'The former British hill station of Mussoorie, in the foothills of the Himalayas, affords the visitor two extraordinary views. Facing south, one takes in the seemingly endless Doon Valley, lit up at night by the city of Dehradun. That city is only 36 kilometres away as the crow flies, but it’s also several thousand metres below, should the crow in question plummet. Turn north and the mountains predominate. Indeed, from a certain vantage on Camel Back Road, snow-capped peaks can be glimpsed, several sources of the Ganges among them, through trace elements of cloud.' (Introduction)