Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Budget for Dharamsala trip
Deepak asked if he could see some numbers for my sabbatical year. I haven’t sorted out my accounts yet, but for a taste, here’s the budget and actual costs for my trip to Dharamsala in August. I had more time than money at this point, so I went slow and watched every rupee.
Columns with missing values indicate heads I hadn’t budgeted for.
| Item | Date | Per Unit | Count | Est. Cost | Actuals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Rs 6697 | Rs 4609 | |||
| Transport to railway station | 19/08 | 120 | |||
| Train: Bangalore to Delhi | 19/08 | 729 | 1 | 729 | 729 |
| Food on train | 19/08 | 50 | 4 | 200 | 200 |
| Food in Delhi | 21/08 | 221 | |||
| Train: Delhi to Pathankot | 21/08 | 222 | 1 | 222 | 222 |
| Bus: Pathankot to Dharamsala | 22/08 | 350 | 1 | 350 | 166 |
| Accommodation in Dharamsala | 22/08 | 350 | 5 | 1750 | 450 |
| Food in Dharamsala | 22/08 | 50 | 15 | 750 | 665 |
| Bus: Dharamsala to Delhi | 26/08 | 700 | 1 | 700 | 450 |
| Food in Delhi | 27/08 | 100 | 2 | 200 | 475 |
| Train: Delhi to Bangalore | 28/08 | 1546 | 1 | 1546 | 729 |
| Food on train | 28/08 | 50 | 5 | 250 | 182 |
| Transport from railway station | 29/08 | 20 | |||
We were a group of four. The others started from Delhi and had already booked train tickets to Pathankot, so I tagged along, even though a direct bus between Delhi and Dharamsala made more sense. I took a sleeper class train coach from Bangalore to Delhi. I wasn’t sure it would be comfortable—36 hours in a metal box without air-conditioning—and budgeted for a three-tier AC ticket on the way back, but found I liked it and returned the same way.
Accommodation in Delhi was free, courtesy friends. In Mcleodganj, we found a guest house with a good view of the valley for Rs 450, split between two occupants over two nights. I wanted to stay longer but the others had work to return to. I had no expenses other than food and transport.