I could not find any vehicle,Bus or maxi-cab going to Binsar or Jageshwar.I walked to Dharanaula where a maxi-cab takes teachers daily to school.He agreed to take me to Jageshwar in 70/- Rs.On our way we passed Almora Inter College which has a breathtaking Sports field overlooking the valley.Just can imagine how lovely it would look in winter and how ideal for ice-skating.When we just entered Cantonment part of Almora,a car hit maxi-cab,it was coming at high-speed,the car guy apologized and went his way.Lady Teachers broke into chatter how it was his fault and they should have scolded him or beaten him with their slippers.
Soon after this incident maxi-cab developed some issue emitting black smoke from behind,and getting slow at ascending roads.At one point driver asked us to take another cab that too on desolate hilly roads.Thankfully cab started again,all of us again got into the cab,but from there after this continued all the way,the driver shutting and starting engine every now and then.
When you leave Almora for Jageshwar,there are two roads one descending another ascending just after Hotel Shikhar few steps from the Almora Bus-Stand.For Jageshwar you take the narrow ascending lane.Its narrower than usual so you have to drive carefully and slowly.Its here the mishap happened.
Jageshwar is almost 30 Km away from Almora and most of the time its ascending up.There are dense forests of Fir here and as you near Jageshwar Deodar forests come in view,Deodar trees reaching up to the skies looking tall and elegant.On the way to Jageshwar you pass Chitai Golu Temple too and many small Hamlets.At the Jageshwar turn there are Villages with sown crop fields.
As Jageshwar comes in view you are mesmerized by its serene natural beauty.Its a group of Temples built in a valley on banks of Jata Ganga surrounded by lush green forest of Tall Deodar Trees.Just parallel to the river are village houses with lovely gardens of Rose flowers.And a narrow lane running in front to commute for walkers.There are few general merchant shops and most of other shops cater to Devotees,selling things used in worship like flowers ,coconuts and prasads.These tall temples are built of Black Stones and statues of Gods carved out of stones,they belong to 10 A.D. .
Inside the main enclosure,chief attraction is the Maha Mritunjay Temple,here the main Pujari resembled Nitish Bhardwaj actor who played Krishna in B.R.Chopra's Mahabharat.Various Pujaris or Sadhus are for various Temples like Jagannath Temple or Hanuman Temple.
After worshiping I asked locals my way back to Almora,they told me I can either take lift from a passing vehicle or walk up 3 Km to main highway where I would easily get a maxi-cab to Almora.I decided to walk for it would give me opportunity to see nature closely and also because of shady trees it was quite cool even in hot summer.When else would I get opportunity to walk along a river looking at tall Deodar trees,wild hill flowers,rolling down cultivated hills and two Jata Ganga rivers confluence under a bridge or look at the multicolored pebbles and uneven tiny stones lying in river-bed also a museum and a medicinal garden are en-route.
On the way is a Museum where statues in stone of various Gods obtained from ancient Temples of Jageshwar are kept.It has a lovely Rose-garden.Beyond the museum is a Garden dedicated to medicinal plants of Uttarakhand and various slopes or steps have various plants and there name written on sign-boards.
You pass few other Temples on the way and a old desolate Hut in the woods beyond the river.Here as we cross bridge ,two rivers meet.It was a pleasure walking through the woods.The river below had shrink but still I decided to take a bath among Nature in wilderness and it proved to be a Divine experience. It got me really fresh and I resumed my walk to the intersection passing cultivated farm lands and there were few guys taking bath in a natural spring after performing rites of their recently deceased family members.
At the cross-section there was a nice village inn where I had my Lunch of freshly cooked Dal-Chawal served with salad,sabzi and curd.The food tasted really good more like a home-cooked meal definitely better than anything I ate in Almora or in any other restaurant since my visit.As I finished eating a maxi-cab going to Almora stopped and the driver asked me if I was coming.I got into this cab after paying just 40/- Rs for the Lunch.The driver was nice and most of the way kept talking to a his friend on mobile phone rebuking him for avoiding him and never meeting him.
Soon we passed a School where a group of chirpy Lady Teachers got in along with a Male Teacher who sat next to me.These jovial teachers kept cracking nice jokes through out the journey laughing and giggling all the way. "Only a Teacher can take you directly to Heaven" , "Oh! we have depressed and sad people in our school", "Manoj Tewari Bhojpuri singer and actor is coming for a program."
Somehow I never stopped at Chitai Golu Devtaa Temple,which I had planned to visit.I had visited this Temple earlier in 2008.I think many times I am not a quick thinker or able to decide quickly and more dependent in situations or destiny.
On returning to Almora the maxi-cab left us at Dhara-Naula,their's a steep direct route formed of brick stairs that lead from Dhara-Naula side to the other side where Bus-Station is.Almora is built on a horse-shoe ridge,to reach other side its always the straight steep path the shortest,if you go along the circumference then its quite a long journey.
So what I was foolish enough to do was when I was half way up this straight path across the main Almora Bazaar,I descended down the steps leading to the other side thinking it was a short-cut and finding my self again in Dharanaula instead.Again I got up , again I descended the wrong way,I got really upset thinking a mischievous spirit is mind-manipulating me.I got up and directed my mind to follow common-sense,soon I found my way and remembered the steps.This all tired me out and I had a cold-bath reaching my hotel."So always take the known path when in a new city".I would have reached Almora at 2:00.,but instead I reached my Hotel at 3:00 and very tired indeed.If I had reached earlier taking the known road,I won't have been this tired and may be I would have gone some where else too.
Later on I slept as I was feeling so tired.At 5:15 I went out and had a delicious plate of Dahi-Batasha at Sumangalam Restaurant.After visiting ATM and having Tea and seeing passing by man laugh derogatorily on a foreign Guy just wearing a cotton Vest,and the European tourist getting really mad at this and asking why the hell are you laughing.
Later on I returned to Hotel to pack for my Journey for tomorrow.At 8:00 I went to have dinner at hotel,eating four Chapatis,Sabzi,curd and salad.I also later on bought a bottle of Almond drop oil.If I leave aside the exasperatingly silly incident of descending-ascending this proved to be one of the best day of my life.
No comments:
Post a Comment