SHIMLA-KASAULI. November 4th-7th.

Have a stroll along The Mall in Shimla in the evening, and have another forgettable meal in a 'Chinese Fast Food' cafe. Back to the Hotel Classic fairly early, and finally finish my current book - 'Charley Wilson's War', 500 and something pages of smallish print, which has kept me absorbed in my leisure moments since not long after I arrived in McLeod. An account of the escalating support to the Mujjaidein (spelling ?) by the C.I.A. in the war against the Russians in 1980's Afghanistan. The thrust of the book is that this was payback to the Russians for their material support of the enemy in the Vietnam War, and that eventually it was the primary cause of the breakup of the Russian empire. This is part of very recent history that I know nothing about, and another eye-opener was the amount of leverage that a single congressman can exert on the Pentagon and in the White House, if he knows how to go about it. My current book, which I interrupted for 'Charley Wilson's War', is 'Narrow Dog to Carcassonne' by Terry Darlington, a fairly loose account of how he and his wife, both old-age pensioners, plus 'Jim', their whippet, sailed a flat-bottomed and narrow metal boat through a lot of the English canals, and then across the English Channel, and through the canals of Belgium and France. I know some of the places they visited in the south of England, and by dint of my recent travels, a bit of where they went on the continent, which makes it topical. He has a engagingly humourous style, even if he does go a bit overboard sometimes, but don't we all?

I'm not that wrapped in Shimla. It's twice as expensive as anywhere else I've visited so far in India, and that means everything, accommodation, meals, even laundry, but is however still as cheap as chips relative to western Europe. And the denizens are rather surly, with certain exceptions, who seem merely rather restrained. It wasn't actually on my list, as Simla was more a hill-station for the Nabobs, and not my parent's cup of tea. But the only way I can get to Kasauli is through Shimla. Kasauli is an old hill-station that my Mum used to talk about a bit.

Stroll down to the interstate bus station mid-morning, and a large Arab-looking man insists on finding the bus to Dharampur for me, and finding me room on the bus, and stowing my gear, and that cost me 20 rupees. You don't mind bowing to the inevitable if they actually do something useful. A fast and furious couple of hours drive to Dharampur, where I have to change to the local bus for Kasauli. I find the 'Kasauli Queen' a bit further through the town, and sit in for a few minutes before it takes off. A smaller (and really beaten-up) old bus, which is a far more sedate 13 kilometres ride, and the driver actually slows down a couple of times to throw biscuits to the local pi dogs.

I had 'phoned Kasauli early this morning. LP lists only two hotels, the Anchal, a 'rare Kasauli cheapie' and the Ros Common, somewhat more luxurious. Can't get through to the Anchal, and the cultivated female voice at the Ros Common informs me that it's 1800 rupees a night, and that I'll have to go to the Tourist Office in Shimla first, and pay them a deposit. (Lose her, I think). Get directions from the bus stand in Kasauli to the Hotel Anchal. Cable TV, hot (bucket) water, and a modest view for 400 rupees, and they will bring reasonably-priced meals to your room. Have a lengthy lunch, and then go for a walk along a couple of trails till dusk. Not a very big place, Kasauli, and not as good as Dalhousie, which remains my favourite, but very quiet, and the people are pleasant enough, if a tad restrained. I can fully understand that in pre air-con
days it must have seemed like Shangri La after the heat and dust of Delhi or Amritsar.

The mists come in early here, and so I track down the one internet place in town and while away a couple of hours before dinner back at the hotel. The pleasant young guy looking after the internet shop gets talking to me after the usual chattering rabble has left, and it turns out that he has just qualified as a dentist at a university somewhere near Dehradun, and will be starting an internship at a hospital soon.

Friday I lie abed late (I've been having these incredible deep sleeps the last 3 nights), and afterwards I do some more walking at the other end of town, eventually calling in at the Ros Common Hotel, which LP says is a great place for afternoon tea. This proves to be correct, and I have an enjoyable repast, sitting out on a terrace with a great valley view. Back by dark, do some internet, and have a light dinner before bed. Although there isn't an awful lot to it, Kasauli has been a pleasant break, away from the busier side of India.