The highlight of Shimla is the Mall and at any given point one can find hordes of travellers walking around there.
There are some lovely eateries for lunch and snacks of which I liked hideout for continental foid, Stosso for milk shakes and Burgrill for fast food.
Of course the iconic Indian Coffee House is also there with their dainty cucumber sandwiches, bread and butter which tastes nothing like what we cook at home and all kinds of dosas..
But what most people probably don’t know now is why a point near the fork which goes up from the Mall to the Ridge is called the Scandal Point.
The story goes that they the Maharaja of Patiala in 1882 ( Bhupindra Singh) was bewitched by the daughter of the British Viceroy. He elope with her from this point. There’s a bridle path on which horses could have taken them swiftly.
Bhupindra Singh was banned from Shimla and went in to found the city of Chail nearby.
It is here that the statue of Lala Lajpat Rai was installed in 1948 by Dr Gopichand Bhargava.
This statue had a very interesting journey.
In 1928 Lala Lajpat Rai died as a result of blows from the British when he was protesting against the Simon Commission.
In 1929 Congress Session, Bhabesh Chandra Sanyal was given the task of making his bronze statue which was installed in Lahore at Gol Bagh now Nasir Bagh. The foundation stone was laid by Gandhi ji and Nehru ji and unveiling done by Vithal Bhai Patel in 1930.
In 1947 in the wake of the Partition, refugees were fleeing from Lahore. The Congress and Arya Sarvrajya Sabha workers didn’t want to leave it behind and hurriedly brought it down from the pedestal and brought with them in the train.
It was installed in 1948 as mentioned above and stands there as an inspiration for all who pass by it.
Sandwiches at the Indian Coffee House
Pasta in Pesto sauce at Hideout
