After seeing numerous edited wanderlust photos on Instagram and adding one hundred forty eight and a half cups of caffeinated beverage to my body in over 4 months I decided it was enough. I am a free bird that this corporate world can’t cage; temporarily!
I missed being in a different land, far away from my home. To somehow reset my mind, a trip was much needed. Like all the millennial folks out there I also derive my deepest knowledge from TV series. And this time it was Barney Stinson who gave me the way forward. For every amazing plan he has a guy and I have a cousin. Well that’s think global, act local for you guys. (Had I first used the term Glocal in the beginning this could have been a very good MBA lecture; imparting free lectures – Philanthropy 101. Please take notes.)
My elder cousin has a travel bug bigger than that of the biggest travel blogger out there, so he is always brimming with ideas. It took him less than a week to finalise the plan. We were going to explore Mukteshwar!
Mukteshwar is a quite little town an hour ahead of Nainital and it is a perfect place for you if all you crave is quietness and fresh air. The four of us (me, my brother and two of his best friends) started the journey from my home and left around 8 in the morning.
It took me some time to get casual with my brother’s friends; hail my introvert wiring. However once we had crossed Garhmukteshwar we were really getting along. Here’s a tip for you – if you ever get a chance to go on a trip with a bunch of raw folks never say no. Please don’t. I forbid you. You’ll know the reason soon.
So we were cruising on the highway and still had 4-5 hours of drive left. All of a sudden I hear a voice, ‘Let’s drop Mukteshwar and head to Lucknow. I feel like eating Tunde k Kebab.’
‘So to just eat Kebabs you’ll change the entire plan?’ asked my brother.
‘Not just any Kebab, Tunde k Kebab. You’ll surely thank me after eating them, they’re that good!’ claimed his friend.
‘No, we’ll stick to the plan and enjoy the mountains.’
15 minutes later we were as good as before and were heading for the hills. My brother’s friend speaks his mind and is thus very calm.
‘Enough with these songs. Let’s play something else.’ demanded the guy who was on a wanderlust to Lucknow a few minutes back.
‘What else do we play? Highway trip without songs is incomplete.’ I replied.
‘Have you ever listened to Haryanvi Ramayana?’
‘Is there a Haryanvi version as well?’ I was puzzled.
The guy gave me a look as if I had asked for his kidney.
‘You need to listen to it. Right now!’
No one can justify listening to an epic saga on a road trip which isn’t meant for a pilgrim site. But you need to do it for the heck of it! For the next 30 minutes I listened to the most interesting adaptation of Ramayana ever made. I laughed so hard that I thought my lungs were going to explode. It was not a funny version. It was just the Ramayana in Haryanvi in its rawest form. (Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKNbiVCSWxM) What I realised over the trip was that Haryanvis don’t crack jokes per say, their normal way of expressing is so entertaining that you never feel bored. It’s just amazing. I am from western Uttar Pradesh and we are quite similar, but these unfiltered humans are just out of the world.
The twisty hilly roads had just begun and I was enjoying the scenery on the go. My eyes sensed something interesting along the road but couldn’t really figure out what it was. All I could get was a glimpse of an interesting place. Since we were short on time we kept moving. The way to Mukteshwar passes through Nainital and the beauty of the town surely lives up to its praises. Since staying in Nainital was not in our itinerary we rolled ahead and rode further up the mountains. In the evening around 7 we reached our hotel. Although the scenery along the way helped a lot in battling fatigue but 8 hours on road makes you tired. We rested, ate like caveman and slept. Next day was all about exploring the town.
Next dawn brought a pleasant temperature drop of 20 degrees as compared to my home town. Mountains are so beautiful that you don’t need professional photography skills to capture their beauty.
After breakfast we left to visit the tourist attractions in the town. We enquired and came to know that there were a handful of places to visit nearby the famous Mukteshwar Temple. At the starting point of the temple you can easily find a state tourism tour guide who can show you around in just Rs. 400. First came Chauli ki Jali, a rocky structure overlooking the hill on which the temple is located.
If you’re an adrenaline junkie you can get some booster doze here with rock-climbing, zip-lining and rappelling. You have to do a small hike to reach the temple which is truly majestic. The temple is more than 5,500 years old and still stands as new as before.
Alongside the mountain is the Indian Veterinary Research Institute which is more than 125 years old. This place is a gem for history loving folks. Besides these beautiful buildings are shops which have the strongest hangover cure cum lemonade I’ve ever tasted. Made out of local herbs and gigantic lemons the drink is absolutely worth a try. Too bad we didn’t pack any for our planned milk drinking sessions (wink wink).
Next on our list was the Bhalugaad waterfalls. You need to drive down 30 minutes from Mukteshwar to reach here. The origins of these falls are still unknown and there isn’t much hullabaloo around the place, so you can enjoy in peace. To top if off you need a 15 minute hike to reach this place.
There was still time left so we went to explore Nainital. Since words are subjective and often misleading I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
We had explored more than what we had planned and I was so overwhelmed with the experience that I needed to end it on a high note. Needless to say we had good quality milk *wink wink* post our dinner that day.
Departure from such places are difficult. Mukteshwar had everything I could ask for at that time; simple, peaceful and filled with untouched natural beauty. Before sadness and realisation of returning back to the corporate could take over my mind, I realised that we could re-watch the Ramayana and listen to amusing endless tales of my new friends.
We were again on the twisty and narrow roads with mesmerising scenery on both sides. The hilly roads were at their fag end when my eyes sensed a similar sight on our way up. This time I was vigilant enough to ask for a stopover. Lo and behold:
We couldn’t stop to explore the shrine as it was an hour long hike. Maybe some other day I’ll be able to ascend to the top and pay my homage to the shrine.
The last part of our journey was lined with plain highways and mundane traffic reminiscent of the regular life that lay ahead. This three day trip was a much needed break and had helped me forget the KPIs I had to run for, the next day onward.
In these 72 hours I had made two new friends, spent over 20 hours on road, broadened my regional music knowledge and had watched the most entertaining version of one of the most important epic, the Ramayana.
Last but not the least I learnt a new way of expressing happiness!
You should experience a trip with unadulterated people because:
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Abhishek Singh 
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