), to spend the night in the old mansion. I hear it was built in memory of the Governor's late wife, the story goes...

Kathmandu to Tansen

Kathmandu is noisy and hectic and the air is murky; if this becomes too much for you, as it was for me, head out to Tansen where the steep cobbled roads are a challenge for cars and motorbikes, and therefore there are few of them.
And why not take the long way out, via the Thribuvan Highway? Though, a comment about 'local transportation' rather than 'tourist buses': it's not cheaper to ride local, unless you really know where you're going and can bargain well to the proper price. But for adventure, it's the way to go.

Day one: Kathmandu to Daman.
Taxi to Gongu Bus terminal (15 min, 100npr). Wrong place.
City Bus to Kalanki Bus Chaos (15 min, 20nrp). No bus to Tansen until tomorrow.
Bus to Naubise (1.5hr, 50npr was asked for 100).
Long-haul truck to Daman (3hr, 100npr). Hitched a ride.

With waits in between took about 8 hours and 270npr.

Stayed at Sherpa Hotel in Daman, the spookiest place in the country. All alone in a big place up the road, just mice and spiders. And creaky floorboards.

A monastery near Daman.

Day two: Daman to Sauraha.
Bus to Hetauda (2.5hrs, 110npr). Crowded bus. Beautiful scenery.
Bus to Sauraha Chowk (1.5hrs, 70npr). Super hot in the Terai.
Car to Sauraha (15min, 100npr!). Super rip off. In a tourist place like Sauraha, if someone says, 'my friend will give you a ride', it doesn't mean free ride.

Around 6 hours and 280npr.

Stayed at Hermitage hotel by the river. Nice sunset view, but overpriced for what the room was (400npr). Decided to opt out of 'Safari Tours' as this whole town gave me a bad vibe--so serious, all business. Let the Rhinos have privacy.

Chitwan national park

Day three: Sauraha to Tansen.
Motorbike to Chitrasali (10min, free). Sometimes there are free rides. Young student saw my thumb and was happy to have company up the road.
Horse Buggy to Sauraha Chowk (15min, 50npr). Bumpy but fun ride.
Bus to Narayangarh (20min, 20npr). On the roof in the sun.
Bus to Butwol (3.5hrs, 80npr). Good deal, hot bus. So crowded.
Bus to Tansen (2hrs, 70npr). Got on the roof until a cop told me to get down. No roof travel in cities. But the bus was so super crowded I couldn't fit inside and everyone jammed into the doorway. Out of the city, the excess passengers covered the roof. Beautiful ride up the valley.

Around 8 hours and 220npr.

Tansen is a lovely town; I'm staying at the Gautama Siddharta Hotel, or something like that. It's reasonable. And quiet.

So, the trip took three days and many hours, and about 770npr, but it was good; though I would have liked more time to stop here and there. None of the legs were too long, so it was never really uncomfortable, and even if they say 'no bus' there's always someone who will give you a ride in Nepal, usually for a price, but it's rarely that high, and everyone is happy to have you along.


tansen


In the Shreenagar, the forest above the city, the crown of Tansen.



Shreenagar



a tansen temple