I’m a north-easterner currently living in Bombay. Though I love Bombay and the places around it, especially the picturesque Western-Ghats, my heart yearns for a trip back to my home-town from time to time. Well, there are some really exotic and adventurous destinations up there to explore. Nepal, Bhutan; not to mention our own Tawang in Arunachal, Shillong and plenty more! Guwahati is a city, surrounded by hills ( eastern Himalayas ) on all sides, and water-falls cascading down these hills into numerous streams and tributaries that flows into the mighty river Brahmaputra, makes the landscape breathtakingly alluring; and exploring them are no less an adventure in itself. Though everyone loves to go foreign places ( even I do ), I feel the north-east attractions are not yet fully tapped as a ‘prime’ tourist destination.  So, after filling my car tank fully, I started early morning around 5am ~ crossing the Saraighat bridge over river Brahmaputra, then on to Changsari, Baihata Chariali ( a left turn here ), Rangiya, Nalbari, Tihu, Barama, Patacharkuchi ( Chirang district towns ) and finally Pathsala ( a right turn here+fuel ) to the Bhutan NH152. There are signboards guiding, which places you’ve crossed & which directions to take, so it is pretty neat. The scenic beauty as the pristine hills approaches ( esp after entering Pathsala ) is mesmerizing, and I slowed the car a bit to enjoy the splendid view. Bhutan is greenest during Monsoons, with clouds hovering, making the sight exquisite. The broad highway is clean, drive friendly ( though you may meet some cows/buffaloes strolling or lazing about ); there is even 2 Elephant passage-ways of about 50mtrs. The borders are open, hence, without much hassle one can cross over ( to a certain limit ). A small river running marks the border between the two countries. This place is great for picnics. Crossing the bridge over it, a few minutes later, I reached the official Bhutan entry gate. I stopped the car and went to the office. There are two windows – 1. To check the license, note down details and take token. 2. Where the Royal Bhutan Police take license & vehicle registration details, also logs the in+out time. There is 3rd window mainly for commercial vehicles/trucks ( those into import/export business ). Taking the entry pass from check-gate, the nearest town would be about 7km from border, and Sarpang town merely 3km. There’s also Phuntsholing in west ~ known for lightnings and Gelephu 30 kms in east. As I drove on the curvy uphill path, after crossing the gate, I came upon small dwellings, some concrete buildings, Bhutan Army Sign-Board, the long army barracks wall with tall trees lined on both sides, a local government school, some govt offices, some Buddhist stupas ( Bhutan has lots of monasteries ), prayer-flags, more dwellings. I noticed the stark differences in culture & lifestyles between both the countries, just on either side of that border gate. The higher I went, the place became more beautiful. Going further up one comes across the beautiful and diverse fragrant+colourful flora evoking passions within you ( specially during bloom time between April-Dec ). After tasting some Bhutanese delicacies, some takeaways from the trip here are: Crockery with typical dragon/floral motifs, toys ( esp China/Taiwan made ), Druk Jam a local product etc. Driving back, I saw lot of activity in the roads. There’s a local market in Barama to check out some locally produced goods. Such one-day road trips are an exhilarating experience, and within a short time-span not just one visits another country, but laps up its nature & diverse oriental culture too ~ and as such its call ~ An Adventure I love! \m/ |
Buthan is Still in my wishlist... Nice post
ReplyDeletewow..looks like a fun trip. I would like to travel.
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Undoubtedly the 7 sisters have so much for the traveloholic and the kasi garo jayantiya hills with abundant waterfalls!
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