It is winter and tourists who love the hills and dales of Uttarakhand have already started coming in to enjoy the lovely weather here, traversing the hilly terrain and looking for serene and beautiful places.
Travelling through Dehradun up to Mussoorie, most travellers reach Mussoorie town in the midst of activity on the Mall Road. And they come back without even venturing towards landour, the real Mussoorie—the original Mussoorie—the old Mussoorie as it is called. But many tourists go especially to enjoy the amazing beauty of landour without bothering to even have a look at the crowded Mall Road .
Entering from the Picture Palace end of the Mall Road, one reaches the narrow landour bazaar which is quite a difficult drive. The mile long bazaar with 300 odd shops is a wonderful amalgam of an old style bazaar and modern features like cyber café and dish TV outlets. The old–world charm comfortably co-exists here with the latest technological amenities. This is what makes landour such a popular destination for people from around the world who come and spend weeks or months here.
And then one heads towards Char Dukaan, the very heart of landour Cantonment. For almost a hundred years now, there have been these four shops at this exquisite location at a height of 7,500 feet in the Uttarakhand Himalayas. Now, there are five, with a recent addition. But the name is still Char Dukaan. And will remain for all times to come, it seems.
At a height of 7750 feet, this also remains the most secluded and beautiful area of town, with spectacular views of the snow–clad Himalayas, dense deodar forests and peaceful slopes. landour is a fabulous place to visit, though the only thing you can do over there is to take a long walk. It’s a quiet place. This place is awesome in mornings. A long, winding empty road inspires one to walk some miles.
Children run in during the school break to grab a packet of chips or candy and mostly, they all run small accounts with the shops. They don’t stop to pay every time they feel like picking up something and rushing back to school. Chance visitors are taken aback by the scenic splendour of the place and those familiar with it come back again and again to experience its magic. Sounds of chirping of birds and sometimes, the confusion caused by naughty langurs-all these make one’s meal at Char Dukaan quite an interesting experience. News is exchanged and newspapers read over cups of coffee , friends catch up with each other and acquaintances turn into friends. Such is the ambience of this little place!
If Mussoorie has its Mall Road and its posh coffee shops and restaurants, landour’s pride is the Char Dukaan, a place where gather tourists students of the Woodstock School and landour language school, and the many celebrity residents of landour.
The Mussoorie that unfolds before one now is very different from the one which we see on Mall Road.. .
This where you sit down to sip tea, munch on bun omelettes, toast or the house special cheese-flavoured noodles. Tip Top Teashop was started by Vipin Prakash’s forefathers in 1910 .It was the first of the Char Dukaans . “My great grandfather, Sibamal , came here as a postman,” says Vipin Prakash.”Our fifth generation is now living in landour”. Char Dukaan is an oasis of natural splendor, as it is still safe from the eyes of ‘developers” by virtue of being located in the cantonment . Whether it is a sunny November morning or a cool June evening, a rain-laden day in July or a pleasant March afternoon, the Char Dukaan is the most beautiful place to be in when in Mussoorie. The refreshing breeze from the mountains, the idyllic surroundings and the steaming snacks that melt in one’s mouth provide a perfect background for time out at landour’s Char Dukaan. The famous Ruskin Bond lives up in landour in between the Mullingar and Char Dukaan. It’s a little “shaky cottage” that he shared with Miss Ripley-Bean till she passed away, “near a forest of oak and rhododendron.” And here watching the clouds perform and the mist gather, he’s been churning out bestsellers.
One can also feast on waffles, besides the yummy bun-omelettes and veg cheese noodles. At the Char Dukaan, especially on Sundays and other holidays, one can see a crowd of Americans from Woodstock School and the landour language School, enjoying the pizzas, noodles and even the aloo ka parathas served piping hot by the cheerful owner and his little assistants. This time in Mussoorie, take a walk up to Char Dukaan. You will not regret it, for sure.