View overlooking city of Shimla that sits on two sides of the valley.
Large Hanuman statue in Simla. See more images in gallery.
The Festival Experience
We weren’t the only people to make our way to the temple and Hanuman. Dussehra is one of the main holidays for the Hindu people, as well as Navaitra, Diwali and Holi. We will also experience Diwali when we are here. Dussehra is celebrated at the end of Navaitra (a nine day celebration for women) and Durga Purga (a festival honoring the Goddess Durga and her victory over Mahishasura). The story behind this festival is that the God Rama’s victory over the King Ravana and his son and brother or the victory of good over evil. This is celebrated with music, chanting, fireworks and finally the burning of effigies of Ravana, etc. You’ll see images of the crowd as well as a video. It was a great experience all the way around, esp. being around the people who were very curious about us but also very into the story and celebration. Leaving was a bit more trying, in a different way than our steep climb…weaving our way through many, many people to make our way back down the hill. We ate a delicious meal after at a hotel restaurant (butter paneer masala, yellow dal, virgin mojitos, naan and roti). We ended the meal with the dessert gulab jamon. I haven’t been posting two much on our food experiences because I plan to have a post devoted to the delicious foods of India!
On our final day in Shimla, we visited the Viceregal Lodge, a lodge built by the British. Today, you can visit the place to see the beautiful structure and learn about it’s history with the top levels devoted to advanced studies in the Humanities. I spoke with one Dr. of Religious studies, Dr. Harsha Trivedi. I hope to hear more about her work and writing on the subject, since much of my interest lies in the spiritual aspects of India, esp. the symbolism and motifs. The Lodge was also the place in 1945 where the talks with the British, Gandhi and other representatives took place to determine the new independent government. It is said that it was the last chance for them to have a united India with no separation between India and Pakistan.
Long Walk to Hanuman
When we arrived in Shimla we went directly to our hotel first to rest and freshen up before going to the Mall Road and then to the top of the mountain to see Hanuman and the Jakhu Temple. This is also where we were to experience the Dussehra Festival. Shimla is situated 7,438 feet above sea level, in the Himalayas with extraordinary views. It is a fairly large city that is spread around on the sides of the mountains, so from either side you can see the colorful buildings on the other side. The whole experience there was unique, starting with our stay at the Springfields Heritage hotel. The hotel was built by an aristocrat from Lahore as a summer home for his wife because she enjoyed Shimla. The hotel is still a summer home for the descendents but als o a place to stay for your time in Shimla. The hotel staff were very accommodating and we had a comfortable room with more space that usual. We also enjoyed breakfast and a meal of mutton and dahl one evening there.
After resting for just a bit from our drive, we drove back to the main city where we were told we must walk the Mall Road which led up a square that had a the Christ Church built by the British in 1857. It is one of very few Christian churches we have seen. It’s beautiful but what I found most intersting was that just behind it you could see the statue of Hanuman way up on the hill. The Mall road is the home to many vendors selling clothing, food and other trinkets. It’s was interesting to walk through just to see people and experience a slightly different market place. This is where we tried jolobi for the first time, a sweet treat that consists of a sweet dough that is fried then placed in a sweet syrup. It was fun watching and filming the process and also very pleasurable eating it! At the top of Mall road, there is also a statue of Indira Gandhi, a great view, a performance and arts center and, of course, monkeys. While walking down from here, we saw the parade for the festival, starting there long trek up the hill to the top where the festival would take place. We took a lift for part of this climb but then hiked the rest of the way to the top where the Jankhu temple and the Hanuman statue is. The top of the mountain is 8,050 feet high, so it was a tough steep climb but worth it.
