Nainital where bad decisions make good stories

I saw the sign in a Nainital café — “Bad decisions make better stories.” At that moment, I didn’t realise it was prophecy.

It began, as most disasters do, with misplaced politeness. I had just reached Nainital, fresh mountain air in my lungs and the illusion of control in my mind. Then came my cab driver — philosopher and self-appointed tour guide — who, with a wide grin and a single devastating sentence, changed the course of my day: “Sir, I’ll show you Nainital’s eleven famous points.”

I should’ve known. Anything with “points” in plural form is a trap. The first point was pointless — tourists and more tourists blocking the road. The second and third weren’t much better. The fourth had a telescope, and that had no taters. By the fifth, I realised that “points” — Suicide Point, Lovers Point, Echo Point — were just places where tourists stopped to take the same photo of different fog. By the seventh, I was convinced they were all the same point, just seen from different disappointments.

Every “view” was obscured by someone’s selfie stick. Somewhere around “Himalaya Darshan Point,” I realised I had been hijacked. “Please,” I whispered weakly, “I’ve seen the Himalayas. They’re large. They’re not going anywhere.” He smiled sympathetically. “Yes sir, but have you seen them from this angle?”

When he finally stopped the car and declared, “Last point, sir — best one!”, I stepped out like a survivor. It was a small tea stall with a tin board that said “View Point.” The view consisted mostly of other tourists taking selfies at the tea stall. I sipped my tea in silence.

And then, as fate would have it, right behind that stall was another café. A board there proclaimed: “Bad decisions make better stories.”

I laughed out loud. Because it was true — that day was a disaster, the kind you can’t forget. The kind that reminds you travel isn’t always about peace or perfection. Sometimes, it’s about being trapped in a cab, surrounded by fog and strangers, wondering if “Point Number 12” might just be freedom.

Next time I come to Nainital, I’ll skip the points. I’ll just sit in that café — and wait for my next bad decision.

However, Nainital is beautiful. Visitors need not count the points— just hop on the cab and count the moments instead.

Saurabh Malik, Chandigarh