Chandigarh & Shimla

Not much to report on regarding Chandigarh, the city that prides itself on it's "amazing city layout." OK, it's a grid people...a grid layout! But let's not piss on their bonfire, they have an entire museum about the planning and construction of the city, they are damn proud and anyone you meet will mention how you "are so lucky to have visited the amazing city of Chandigarh." Amazing is an overstatment, but we did enjoy our time in Chandigarh and it is where were were introduced to FabIndia, which deserves the title of an "amazing" store. Another highlight of the amazing Chandigarh, for P at least, was the Fantasy Rock Garden. The garden takes you on a maze like walk through tiny doorways as you take in all the structures built up around you, all made of recycled garbage from a building that collapsed on the site. The last highlight of Chandigarh was Narinder Singh. Anyone with a stopover in Chandigarh, will, without a doubt, meet the ever so friendly, Narinder Singh. We're not quite sure how he does it, but he manages to meet all the backpackers that travel through the city. We took photos of him presenting us with a city map and then a scarf. Not sure where he gets these things from, but he was such a pleasant man to meet and gave us a great feel for Chandigarh. But even Narinder Singh couldn't make the museums less boring. So, we left.

Onto Shimla. Shimla was a cute city set on a gorgeous cliff. Our LP didn't seem to have much good info on lodging, so I asked the girl next to me on the bus if she could make a suggestion. She told me her dad was coming to pick her up from the bus stop and would drop us off at the passenger lift [ie: elevator that you pay to take you from the lower part of the steep city to the upper] and we could find a place easily on the top of the hill. The moment we get in the car and meet her dad, they insisted that we accept their invite as their houseguests for the night. How could we resist the chance for an impromptu homestay? So we gladly took the offer. The girl we met, Sheena, was 24 and just finished her MBA in Delhi and was coming home for a bit before her interviews began. Her Englsih was flawless, but though she claimed her parents understood English as well, we doubt that. Mom certainly understood nothing but wagged and wobbled her head along with the convo anyway. Dad's understanding was very selctive for what he was interested in talking about. No matter what the conversation was about, he would cut in at any moment and tell Sheena to translate for him as he talked about the orchard the family owned a few hours from Shimla. He was very proud of the orchard and was so cute as he just couldn't stop talking about it. After a delicious home cooked meal, Sheena suggested we go for a stroll. So we went upstairs to the roof of the building, walked in one direction for 30 feet, then turned around and walked the opposite way for 30 feet, etc etc. We paced back and forth chatting about arranged marriages. Sheena's folks say she's at prime marrying age, but Sheena has a different agenda in mind, which includes entering the professional world and becoming a successful working woman. She told us that her parents are already bringing suitable bachelors over the house to meet her, but she'll continue to turn them all down until she's ready. Go Sheena! However, since Sheena's family means everything to her and disappointing her parents is the last thing she wants to do, she'll eventually select a suitable husband from her cast and have the blow out wedding...to which we are invited to attend! Finally over an hour into our stroll, and after countless family photos on the rooftop, M admitted to feeling dizzy and we retreated indoors. We were awoken for a second delicious home cooked meal, stuffed parathas, homemade jam, fresh cream & chai, yum! We hung out a while, then packed up, exchanged hugs and contact info and headed to the lift to find the guesthouse Sheena's dad booked for us. We enjoyed every moment with Sheena's family and feel so lucky to have had the experience of a true homestay.
THANK YOU SHARWA FAMILY!!