Diksha's Kaleidoscope: Nainital

Hey dear readers, I hope you didn’t miss me too much! I’m back in town now; back from my very short vacation home. Where’s home? Home is Nainital the Lake city in Uttrakhand, India.

Nainital a small Hill station and tourist spot where many people from North India come to spend their vacations.

To start with, I’ll tell you how the city got its name. Parvathi, the daughter of King Daksh, married Lord Shiva against the wishes of her father, who did not favour the match. To embarrass and insult both daughter and son-in-law, King Daksh held a ‘Yagna’ (holy ritual). Everybody was invited to this ritual except the daughter and son-in-law. Parvathi, at this insult to her consort, stormed the ‘Yagna’ and before everyone’s eyes leapt into the raging flames of the ‘Yagna’. Lord Shiva himself retrieved the half charred body into his arms and left for Mount Kailash, the home of the Gods. On his way to Mount Kailash the eyes of Parvathi fell into a lake and gave it a beautiful bluish green expanse of water. The lake was in present-day Nainital, and a temple was built on the shores of the lake for Goddess Naina Devi, a name given to Parvathi in affection. Hence the Lake was called Naini Lake and Naini, which refers to the eyes of Goddess Parvathi, and Tal, meaning lake, brought about the name Nainital. It is said that the lake is formed in the shape of an emerald eye.

There are many other stories as to how this lake city got its name but this mythological story is the most popular one. At an elevation of 1,938 m, Nainital has a unparalleled scenic beauty: imposing mountains, reflected in its lake which is 1,372 m long and 457 m broad with a maximum depth of 29 m. Surrounded by lofty peaks the city is divided into two parts - Talli Tal(lower lake) and Malli Tal (upper lake).

Here in Nainital, all the locals know one another as Nainital is such a small place. Some of the best educated and very famous men and women have spent their childhood here in the boarding schools built by the European Missionaries in the last century. Some the famous alumni of these schools are Amitabh Bachchan, Kabir Bedi, Bharat Ratna Aroona Asif Ali, Naseeruddin Shah, and Lalit Modi to name a few.

The seven peaks that surround the lake have wonderful hiking routes like Cheena Peak, Kilbury, Dorothy’s seat and Snow View. The places you can see in and around Nainital are the Governor’s House, Hanuman Garhi, Corbett National Park, and the Boat House Club. In Nainital the Nainital Yacht club continues to be an embodiment of tradition and a repository of sailing heritage. Every year national and zonal Yacht races are held in Naini Lake. Swimming, Canoeing and Kayaking competitions are also organized in Nainital during the summer months. Rock Climbing is also something one should try when in Nainital.

If you are going to the Northern part of India and want to visit a beautiful place then Nainital is meant for you!