We love living at the foothills of the Himalayans! Mountain hill stations are so much fun to VISIT…we
love escaping from the heat and humidity of our city by driving just a few
hours into the mountains! Some of our
most fun times in India, we have spent as a family in the mountains…BUT…we are
sooo glad that we don’t LIVE there.
Living in the mountains presents so many challenges. We are good for about two nights in the
mountains and then we are all ready to escape and retreat back to our
home. Mountain living = cold…just can’t
get warm kind of cold; damp, mold and mildew; steep inclines, switchbacks and
tons of stairs to get anywhere; water shortages; and even more unpredictable
electricity and internet.
To help you get a better visual image of what mountain life
is like, below you will find several pictures with brief descriptions…
Mountain road driving is always entertaining and even somewhat
dangerous especially for those who draw the “short-straw” and have to ride on
the outside of the vehicle.
Tea gardens and chai sipping are an everyday part of life.
There is no such thing as flat land…switchbacks, inclines,
and stairs…stairs…and more stairs…everywhere!
We had to climb 114 stairs in order to get to our homestay.
Sleeping in the mountains always means bundling up…no matter
what time of year…long-johns, multiple layers, hoodies, and heavy blankets!
Parking is always an issue...so creativity is a requirement! Fortunately, parking on the sidewalk is not
illegal!
Selling beef seems to be illegal everywhere else in India…except
in the hill stations…where you can get literally any and every part of the
animal.
Roadside snacks just taste so much better in the mountains!
Milk-delivery horses, monkeys begging for food, and live chickens hanging from the back of motorcycles…are all fun sites to see
driving in the mountains.
The Himalayan Mountains...an amazing place to visit, but we're so glad we don't live there!
