Travel Diary: A Soulful Journey from Punjab to Himachal by Bus

The Journey Ahead: Learning About Local Life and Culture in Himachal Pradesh 

 On a cold morning, the bus was slowly picking up speed. The bus was travelling from Delhi to Chamba. On one side sat a large family from Delhi, heading to Himachal to attend a wedding. They were not Himachali by origin; they were visiting the state for the first time to attend the wedding of the daughter of their Himachali neighbor from Delhi.

        On our three-seater bench, one member of that family sat to my left, while to my right sat an elderly man who looked to be in his sixties. The family members were chatting among themselves, from which I gathered that they were travelling for the wedding. Their children’s excited conversations made it clear that they were very curious about Dhaam — the traditional feast served at weddings in Himachal, consisting mainly of rice, lentils, and “maani”.

        As soon as the bus crossed from Punjab into Himachal, a warm smile appeared on the face of the man sitting to my right. Naturally, he began to talk to us; until then, he had been quiet for at least 10–15 minutes. When the bus started moving along the road built on top of the Pong Dam, he brightened up completely and eagerly pointed out the dam to us.

        The vast stretch of water looked incredibly beautiful, and now that the sun had started warming the bus, the view became even more delightful.

        In winter, this area around the dam attracts countless migratory birds from the far north — species that travel thousands of kilometers. Though the dam itself spans only a few kilometers, the water released from it irrigates lakhs of acres of farmland and sustains the livelihood of lakhs of families. The economy of Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan depends heavily on the network of dams built along the Punjab–Himachal border.

        The family from Delhi began comparing the clean environment of Himachal with the pollution in Delhi. The Himachali man sitting beside me also worked in Delhi and was travelling back home to attend a relative’s wedding. Hearing the praise for Himachal’s pure air made him visibly happy — after all, someone was appreciating the land where he was born.

        By then, the bus had reached Khajjiad. The Himachali man gently asked whether we were vegetarian or non-vegetarian. Without waiting for an answer, he enthusiastically told us that Khajjiad serves excellent fish, and if we ate non-veg, we should definitely try it here.

        Soon after, the bus reached Mangarh village, where the large family from Delhi got off. Now, I began asking the Himachali gentleman more about the local area, because his village was still 20–30 kilometres ahead, and I wanted to learn more from him about this region.

        By the way, I should mention—I was travelling only from Talwara to Jassur in Kangra District of Himachal Pradesh on this bus.

To be continued…

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ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਵਿਚ ਪੜ੍ਹਨ ਲਈ ਇੱਥੇ ਕਲਿੱਕ ਕਰੋ।

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