Abode in the lap of nature

Shoghi, a small town near Shimla, not only offers scenic views but delicious food and adventure, too.

The magical Himachalcity of Shoghi is nestledbetween a few mountainranges, and is so beautifulthat I thought we'vestrayed into a postcard.

My daughter's summerholidays had started and Iwas looking out for a placewhere she could be occupiedand I too could relax, didsome reccee and decided tohead up to Aamod atShoghi. A concept holiday isanyways one to be cherishedforever and this resortseemed perfect, more so foran eco-tourist like me. I sawthis as an opportunity tohave a close-knit holiday. Arain shower welcomed us atthe Kalka station, which wassuch a respite from theheat... and a great beginningto our holiday!

Basic adventure
On arrival, we were greetedwith beautiful pinewoodcottages which gave off acheery atmosphere. Therewas a huge activity centrefor the kids and lots ofshady trees. After breakfastthe next day, we startedwith the adventures. So wemoved on to crossing theBurma Bridge, rope walkingand flying fox. A bit of exercisebuilds an appetite andwhen our tummy startedrumbling we headed off tothe colonial restaurant for ahearty lunch of Himachalimadra and chawal, whichended on a sweet note withgur ke chawal, and life wasbliss. By the way there wasno sign of tiredness at all(blame the mountain air).Evening was spent playingscrabble at the recreationalcentre and we slept early towake up for our next adventure,which was a trek torock climbing and rappelling.Trust me nothingspells adventure like startingthe day by rappellingdown a cliff, especially ifyou've never rappelledbefore. One by one westrapped in and loweredourselves over the edge. Weended up at the bottom ofthe mountain, where we hadstarted the day nearly fourhours earlier, tired, scrapedand immensely gleeful.

Desi girls
The foodie that I am, Icouldn't resist the villagetour and meal experience ata local home. Our culinarysojourn started with a cupof tea made with freshlydrawn milk. We slid into thekitchen and it was fun tryingour hand at making therotis on the chullah. Wewere fed the most amazingfresh and organic (theygrow their vegetables withoutany chemicals) dinner,and we ate as if there wasno tomorrow. However thebest part was the dessert pure ghee and shakar!

After this experience itcomes as no surprise thatI'll be planning more suchholidays in the time to come.

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