By now it is almost sunny and the streets are drying out. We manage to find a lady that R wants to buy earrings from. She is just setting up her stall. As it is approaching noon we walk back up to the hotel, check out and put our bags in the lock up. This evening we will be travelling to the main line station to catch the train to Delhi. Every day that we have been here the shoeshine man near the hotel has been after D's business. Today he gets it and does an excellent job. The narrow street outside the hotel has quite a lot of traffic so we decide to see where it goes to. Unlike most of the roads in these parts it is fairly level and winds around the hills rather than climbing up them. We spend a while looking down on kites soaring in the valley below, and even further down we are looking at the top of clouds. Mcleodganj really does seem to defy gravity, perched as it is on the steep sides of the mountains.
Our walk takes us to Baghsu which is the starting point for some treks into the mountains. We don't really have the time or the kit for serious walking and we definitely don't trust the weather. Our friend V did one of the treks around here called the Triund Trek on which a dog acts as a guide. We pass a place called Triund View from where we can see a steep path leading up into the clouds. We start to think about lunch but Baghsu is suffering a power cut so we take a fifty rupee auto ride back to Main Square in McL and head back to the Tibetan Kitchen. R has Silky Noodle Veg soup while D goes for Veg Mukthuk, a soup with green veg (pak choi?) and momo like pasta parcels in it. There is a long wait but it is worth it.
Our plan for the afternoon is to visit the Tibetan Museum and the big temple before taking coffee and cake. This cold weather has certainly upped our calorie intake. We get to the museum just as the rain starts. The museum is basically an exhibition of photographs and highlights the plight of the Tibetan people and their culture. From here it is just a few steps on to the temple which is packed with chanting monks. There are people busily decorating the place with flower garlands as there is a big event tomorrow in honour of the Dalai Lama. Inside the temple is shoes off, no photos which means we cannot post a picture of the shrines with the offerings of packets of biscuits and breakfast cereals.
The weather has become more threatening and we take shelter in a cafe as there is a thunderstorm followed by a shower of sleet. Our taxi driver, Tensing, phones to ask that we leave earlier because of the weather so we go back to pick up our bags. When Tensing arrives it is with another guy and we are told this is a friend who will drive us, same price. Eventually we work it out. The friend has Punjab plates on his car and must have had a fare earlier in the day in the opposite direction. He now gets paid something for his return trip and T gets something for doing not much. The short road down to Dharamsala is jammed solid so after about 45 minutes of not much progress our chap turns around and takes the long route. He drives like a maniac but obviously knows the road well and it is not very busy. We stop for supper and still get to Pathankot ststion in good time.
Train 14036 is at the platform waiting and we can board right away. The 1AC coach is the most dilapidated that we have seen. It can't have had a thorough clean since Nehru was Prime Minister. We have the coupe. In fact there are no other paying passengers in 1AC so the cabins are occupied by various members of the train crew. We leave on time at 23.20.
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