India Must See #2:
A Himalayan Hill Station

Number #2 on the India Must See list is a 'hill station.' When Indians talk about being 'out of town' they often use the term 'out of station', and if it's summer time you can be pretty sure, they'll be at a hill station instead. There are many popular ones—you may have heard of Darjeeling, Shimla (often pronounced Simla), Nainital, Manali, Musoorie and Ooty, but there are many more.

I haven't had the pleasure of visiting them all yet, that will take some time. So far, I've only been to Darjeeling and Musoorie (oh, and Kathmandu, but that's slightly off-topic, though an easy 8 or so hour bus journey from Varanasi). Getting up into the mountains (esp. when you're talking about the Himalayas), gets you crisp, fresh air, cooler temperatures and something money just can't buy...perspective.

I would recommend you really get into the hills and spend some time. Just like city people are different from country folk, so in India the hill people are different from the people on the plains. Life is generally a little less frenetic, a little more zen (so to speak) and often achingly beautiful.

My tip: even if you're traveling with friends, try to get at least some time by yourself, as much as you can get – half a day, a day, whatever, just to be. Don't plan anything, take a walk, look at the view, drink chai. Think about your life. You never know what will happen.

When Francis did this he found himself ringing his boss back home in Australia to resign from his job, deciding he wanted to change direction in his life.

The Himalayas do that kind of thing to you.
Definitely a must for your soul.