Himachal Meanderings

A Guest House at Naggar 

On the last day of my previous trip to Naggar I happened to visit a Guest House as I walked from the Castle to the Roerich Estate. The Alliance Guest House is run by Gill; a person of French origin who speaks fluent Hindi. He had – with affection – shown me around the place and I recall being intrigued by the simple room; a guest staying there had to use a common toilet but the room had paper, pen, water-bottle, kettle and a torch. The basics were well thought out and in place.

During this trip I made amends and stayed at the Alliance Guest House. Besides the stay enjoyed chatting with Gill.

Image Credit: Alliance Guest House - Facebook Page

The room I got (the others were all occupied) was the room where the then single room Guest House began in 1982; 5 years after Gill had arrived in India. It sat cosily near an open dining space; a lounge with a Himalayan view! Enticing place for conversations and silences with those like minded.Here I put in time with a – new for me – author, a book I picked up from the Guest House’s 500+ multi-language book collection. I also enjoyed the drizzle as I looked afar at the impact of the unseasonal  snowfall!

The Guest House, built on a hill, boasts of 9 rooms at different levels. One of these levels also has of a large hall where guests can indulge in a range of actions from table-tennis to meditation; of course not simultaneously. Simple and clean – 2 words strike as one moves around the property.

Then of course there is food which is served at multiple dining places across the property. During my 3 days I saw Gill and his daughter (who runs the place with him) frequent join the cook in the kitchen. On the first day, hungry on arrival, when I asked for what I could get quickly the cook told me – anything will take about 20 – 25 minutes, we make it all fresh.

I get a very different ‘feel’ I conveyed to Gill on the second day. Gill then shared some of the thoughts that have gone into creating this ‘feel’. Guests, on arrival, look forward to hot or cold water to drink and to bathe along with possibly a cup of tea - the last thing they want to do is fill up lengthy forms. These are taken care of. It is simple, he adds, people coming are treated like guests. The idea is to create a society where people from different walks of life come together, for what little time they do, and promote human relations. He also stressed on the importance of trees, both those standing tall before he began and those he helped plant. To use his words, “the layout is respectful of the ecological environment”.

Talking about the past he mentioned how 2 events positively impacted tourism in Himachal Pradesh; including Naggar. First was the insurgency in Kashmir during late 1980’s which led to Kashmir getting out of bounds for tourists. Then the opening of gates for Israeli tourists during mid 1990’s. That was long ago. Coming to the guest trends during recent years Gill shared that the proportion of Indians had risen. Many of these were young parents in their late thirties or early forties with their children – keen to get away from the ‘city’ life and get a ‘new’ experience. At the same time the number of people walking in had come down drastically; this courtesy the internet. He was happily surprised when I landed up without any calls or mails!

Image Credit: Alliance Guest House - Facebook Page

We moved on to Naggar. It used to be a much smaller place till not long ago he said and the first telephone connection here came in 1995. Roerich Estate, Naggar Castle and Chandrakhani Pass (Naggar is the take-off place) bring tourists to Naggar. The spill-over Manali crowd and the people coming for monasteries nearby are few. All the properties at Naggar, except one, are run by the owners and each one of them has worked hard. Today they also have an association. The going however is not easy, especially on the environmental front. But then trash, he pointed out, was an issue across the country!

During the last day of this trip as I walked towards Ramsu I came across the (for now) only hostel at Naggar. As I stopped for a chat the manager made a poignant statement, “It is not uncommon for people to stay more than they planned for at Naggar; Naggar has that something”.  Similar is the case with Alliance Guest House. Being clear of its objective (an interesting one at that) and very good with the basics may not read pompous and flattering but not many properties get these correct in this manner!