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            MUSSOORIE TRAVEL GUIDE

Mussoorie is a city about 30 km from Dehradun and in Dehradun district  This hill
station, situated in the foothills of the Himalaya ranges, is also known as the Queen
of the Hills. The adjoining town of Landour, which includes a military cantonment, is
considered part of 'greater Mussoorie', as are the townships of Barlowganj and
Jharipani.

Being at an average altitude of 2,000 meters (6,600 ft), Mussoorie, with its green hills
and varied flora and fauna, is a fascinating hill resort. Commanding snow ranges to
the north-east, and glittering views of the Doon Valley and Shiwalik ranges in the
south, the town was once said to present a 'fairyland' atmosphere to tourists.

The history of Mussoorie dates back to 1825 when Captain Young, an adventurous
British military officer, together with a Mr. Shore, the resident Superintendent of
Revenues at Dehradun explored the present site and jointly constructed a shooting
lodge. This laid the foundation of this holiday resort which now has few rivals.

The name Mussoorie is often attributed to a derivation of 'mansoor', a shrub which is
indigenous to the area. The town is in fact often referred to as 'Mansoori' by locals.

The main promenade in Mussoorie is called, as in other hill stations, the Mall. In
Mussoorie, the Mall stretches from Picture Palace at its eastern end to the Public
Library (shortened to 'Library') at its western end. During the British Raj, signs on the
Mall expressly stated: "Indians and Dogs Not Allowed"; racist signs of this type were
commonplace in hill stations, which were founded 'by and for' the British. Motilal
Nehru, the father of Jawahar Lal Nehru, deliberately broke this rule every day
whenever he was in Mussoorie, and would pay the fine. The Nehru family, including
Nehru's daughter Indira (later Indira Gandhi) were frequent visitors to Mussoorie in
the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. They also spent much time in nearby Dehradun,
where Nehru's sister Vijayalakshmi Pandit ultimately settled full-time.

In April 1959, after fleeing Chinese occupation of Tibet, the Dalai Lama established
the Tibetan Government of Exile in Mussoorie. The Government of Tibet in exile
eventually moved to Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh. The first Tibetan school was
established in Mussoorie in 1960. Tibetans settled mainly in Happy Valley in
Mussoorie. Today, some 5,000 Tibetans live in Mussoorie.

Now, Mussoorie suffers from over-development of hotels and tourist lodges, given
its relative proximity to Delhi, Ambala and Chandigarh, and has serious problems of
garbage collection, water scarcity and parking shortages, especially during the
summer tourist season. Landour, Jharipani and Barlowganj have fewer such
problems.


PLACE TO VISIT

Mussoorie has a beautiful nature walk known as "Camel's Back Road". This road
takes its name from mountain outcrop in the shape of a camel's hump. Along the
camel back, a beautiful cemetery is located about mid-way on the loop. There is also
"Gun Hill" where cannons were kept for the defense of Mussoorie. Gun Hill is
accessible by the cable car on the Mall road. The oldest Christian church in the
Himalayas, St Mary's, is situated above Mall Road, and is currently undergoing
restoration. Kempty falls is a nice picnic spot. Company Garden is popular tourist
destination. During season, the Company Garden has beautiful collection of flowers
and plants. Happy Valley has a small Tibetan temple. This was the first Tibetan
temple built in India. The temple was constructed in 1960 by the Tibetan refugees.
Lal Tibba is another tourist spot of Mussoorie. Beautiful Dhanaulti is about 24
kilometers from Mussorie. Mussoorie also had India's largest roller skating rink.
Mussoorie is a popular destination for honeymooning couples, mainly because of its
relatively cool climes and calm and lovely environment.


HOW TO REACH

The reason why one should visit the park and camp there is to experience that part of
the himlayan countryside where till date trees are cut for fire to cook ones food and
leaves collected to feed their cattle to run their milk based susbsistence economy.
How many plants are till date being exploited and not being replenished thereby
ruining the habitat to support some funadmental lives of insects, butterflies,
pheasants who survive on the food cycle. How the have nots live and how one can
help them come out of this rut.This is an area for study of responsible tourism,
responsible in more than one way. It is also an area to enjoy the rare cultures of the
world which are specific to the region.This is perhaps the only part of the world
where polyandry had been practiced till recent times. Some cases still
exist!!Polyandry is when one woman simultaneously or intermitantly marries more
than one man usually five men based on the practice of the historical five Pandavas
and their sole wife Dropadi.

Enjoy the solitude of the wilderness, meditation and yoga, white water rafting in the
Yamuna, rock climbing river crossing and above all living with the country folk. These
are the social and leisure aspects of one's visit to this area.The botanical, zoological
and geological wealth has much for the environmentalist to come and study and
help protect in the interest of global warming and protection Earth Rights. Those who
wish to study disaster management in practice and witness landslides, flash floods,
land erosion, geological faults etc. study the health of Himalayan rivers which bring
in fresh water from the glaciers which gush through various minerals and produce
natural mineral waters of different varieties at various point of their journey which
could offer various hydrotherapies for various natural cures and add to the
knowledge of wealth for alternative medicine and r acquatic life support systems in
these waters, this is the ideal place for them to come and camp at Nature Park and
make trips around

By bus - Buses leave from Dehradun train station. There are two buses which go
to opposite ends of the Mussoorie Mall, Library and Picture Palace. It is quite a hike
from one to the other, so make sure you catch the right one. To reach Kempty Falls
directly from Dehra Dun catch a bus from the Dehra Dun Railway station Hill Bus
Services Section or take a taxi. One should look for buses heading for destinations
like Barkot, Nainbagh, Yamunotri, and Purola (Caution:sometimes Purola buses go
via Vikas nagar which may take you off the route completely so be careful). You can
also take a bus to the Library end of Mussoorie and walk to the Kempty Bus stop and
take a bus or taxi or a milkvan or even hitch a ride with a tourist going in that
direction!! Toll Tax is payable on entering Kempty Village per bus/taxi/car/scooter.

By taxi - It is possible to hire a taxi for the trip up to Mussoorie. Rates should be
around Rupees 400-550 but one can pay per seat as well in a shared taxi which
normally accommodates upto five passengers.Shared or chartered taxis too are
available near the same Hill Section Bus terminal and the rates are controlled by the
taxi union. These rates are generally displayed on a board outside their office.