– ODO- 11873 – 12104km
– Location- Under a bridge, East of Chandigarh, Haryana, India
– Weather- 18-35 Clear
Even when I woke up I’d noticed the temperature had changed. In Bir the mornings were chilly. I kept my fleece on for breakfast. Just 130km south, over a few valleys and a few hundred meters lower I woke up sweating. The day continued to heat up and the road continued to wind up and down the side of successive valleys. Trucks churning uphill in first gear then creeping downhill, straining to hold back their mass in first gear. Each passed me narrowly on the way up before I passed them speedily on the way down. It felt like this road was the only highway to Himachal Pradesh.
I picked up a new favourite in Bir. The cafes on the launch serviced “bread omelette”. It’s pretty much what it sounds like, egg cooked into white bread with some chives or tomato or chilli. Very nice. Once the sun cleared the top of the southern ridge I stopped to break the heat and have a second breakfast. This Dhaba (lunch spot) served up my bread omelette with some extra chilly and I ordered Aloo (potato) Paratha (a kind of bread). I eat so well in India. I wonder what Nepal will be like? I’m only 5 days from the border.