Mussoorie is a hill station in north of India, located at a height of 6000 ft. It is about 35 km away from Dehradun.
I stayed in Mussoorie for about one month, in May of 2010. My main reason for visiting Mussoorie was to study Hindi in the Landour Language School. Here you can also learn Sanskrit, Urdu and the local dialect called Garhwali.
I was staying on top of a hill very close to the school, just 4 minutes walking distance. From there I could see the Himalayas on a clear day. It was a beautiful place to stay. I was living in a home stay which was convenient because it felt like my own home.The host always made dinner for me so I didn’t have to think about that and breakfast was also always there for me to take.
The view that is typical for Mussoorie is the following, mountains, and if you get lucky you will be able to see the snow covered tops of Himalaya.
The breathtaking view over the city of Mussoorie:
When I was in Mussoorie in May there was a celebration. I got to see people dress as different religious characters and hear the sound of drums and brass bands. The next day they were preparing food and giving it to the people.
15 km from Mussoorie will take you to Kempty Falls. It is a tourist place where you can see a beautiful waterfall. It takes only 20 minutes to drive from Mussoorie to Kempty falls. The waterfall plunge 40 feet down. Take your own swimming suit and towel with you, if you have forgotten then you can rent it also. You can even take a dip near the waterfalls but it can get very crowded. You might have to push yourself through the colorful floating rings which people like to use in the water. See the pictures to understand what I mean. At the waterfall there lots of restaurants and venders. The car park is far away from the waterfall so get ready to walk a lot to get to this waterfall. There is a cable car to take you to the bottom of the waterfall where an amusement park is. Fee for that is around 80 rupees.
The peace and quiet place in Mussoorie will be find in the Tibetan Buddhist temple area. It is on the top of a hill with great view over the green mountains. It is located on the Happy Valley Road. It is a nice place to visit and is very different from the rest of Mussoorie, so it is a must see place. Even Dalai Lama have been here when he fled from Tibet. Around 5000 Tibetans lives in the Happy Valley. The temple is open between 7 am to 5 pm every day.
When you want to see more of Mussoorie you can go with the cable cars that will take you to a view point called Gun Hill. Here you can see the Himalayas, Mussoorie town and Doon Valley. If you want you can even rent costumes to use when taking picture with the breathtaking view in the background.
Random pictures taken in Mussoorie:
Another place to visit is the Company Garden or Municipal Garden which is located 4 km away from Mussoorie. It is a tourist post with restaurants and stalls even a small amusement park.You can also see the Himalayas through the telescope they have there. You can also go with a boat ride made to look like swans in the artificial lake. Entrance fee is 15 rupees and they are open between 9 am to 7.30 pm. It takes about 2 hours to see all. The garden is the perfect picnic place and is a great scenic spot.
How to reach Mussoorie?
If you come from New Delhi you can take the train to Dehradun station or take a direct flight to the Dehradun Airport (Jolly Grant Airport). There goes 3 flights everyday, it is a 1-hour flight. From the train station and the airport you can take a taxi to Mussoorie. Another alternative is to take the bus from Dehradun train station. The bus will cost around 45 rupees/person and the taxi will be from 1000 rupees/one way. When I was there I took the train from Delhi which took about 6 hours and then the taxi from Dehradun to Mussoorie and that was a fine trip. The train trip can get little boring if you do not have anything to read or music to listen too.
Best time to visit Mussoorie is between March and June also between September to November. Since Mussoorie is a hill station on high altitudes the maximum degree will only be 30 degrees Celsius. This is therefore a preferred destination when you want to cool off from the heat in example New Delhi. During winter the roads might be closed due to snowfall and my host told me they have to use helicopters in order to send over food in the wintertime. So avoid winter in Mussoorie.
Memories from Mussoorie:
I remember that the road from Landour Language School to main city was an adventures one. On narrow roads where only one car could get by at a time you had to make space even if there were none. Its good to have good walking schools because you are going to need it when the roads are not the most convenient ones. I remember the taxi barely came over the small narrow road on a little hill. Luckily the taxi drivers have done this before and know how to get around through the streets of Mussoorie.
Other memories of Mussoorie is the internet cafe that is located half way down on the hill from Landour School. Here I used to spend time surfing the net and order a chocolate cake, I have forgotten the name of it. Since I used to come there almost every day the owner got used to having me there and that has its benefits. For example they will not be so strict on how long you sit and surf the net when its time to pay up. Also I got a tip on a good taxi driver who could give a good price going back and forward to main city. Through that contact I also got good rates when I was doing my sightseeing for example going to Kempty falls for 1500 rupees for a whole day. That is a good offer. It is good to have a taxi driver you can trust, because you will get fooled when you are trying to find a taxi from Mall road and trying to get back up to Landour School again. It cost around 150 rupees to get to the school from the city center.
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