Khajjiar (mini-swiss) Himachal Pradesh
Khajjiar (Mini Switzerland) Himachal Pradesh

I have never seen a place more beautiful than Khajjiar in Himachal Pradesh. 5hours drive from Dharamshala in the Chamba district one comes across a lake, pasture, forest, garlic fields all in one within a 5 km radius at 6500 feet above sea level. The snap above is from a village where garlic fields were laid out high up in the mountains overlooking the Chamba valley with the Dhauladar range of Himalayas in sight. Once we reached the lake and pasture, we took horses which rode us to a village 30 mins away. The narrow path was scary, and at some places we held our hearts and the horse forced itself uphill with no way to go. Branches brushed our eyes, and I felt my specs almost give away few times. retaining balance was a trick I somehow mustered.

 

It seems this place was officially given the name of Mini Switzerland by a Swiss Ambassador in 1992.

 

This image was clicked using a Tokina AT-X Pro SD 12-24mm F4 (IF) DX lens.
Setting: ISO 400, 12mm, f/14, 1/500 sec
Note: I did not realise my ISO setting was high. Ideally this snap should have been clicked at ISO 100, with a longer exposure time.