You must have read about a thousand travel diaries and blogs about their travel experience and how it was so good to visit. Since I am not getting paid to write this I can totally be honest about my trip and how I felt it to be in the city of peace!
Yes, you are right folks, I called it the city of peace for a reason. Even in the heavy crowd, you will feel secluded from the rush of your life. I still remember the moonlight sparkling the never-ending roads when our bus dropped at the station. It was beautiful, so beautiful that I almost cried, the clouds were so close and the moon was so holy. I know it’s the same moon I see every day from my terrace, but I was different on the hills. As we reached our hotel, it was 5.30 in the morning so we didn’t want the staff to wake up and be grumpy with us for the next two days so we waited at the open-air dining section and watched the view of the mountains. A tip, if you really want to indulge in someone’s life or just spend time with your unconscious, then the view will be perfect for you. It was green mountains covered with pine trees and other fauna I don’t know about.
At the top of the hills, you can experience the changing shades of dawn. From dark blue to light blue then to orange with the hint of pink and finally the bright sunrise! At the bottom of the hill, there was a river end, as far as I know, it was a temple at the shore with some smaller establishments. The view actually looked like a thousand-dollar painting
I skip details to the struggle we went through with our check-in and how long we have to starve before we get the room. But as we went through all this we found ourselves craving brunch, so we went to a cafe called “pink” and believe me it has more shades of pink than any fashionista ever discovered. The cafe was famous for its decor and if I shared my experience in a nutshell, it felt like I am a barbie girl in a barbie world!
Although we didn’t go to heavy stuff like rafting and trekking, it was nice to explore the city. The local stores and places. Since we visited the place in early March, the temperature was quite sensitive to fluctuations. For instance, the daytime temperature was almost 35 degrees and the night time was approx 15 degrees. After our brunch, we went to the shore of the river Ganga.
Throughout our way to the shore, there was a big market until the end of the slope. The market was filled with clothes and spiritual healing products. The clothing is mostly in cotton and showcases hippy vibes. I don’t blame the market to be too retro considering the tourist crowd. Most of the foreigners came to the city to practice yoga and find their inner peace. In other words, they are rich enough to stay and spend their money without working for the rest of their lives!
As we reach the shores, we walk around the pebble beds and there are a variety of pebbles that might awe you to stay. The water of river Ganga was sharply cold and calming at the same time. Around the river, you can see rock bed shore, sand shore, or the shore that is actually built for the public to visit and enjoy with family. Now the ones that are made have safety signs and signs that are ideal for kids and adults to enjoy the holy water. Facilities like boats and bridges are well maintained to travel across rivers and enjoy both ends of the city.
As the sunset, we sat in one of the shoreside cafes. Interestingly the city was quite open-minded about getting high so that people can actually smoke a dubby in a public place! So grab the opportunity we snuck out some stuff back to our room where we enjoyed the fresh air and original cultivation of marijuana.
Before we puff up the night in the smoke, we made it special with a great place I can never forget in my life! The place was quite popular for its over wood pizza and hillside view of the city. VJ’s is easy to locate as it is one of the most famous pizza places in Rishikesh. Whatever we ordered, it was delicious and fresh; the cherry on the cake the overall ambiance is so magical that you will fall in love with the open space restaurant.
The night was usually sleepless for me, but this time it was enjoyable. As the night darkened its shades, it was silent, like a whisper of peace. Since the city was one of the safest places to roam around, I was actually roaming in the steep streets of Rishikesh, the city looks more beautiful when nobody is traveling. Like metropolitan cities, where you have to use headphones for melodies, the symphony of moonlight sparkling the empty streets was enough to listen throughout…
The Next Day…
I was cranky and a little sleepy, so when the sun rose and heated up the hills at a burning temperature( for my skin), I closed the drapes and shut my eyelids for some hours….
“Lunch was different this time of the day”, said to my travel companion. we both were hungry to the core and went to a north Indian restaurant near the shore. Near the shore feels luxurious and nice, and if you are at Rishikesh then don’t miss the opportunity! As we had to leave, we didn’t explore much. We mostly enjoy the cold breeze and delightful culture of Hinduism from a visible distance. I have different beliefs when it comes to spiritualism! But that’s a topic for another piece!!
As we packed our bags after sunset, the only thing I was praying was that we could stay a little longer. The little time I spend in this city was like a fairy tale, and yet like every story, it has to end…
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