Dehradun

Road to Dehradun

 On 16th March 2012, I undertook a trip to Dehradun by bus. An adventurous trip, as it was meant to be started in the Delhi metro which took me to the Anand Vihar ISBT where I boarded an Uttarkhand Travels bus to Dehradun. This was the first adventure trip I was to have on my own. The bus was a standard, non AC bus offering minimal comfort but a cheap ride. I got half a seat, thanks to the fat gentle man  seated next to me. Cursing obesity and the gentleman I kept on shifting and turning to save my body from being paralyzed.The bright spot was that the ticket from Delhi to Dun costed 183 Rs., a cheap affair. The bus takes some time to get out of Delhi as Ghaziabad suffers from the problem of traffic congestion. It could have been a nightmare but by God's grace the time for my trip was pleasant as the day was warm and the nights cool, offering me a lot of relief. The bus takes almost six hours to reach Dehradun making a half an hour stop at the Midway restaurant to cater to the needs of the travellers. The restaurant is expensive and the quality of food is unmistakably not upto the standards of a decent restaurant. I felt a knot building up my stomach having to pay Rs.5 extra on a chips pack of Rs.10 i.e. an increase by 50%. It can be avoided without any regrets.  Anyways it wasn't too bad for the first time.The next stop, the bus makes is at Roorkee (known for having the prestigious IIT). The halt is for a duration of five to ten minutes at the bus stand. Moving towards Dun from Roorkee turns out to be a feast for the eyes. Forests and Valleys surround the road to Dehradun. As the bus takes the road upwards to the hill, the sights grow more pleasant and the bus, slower.

      As I had to meet a friend at Roorkee who would accompany me to Dun I had the opportunity to get out of the bus and stretch my legs. The trip from Roorkee to Dun was amazing thanks to the enjoyable and pleasant company of my school time buddy. Moreover the natural beauty of the place is enthralling even from the bus. Mesmerised by the scenic beauty and the school time memories I arrived to Dehradun by nightfall.

The Clock Tower in Dehradun

    Dehradun is a small place, a sleepy town which welcomes visitors rather well. The cordial attitude of the people won't overshadow the fact that travellers may be hassled by autorickshaws fighting over them. We face the same hassling at the bus stop which disturbed my friend a little. But we soon got over it and boarded a Rickshaw to a nearby hotel.Too tired from a long trip we settled for a quick rest. One of the nearest hotels to the bus stand which offers a peaceful and decently comfortable stay is "Sunder Palace". Moderately priced, it offers modest rooms with basic amenities like hot water, t.v and 24 hours room service. The attraction of the place is the food, which is good to taste and isn't heavily priced. An A.C Room for two costs around Rs. 1500, while a meal (for two) would cost somewhere between Rs. 200-300. We quickly ordered some food for ourselves as we were totally famished. The quantity and quality of the food was a pleasant surprise for us. Tired of the long trip I soon was asleep. I got up late the next morning. We had a quick breakfast and went around to explore the city. Staying at Delhi doesn't help you appreciate the amenities a city like Dehradun provides which my friend stuck up in Roorkee did. Instead of concentrating on exploring the town we trekked towards the valleys. We came back dead tired at night. We had some supper in our room and then went off to sleep. The staff of the hotel was helpful and polite making the stay pleasant.


        Dehradun enjoys the bounty of nature. To be able to enjoy the place, visitors need to trek to nearby areas such as Jharipani which would ensure their bonding with the nature. The forests and valleys appear beautiful and the experience takes a man far from the hustle and bustle of modern day life. One can visit some famous schools in the vicinity which are marvellous constructions and a sight to watch resting on the top of the hills or at the bottom of the valleys. Some of them, such as the Oak Grove school are quite old and are beautiful specimens of British architecture. The town is not much to watch and resembles any other town of India. What makes it worthy of a visit is the abundance of nature in the place, the opportunities for adventure sports such as trekking nad rafting and a quiet retreat from the busy life of a large city.

  The return journey was more comfortable in comparison as I was able to catch an Uttarakhand Travels AC Luxury coach. It costed twice the amount of money but ensured a comfortable travel especially when it took me an hour more to reach Delhi on account of heavy traffic at Ghaziabad. The comfort was balanced by the sorrow of parting with my friend who helped me forget everything for a couple of days and just enjoy life. But the mood changed as soon as I set my foot in Delhi and as usual it was buisness the next day onwards.