Rain had settled in overnight, and we thought perhaps it may be the onslaught of the Monsoon season which was apparently late for the year.

Our Mayflower Hotel was an impressive timber building located in the prettiest setting high on the side of a hill of Old Manali overlooking the newer Manali Town, and backing onto a moist alpine Deodar forest (known by locals as Cedar). A very pleasant timber verandah overlooked a quaint flower garden interspersed with lilies and apple trees. The hotel was very comfortable although the service was somewhat variable. The staff was very friendly but sometimes it was impossible to find a staff member and when we did, our orders often did not eventuate. Perhaps it was a language problem.

After a very pleasant breakfast, we met our new guide Moti in the hotel foyer. Moti was an impressive, handsome young man, somewhat in the similar thoughtful but reserved style of Sonam (our driver from Srinagar to Ley) and aged in his mid thirties. Dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt, he was to be an excellent guide to us during our tour in Manali and our journey through Mandi to Shimla then onto Chandigarh. It is interesting that we often find guides who for whatever reason are just "special". Our guide Bekhruz in Bukara, Uzbekistan was similar - attentive, easy going and with high ethical standards. We have kept in contact with many from our previous travels - as we have with Moti, Sonam and Bekhruz.

We set out on foot that morning to visit the Hindu Hadimba Temple. Thankfully the rain had stopped and it was a very pleasant two kilometers or so walk to Hadimba. Getting up to the temple however was something else. We must have climbed up some 500 steps before we reached the temple at the top of the Deodar forested hill. Designed in a pagoda style, the ancient wood and stone Hadimba Temple with its 24 m high tower was built in 1553. Intricately carved wooden panels line the interior of the temple along with horns of bulls and Ibex. The impressive roof is constructed of angled timber slats.

The three-day Dhungri Mela festival is held in May every year at the temple and involves gruesome animal sacrifices. To our horror there was still blood on the sacrificial stone. We find the practice of animal sacrifices abhorrent in any religion and the practice quite put us off Hadimba.

Hadimba temple is a popular destination with Indian tourists. We also noticed quite a few Europeans which felt rather strange after so many weeks of travel seeing virtually no westerners. Groups of Indian tourists were curious and friendly and several asked to have their photos taken with us. A charming group from Rajasthan chatted with us for some time. The two women who were dressed in beautiful, brightly coloured saris were particularly friendly telling us they were holidaying in Manali to escape the blistering summer heat of Rajasthan to the south.

An elderly woman clutching a gorgeous Angora rabbit that had been clipped like a poodle, asked me to take their photo. Further on a man with the most wonderfully groomed grey yak, its tail brushed in an immaculate fan shape also asked me to take a photo. It was tempting but we knew well that it meant paying heaps for the privilege.

About a kilometer past Hadimba lies the Siali Shiva Temple. It also is built in a pagoda like style with ornate carved wooden paneling and attractive wooden arches. It is a replica of the original temple which was built several hundred years ago. We didn't enter the temple but continued on a very pleasant and relaxed walk downhill to the Mall where we had time to talk to Moti about his life in Manali.

On our leisurely walk Moti told us that he, his wife and child lived with his father in the family home on a farm high up on the mountain overlooking Manali Town. Moti's wife looked after the child and the dairy cattle on the property. He explained that his father had leased a large part of his land on a 99 year lease basis to foreigners to build houses in traditional style. It sounded quite bizarre to us that his current neighbours were from the UK, Russia and Australia. Moti laughed at our surprise, saying that the situation was working well and that all the neighbours were getting along fine. They had introduced him to soft European style cheeses which Moti had taken quite a liking to. He was interested in cheese making and asked me if I had any information on the processes - which I did and have since sent on to him. We found it interesting that the people of northern India do not eat cheese when there are so many cattle around.

Education of his son was quite a dilemma for Moti. He was concerned that although the private schools were generally of a higher standard than those in the public system, they start children at the very young age of two to three years. Apparently, parents cannot change their minds after the child has begun school and Moti was thinking that a public school would be best for his son so he could spend time at home in his very early years.

Moti was also concerned about health costs telling us that the caesarian operation for his wife cost a whopping AUS $900, a huge sum of money for someone like Moti

Manali Town was a very laid back and friendly place to wander around. It was more primitive than we had imagined and a lot of the transport was by bicycle or auto-rickshaws. The Mall was buzzing with people and shop owners struggled pushing wheel barrows of heavy goods up the main street. There were plenty of local tourists but very few westerners. Apparently there is a significant Israeli population and to our surprise a synagogue in the town.

Manali lies at an altitude of 2,050 m in the pretty Beas River Valley surrounded by steep tree clad mountains. It is a very popular base for trekking, paragliding, rafting and skiing and Indian honeymooners. Manali has a small population of around 4,500. Interestingly, the average literacy rate is 74% which is much higher than the national average of 59%.

Moti left us for a free afternoon which we appreciated very much. We enjoyed exploring the local shops before catching an auto- rickshaw up the steep hill to our hotel. Moti had told us the price for a rickshaw so when we were charged almost double that amount we protested to our driver. There was no way he was going to reduce our fare and seemed very offended that we had questioned the amount. Later Moti apologised, saying the price he gave us was for locals, not foreigners...

We arrived back at our hotel to find to our surprise and delight that Marcel and Jose, who we had met in Sarchu were also staying there. It was great to catch up with people we thought we would probably never see again. And it felt like we had known them for years.

I also met a very friendly group of French Canadians who were travelling the opposite direction, to Sarchu over the Rohtang Pass. They were very interested in finding out about the "luxury" camping sites at Sarchu and obviously I had to tell them the truth. They laughed, saying (unlike us) they were quite used to roughing it. Madeleine told me about her recent trip to Morocco and how much she loved the country - and also that her guide was "fantastic". We have followed up on her advice and are using the services of the same guide, Mohamed Ouragaga who operates "Man of the Moroccan Desert" travel agency for our coming trip to Morocco in May 2013.

Later in the afternoon, I walked back to Manali Town to buy some cashmere scarves we had seen in a shop that had just opened that day. The shop owner was delighted to see me but try as I might I could not bargain him down to the same price that Alan had scored earlier in the day. It was with some relief that I bought the scarves at what I thought was a reasonable price and could stop the bargaining process, which as mentioned, does not suit me at all. I didn't tell Alan what price I paid. I was just thankful to buy some gifts that were tasteful, easy to pack and light for our luggage.

I used an Internet Cafe on my way back to Old Manali. It does of course show my age when I say that I have never used an Interent cafe before and had no idea what to do. The friendly owner was very helpful and an hour's worth of internet use cost me next to nothing. I had to smile to myself when I left. The oldest person next to me was about nine year's old!

That evening Gopi Chand entertained us for dinner at his house. Gopi and his family operate a back packer hostel right next to his house and after a few drinks sitting on the carpeted floor of his home, we were given a wonderful meal in the dining area. Joined by Chhape Ram, we thoroughly enjoyed our evening. Gopi was a great host and once again it was interesting to talk to Gopi and Chhape about life in Manali and northern India.

We were driven back to our hotel by our new driver. Prem was the ultimate gentleman and a very capable driver of which we were to be very grateful for over the next few days through the rugged roads around Mandi and Shimla.

The rain looked set in and we thought about poor Madeleine and her friends having to cope with the infamous Rohtang Pass, wondering about whether they would even make it through the mud and melted snow in the wet conditions. We found out later that they did.