Manali

Manali, at the northern end of the Kullu Valley in Himachal Pradesh, is a hill station situated at a height of 2050 m (6398 ft) in the Himalayas. Situated on the Beas river (Vyaas in Hindi) and near its source, it is a popular tourist spot for Indians in summer and a magical, snow-covered place in winter. A staging point for a number of treks (Beas Kund, Chandrakhani Pass) and sports such as white-water rafting, Manali is also on the road to Ladakh via the valley of Lahaul and Spiti and rohtang pass which is main attraction near manali. It is an excellent place for a holiday, a favorite resort for trekkers to Lahaul, Spiti, Bara Bhangal (Kangra), and Zanskar ranges. From temples to antiquity, to picturesque sight-seeing spots and adventure activities, Manali is a popular resort for all seasons and for all travellers.

The Major trekking areas in Manali are

Chanderkhani- Malana Trek : 3660Mts

Beas Kund Trek: 3660 Mts

Chandertal (base of Deo Tibba):

4480Mts

Bhrigu Lake: 4240Mts

Chandertal over Hamta Pass: 4800Mts

Manali- Padum: 5090Mts

Manali- Lamayuru: 5090Mts

Bara Bhangal Trek: 4878Mts

Pin Parvati Pass: 4810Mts

Kibber Tsomoriri over Parang La:

5450Mts

Another adventres are Skiing, Mountain

Biking, Fishing, Jeep Safaries, Adventure

Camps.

About the taste of manali, first on the list is a small box made

of planks of wood loosely nailed together. You need to get on a local

bus from Manali to Kullu, and get off at Patlikul. At the Patlikul

crossing you need to head on to the Naggar road. 50 meters down the

road on your right is the above mentioned box. Step inside and sit on

the bench, the inner wall are soot blackened and the place has a

wonderful ambience and fragrance. It’s a momo/thupka place run by

a Tibetan family. The key thing to great Momos in Manali is that they

should be fresh and they should be hot. Only if these two conditions

are fulfilled do you get a truly great momo. A great momo envelopes

within it the melted fat of the meat that it’s made with. Chicken,

Mutton and the glorious Pork momo should drip the melted fat as you

bite into it. Similarly the small and large dots of fat float in the thupka

and add their fragrance to the environment. This smell of melting fat

with the garlic in water bottles on the table and the other herbs used

make this place favourite for momos and thupka in the entire Manali

valley.

For the less adventurous its strongly recommend a visit to Chopsticks

on the main Manali Mall, opposite the entry to the bus stand. The

Chinese and Tibetanfood in Manali and specificly in Chopsticks comes

with the statutory warning “Beware of the Huge Portions”. Most

favourite here is the America Chopsuoy, they don’t make in taste like

crispy noodles smothered with tomato ketchup. It’s a more delicate

affair where you can taste the different vegetables and the meat is

juicy and fresh. Another most favourite here are the Khotey momos.

Now the absolute worst thing you can do to a momo is fry it. That’s

the death of a momo. But if you do like your momos fried then the

Khotey momo is a pan seared version. Large juicy momo are shallow

fried on a pan. Rather than fried I would describe them as browned on

one side. While retaining the juicy nature of the momo the pan sear

gives the outer shell a mild crispiness and that what makes Khotey

momos a unique must have food in Manali.

Get In To Manali

BY BUS

Manali is 570 kms from Delhi, the capital of India, and there are buses connecting the town with

Delhi, Shimla, Dharamsala and Leh. For service from Delhi to Manali and back, tickets and

reservations can be made at the Inter State Bus Terminus or the Himachal Tourism office on Safdar

Hashmi Marg near Mandi House in New Delhi. You can book tickets online too. The approximate

travel time from Delhi to Manali is 14 hours; from Ambala to Manali is 10 hours; from Chandigarh is

08 hours and from Kulu to Manali is 1.5 to 3 hours.

BY TRAIN

The nearest Broad Gauge Rail Head is Ambala Cantt(200 km) or Chandigarh (250 km)from Indian

Capital New Delhi. Ambala Cantt is on the Delhi - Amritsar and Delhi - Jammu main lines and is well

served by rail, but you will need to travel to Ambala to get a bus for the 10 hour ride to Manali.

Jogindernagar and Kalka are other, less preferable, rail heads for Manali. The nearest Broad gauge

station is Kiratpur Sahib in punjab near the city of Nangal. It lies in Ropar district of Punjab. The

station lies on the Ambala Cantt - Una route of Indian Railways. From here you can easily get buses

for Manali.

BY PLANE

The nearest airport is Bhuntar ( Kullu ) Airport ( Tel: 01902-265037, 265603), 50 km from Manali, 10

km from Kullu, about two hours away. Indian Airlines and Kingfisher airlines operate flights to Kullu

from Delhi and Chandigarh. However the services can be irregular, and airfares can be prohibitively

high. From the airport the best option to go to Manali is by Pre Paid taxi which is easily available

there. The taxi stand is 100m from the airport. They have written prices with minimum Rs. 1200 to

Manali. Alternatively just go to Kullu and take a frequent public bus.

©Sidharth Babu