Nainital – Day 2

Day 2 in Nainital kicked off with a song Ink by Coldplay (my alarm tone since 2015).”I don’t wanna miss it” I said this to myself and rushed to the balcony to witness the sunrise on the hills. To my surprise, the day turned out to be foggy, overcast and chilly. The clouds gathered like an army empowered in a battle against Sun.  A close miss, I must say !!

Everyone discussed the ideal itinerary for the day while packing up the stuff and out of all brunch at Machan restaurant topped the list. We kept our luggage at the baggage counter in the hotel(for free) and moved out of the place with our umbrellas like the power puff girls!! Before leaving the hotel, we decided to capture few moments and here they are –

We walked down the streets of Nainital to find Machan restaurant and after reaching the place, we found it to be closed 🙁  After waiting for around 10- 15 minutes, we decided to choose one restaurant out of Embassy and Giannis. Bhavini tossed the coin and Giannis was chosen. I(We) ordered Chole Bhature with lemonade. Howbeit, the place was small but the ambiance was good and the food was super delicious.

Lover’s or Suicide point

After heavy brunch, we decided to explore eco cave park which was on the Kaladungi road, hardly a km away  from the Mallital. Phew ! It was closed due to festivities in the town 🙁 Anyhow, here is a snapshot of “How it looks like” –

Shortly later, we decided to hire a taxi to explore more of Nainital. No, actually some drivers offered us an itinerary of six places near Nainital and we thought of giving it a try. The driver took us to the point on the way called Lover’s Point or Suicide Point where one can only experience a mediocre view of the mountains and in addition to this, it started drizzling !!

Land’s End

Our next stop was Land’s End point, located at an altitude of 2118 meters and about 4 km’s from Nainital. The place really gave me the feeling of reaching at the dead end of the land. It felt like there’s nothing beyond this point and the sense of satisfaction made me feel heavenly. The place provided a splendid view of Khurpatal, nearby villages, and forest. This place would leave any nature lover in awe.

Furthermore, Pictures don’t lie !!

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Saria Tal

It was a small but beautiful lake. The calm green water of the lake and the serene surroundings was alluring. Under our umbrellas, we walked around it to reach a place where there was a water stairway. Water was damn cold but we managed well to dance on song ♫ Main nachu aaj cham cham cham ♫ and clicked loads of funny, refreshing and awe moments. The lake also had boating facility and a small children’s park nearby. After a while, the smell of freshly roasted bhutta(corn) has invited us to this tiny shack selling tea and bhutta near the lake. In a moment or so, it started raining cats and dogs and we rushed in a haphazard way to our taxi.

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Waterfall

There was this beautiful waterfall near Saria tal. Luckily !! rain stopped as we reached the place. We brought tickets and clicked few shots until it started raining again. There were few shops in front of the place selling eatables and essentials. Next stop was the Khurpatal but our driver told us that the car would not be able to go that far and we have to walk on foot for the last few kilometers which seemed impossible in that heavy rain. Hence, the rains washed our desire to take a closer look at the lake. Then the driver added that the lake actually does not look so appealing from near just to lessen our disappointment  😛

Sakley, The mountain café

Love is in the air and I can smell it- the freshly baked cakes and pastry. I instantly fell in love with this quaint little place. The menu options were quite diverse and extensive with Indian, Continental, and Thai/Oriental covered but it was still their pastries that kept everyone drooling and we ordered brownie with hot chocolate which was so exotic and tempting. One can also try their signature dessert dishes- lemon tart, éclairs, and lava cake.

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This place at the end of Mallital will never gonna disappoint a sweet-aholic. Even if you don’t dine here, swing by and pick up some dessert to take back home. They are currently open in Nainital, Gurgaon, New Delhi, and London.

Catch if you can – the train to Delhi @8:40 pm!

While sitting in Sakley, we again checked for the reservation status of our train to Delhi which was unlikely to get cleared. Ahaan !! “We got our seats confirmed.” I started shouting. Palak looked at her watch and it was 5:20 pm. We(Palak and I) walked towards the taxi stand in the heavy rain and started inquiring for the taxi till kathgodam. Meanwhile, Archana and the team had collected our luggage from the hotel.

Unfortunately, no taxi was available due to rain and festive rush. After spending almost 40 minutes at the taxi stand,  we got one taxi with 3 seats and another one with 2 seats.

Again !! Some bad omen 🙁 We got stuck in the jam when the kathgodam was hardly at a distance of 6.5 km from the place. Bhavini called me up and we decided that we will wait for another 15 minutes and if the jam didn’t get clear by then, we will walk till kathgodam. As the minute hand struck 5 (7:25 pm), we came out of our taxis and started walking (courtesy ~ google maps). The road was dark, silent and congested with traffic. It was very tough to walk with the luggage on but we kept walking and running (I meant brisk walking) alternatively.

It was 8:00 pm and we were still 3 km short of Kathgodam. Our luggage bags were holding us back from running fast. I was getting the double feeling –

What if we miss this train? What if no buses were available from Kathgodham to Delhi  ? What if blah blah blah? 

Goosebumps!! 1.3 km more to be covered and it was 8:20 pm. Luckily, we found an auto driver who dropped us to the railway station at 8:35 pm. We did it !! were the last words before I fell carelessly on my seat to catch my breath.

Meet My lady gang

FACTS AND TIPS ABOUT THE PLACE

Cave Gardens : Entry timings – 9:30 am to 5:30 pm and entry fee 20 for adults and 10 for children. An extra fee of 25 for carrying a camera inside.

Best places to dine : Nainital is known for its restaurants. Here is the list of my personal favorites – Sakley’s, Chandani Chowk, Machan, Embassy, Sher-E-Punjab and Gardenia.

Governor’s House : Built in 1899 and designed in the domestic Gothic style by the architect F.W. Stevens. It is the official guest house for the governor of Uttarakhand and for visiting state guests. The complex consists of a two-storied mansion with 113 rooms, a large garden, a swimming pool, and golf links. Obtaining prior permission is a must for visiting.

Aryabhatta Research Institute of observational sciencES (ARIES) : Located at a distance of 4.5 from Nainital on Manora peak, this place is a center for astronomical studies and optical tracking of artificial satellites. For night viewing, days are fixed and prior permission is needed.

Trekking Options : China peak/Cheena peak trek and Snow view trek and Tiffin top trek and Pindari Glacier trek are the options for trekking.

FINAL WORDS

Day 2 had  both sweet and sour flavors to it. On one hand, the rain has turned everything so beautiful but it kept us from visiting few places. No worries !! Nainital is mere a weekend away from my place and a sec  from my thoughts 😀 Besides, the restaurants in here left my taste buds with a silent sense of content and I still had a taste of that exotic brownie on my lips (yumm !!)

This is a place where one can go again and again and still never get bored of it. So get up and book your tickets for this common yet amazing hill station !!

Let us know how do you like the post by leaving a comment below –

“Whenever you are surrounded by the hardships of life, go to the woods and hills! Nature’s charm will never fail to leave a smile on your face”.

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