Arch Gallery Bridge Number 493 to be precise.
Just one of the 988 bridges (well, each culvert and earthwork seems to count as a bridge) on the narrow gauge railway running from Kalka to the British Raj’s old summer capital of Shimla, 2,075m above sea level and 350 kilometres from Delhi – a world away.
Arriving there you are greeted with a vision of old England; from the rows of mock Tudor shops along the car-free Mall selling woollen pullovers, to the supremely arrogant Viceregal Lodge, a reenvisioned Scottish baronial hall that was formerly the residence of the Viceroy of India.
This bridge was constructed in 1898 with the 60 mile line opening in 1903. Now one of the trilogy of UNESCO World Heritage Indian hill railways but sadly the only one that is exclusively diesel-hauled (with an average gradient of 1 in 33 the journey still takes a good five hours).
Still, with fresh mountain air and old world manners, it’s a great place to send your kids to boarding school…