Situated at equal distances from Mumbai and Pune,two of India’s most developed cities, Matheran is a hill station which is nowhere near the hustling lifestyle of these concrete jungles.
With no network, no vehicles, no cemented roads and no extravagant lodgings, it is a perfect place to disconnect from our mundane routines.
A thrill of excitement ran down my spine as we noticed the transformation from the light drizzle of Indore,to the grey clouds of Mumbai, into the dense fog of Matheran.
We reached Thane station, where all my uncles and aunts had gathered. It was after a long time that all of us were going for a vacation. It was a happy reunion filled with bouts of laughter that lasted till the very end of our trip. We caught the train to Neral from where taxis are available to reach Aman lodge( no vehicles are permitted after this point). From here, horses, hand-pulled rickshaws and toy trains are available. The toy train was not functioning due to rains and so, we decided to walk our way up to the resort.
Umbrellas came in handy as we were welcomed by showers every few minutes.
Faint smell of roasted corn carried to us by the light breeze could make anyone super hungry.
We finally reached Radha Cottage,our accommodation for the two days and straight up headed for lunch. The rest of the day was spent chatting and relaxing, for our feet demanded rest! In the evening, we went for a short walk around our resort. The wind rustled and dense white fog, crooked branches of trees and moss covered pillars made it a perfect setting for a horror film.
After dinner, we sat for an hour,singing songs and just enjoying the cosiness of our company, before we dozed off to bed. The next morning, we woke up to a lovely mist surrounding us. We were literally inside clouds! Our morning walk turned into a 3 hour trek and we ended up exploring a few tourist spots like the Little Chowk point, the Rambaug point, the One tree hill point,etc. The entire path was covered with green leaves and huge rocks around us were embellished with moss and white flowers.We got a glimpse of the vast green valley and the lake , before a dense sheet of white appeared and covered all of it. After a satisfying lunch in the restaurant, we went for an afternoon nap.
In the evening, my sister, our friend and I walked our way to Charlotte Lake. The water was muddy and the surroundings were lush green! That night, our last one in Matheran was spent playing card games, dancing and playing dumb charades. As dawn broke, we hurriedly packed our bags and checked out from the resort. Our descend seemed to be much easier than the ascend. As our taxi was taking us back to Neral, I was thinking of the lovely friend circle my parents have. I cannot imagine my generation, growing up to have such strong bonds and taking such wonderful trips in spite of the busy everyday life.
Shruti's Blog 
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