We arrived in Pathankot early in the morning and set off on the two-hour taxi ride to our final destination in India. When arriving in McLeod Ganj our first impressions were of a quiet and very scenic hillside village with plenty of cafes and restaurants overlooking the valley. As this was where the Tibetan government and Dalai Lama had made their home, there was definitely a different feel to the town. The streets were distinctly more Asian, with their tightly packed shops, Tibetan prayer wheels and the many orange robed monks wandering the streets.

With Bhopal now happily behind us we had our first experience in a chair car, which was a nice change. Not only was it air-conditioned, but for the first time the train ran on time and also announced the stops prior to reaching the station. This meant you weren't either dashing for the door when you realised that it was your station or standing at the door for half an hour expecting the next station to be yours.