Final day-Day 13:

Early morning 5:30 am, we wake up and gather our bags. By now everyone’s begin to miss their parents and their sunny home state. Sanvordem arrives. The next station is Margao. Reach Margao station at 6:15 am. And that’s how an incredible tour comes to an end. Even though there is no dearth of the places that mesmerize us, the fact remains that nothing beats our beautiful GOA, our home!!!

Day 12:

The ensuing day on the train is spent in reminiscing about the tour.

Day 11:

Hmmm… everyone in a big hurry. The train bound for Agra is to arrive at around 8:30 am. So, all are in a mad rush. We haul ourselves into taxis and set off for the railway station. We have our breakfast there and then board the train to Agra. Reach Agra at around 11:30 am.

Once there, we proceed for the siteseeing of the place most synonymous with Agra-the Taj Mahal. A mausoleum combining the Mughal, Persian, Islamic and Indian architectural styles, it is counted among the Seven Wonders of the World. A treat for the eyes! Once done with the Taj site-seeing we go to the Pizza Hut. By then it is almost 4:00 pm and the train back to Goa is due at 5:30 pm. So, we decide to speed up and reach the station in time for the train and start our journey back home.

day 10 continued...

So we have to hurry up with the temple sight seeing and unfortunately we could be there only for half of the day, and mind you, the security checks there eat up quite a lot of your time.

After Akshardham, it is shopping time!!! But alas, we are real short of time. We are hungry by this time and first go to KFC and then head off to Palika Bazar. After about an hour there, we move on to Karolbagh. But as luck would have it, it is closing time when we reach there. After a brief but quite an eventful shopping spell, we return back to the hotel. Almost all of us are awake till quite late that night. Next day we are to head to Agra.

Day 7 :

So now, we are done with the breathtaking Manali and we set off for Shimla. That’s after the breakfast at around 8.30 am. On the way we halt at the Vaishnomata temple and pay our respects to the deity.

                                                     

And as luck would have it, I get a cramp in my leg. I am unable to move and it’s getting more and more painful with time. That means I can’t climb the temple stairs anymore. Hmmm… So now I have to wait outside, while everyone else has already begun climbing. I am quite dejected. Meanwhile Aniket says he knows how to handle such cramps since he had learned about it while going for his diving classes. And thanks to him, I can actually walk around and the pain is reduced. Then in the bus, the entire back seat is reserved for me. And let me tell you one thing-though we are yet to pass out as engineers, there is no shortage of dangerously overqualified doctors in our group. Suggestions start pouring in from everywhere. I am pampered a lot. All thanks to Aniket, Tosha, Apurva, Sandhya, Harsh and Amogh. Thanks a lot for being there, peopleJ.

Day 6 :

We leave for Hadimba temple at around 8.30am .We walk up the slope and after taking the blessings we head to the nearby stalls for a hot local breakfast and some shopping. After relishing the parathas with lots and lots of butter, we return to the hotel. A sweet surprise awaits us at the hotel backyard, the traditional women with amazing traditional costumes! We try out the costumes and enjoy a quick photo shoot with the lady who was a part of a Famous TV ad.

Then most of us go for the exciting river rafting in the cold waters of the river in Kullu, while some go for shopping in the city. The river rafting is an adventure sport, we enjoy it to our heart full, even if you don’t enjoy rafting, the cold waters make you realize what you are missing!

We all are dead tired as we jump out of the rafts, thank our guides and sit along the campfire put up by them to bring our lost breath back. After that, we get back to the hotel. On the way back a session of jokes emerged out of our creative heads and that truly made the trip worth while. All hit the beds as soon as they could and mental preparations began for the next day to head for Shimla.

Day 5:

We leave for snow point in jeeps, after having our breakfast .Our jeep skids on the slippery road, & the “Ladka Party”, as the driver referred to them, roll up their sleeves and push it up the slope. Once there we do skiing, which we couldn’t enjoy to our fullest, but the sliding tire does make our trip worth the effort. We climb up the snow peaks, make a snowman, play with the snow, slide down the slope and of course pose for a lot many photos. We then proceed to the Vasist Bath, where we see the hot water sulphur springs. After having a blast at the snow point, walking up the slope leaves us fatigued. Then we return to the hotel. Have dinner and then a campfire is put up outside the hotel. Looking into the fire all the tour mates feel warmth run through their cold tired minds, it was a night to remember with all the singing and dancing we enjoyed. Finally as the strength of the flames start to fade; we decide to call it a Day.