Day 88:

I'm sitting in a little restaurant in Shimla: eating, writing postcards and reading an Agatha Christie novel. Listen to how Christie described Tuppence:

"Tuppence has no claim to beauty, but there was character and charm in the elfin lines of her little face, with its determined chin and large wider-apart eyes that looked mistily out from under straight, black brows. She wore a small bright green toque over her black bobbed hair and her extremely short and rather shabby skirt revealed a pair of uncommonly dainty ankles. Her appearance presented a valiant attempt at smartness"

I'm in love!

...

Shimla is a nice place, my favorite so far in India and I am now very happy to be travelling in this country. Thank G-d for that. I've spent my time here with a couple of Swedish guys (both have now left), taking in the sights and eating lots of nice Indian and continental food.

I visited Shimla's monkey temple. The monkeys there, like the monkeys in town are quite vicious, with finding a particular enjoyment in snatching at the glasses of visitors. It's fun, though, to observe them playing in a little pool placed on the temple grounds for their enjoyment. It seems as if the games they play have actual RULES, as they hop from place to place in a sort of ordered fashion. It's also great fun to watch the smallest of monkeys sit on the side of the pool, slowly working up the courage to join in the game.

Shimla has a great post office and I found some really wonderful philatelic stamps there. The bookshops here are also top notch.

Tomorrow morning in Manali.