ailyak
Two houses in the cedar forest, a river that does not stop, good food, good people. Come to relax, come to work, and stay a while.
ailyak (n., Bulgarian) — the art of having nowhere else to be.
Two houses, one river
Ailyak Shoja
Perched in Shoja village in cedar forest, with Raghupur Fort and Serolsar Lake a day's walk away. Private rooms with balconies, quiet dorms, and the café.
Ailyak Seri
Along a gentle river below Jibhi. Themed private rooms, a starlit attic room, and the Starlit dorm with a see-through roof.
A day here
The river runs past both houses and does not stop for the monsoon. Mornings are for the forest, or for work at a table with the mountain in the window: the dorms and rooms have reading lights and balconies, and remote workers have been staying with us since the first season.
Afternoons are for the water, a walk along the riverbank, or nothing. Evenings are the fire, chai, and whatever is cooking at the café in Shoja.
The forest is not tidied for you. There are birds, flowers in spring, bees in summer, moths at the lamp in the monsoon, and snow from December. That is the point.
What a day here holds
Forest bathing
A guided, unhurried walk in cedar and pine, early morning or golden hour. Not a hike.
Water dipping
A conscious step into glacier-fed river pools, five to ten minutes from the house. April to June and September to October.
River walk
An easy trail beside the river: hidden pools, small waterfalls, birds. Guided or alone, morning or late afternoon.