The Journey to Shangri-La: The awesome Sikkim-Bhutan trip!

The call of the mountain song (Mt. Pandim viewed from Yuksom)

Day 0 & 1: 6th March Evening + 7th March: The journey begins

“Arey bhaiya! aap samaan kyun utha rahe ho!Hum log ko pehley jaaney dijiye ….uskey baad samaan jayega...ab aur samaan nahin jayega!!!!” Period. And thus continued the ranting of our Shotgun to officially kick start our wonderful journey in search of nirvana in the last Shangri-la of the human world (okay, okay no more hyperboles!)

WITH a motley group of a dozen odd crackerjacks, there could never a moment of dullness. (In fact, one of us was so excited about the forthcoming train journey (as he had travelled by a train just twice before, one being Munsiyari trip) that he asked his fellow auto traveler “Yeh jisme hum ja rahe hain (sleeper class) sabse ghatiya hoti hain ya isse bhi ghatiya kuch hota hai?” Well, with a bewildered look he appreciated the adjusting power of his co-passengers and took a bhisma pratigya not to use the toilet facility for a straight 24 hours. When asked about this feat he casually responded... “It’s just a state of mind!!! If you think you don't have to, then you don't have...”)

The Wayfarers...

AS mentioned earlier, thus began a not-so-brilliant start to a brilliant journey. Our 3rd AC tickets didn’t convert, and we had only sleeper tickets. And that implied being besieged by an entire battalion of cadet-to-be-lepchas who of course had to get up at Lucknow and get down at, guess where, NJP! Someone even mentioned that the scene reminded of the evacuation of an entire village in the Vietnam War!

SO there we were, with uncountable Lepchas and their even more uncountable baggage and pots and pans, all cramped together in the few berths. There was a berth completely piled to the head with aluminium trunks (yeah, talk about being fully loaded for the cohort of ‘armymen-to-be’s!) and there was even a wager going around that the berth would definitely break by the end of the journey. Nighttime and the floors were no different than a post-party scene with all drunken revelers lying pell-mell at every inch of available space. Ghate and Yogs started playing Tarzan-Tarzan by jumping and swinging over the heads and shoulders of these party revelers (our party poopers rather) just to reach the toilets.

...and the Elysian realms

THE next morning, junta took the liberty of waking up as late as possible, but the ‘OK-we-admit-none-can-sleep-more-than-you’ prize had to go to Ayan-da, the man who never sleeps, who went on to slumber straight for 18 non-stop hours !!! (Later he even admitted to breaking his earlier record of 15 non-stop hours!) The others started off with their favorite game - MAFIA.

Preeti, the debutante, gave this awesome new Stone-Cold-ish approach to justify her claim - “I am a villager, cos I am saying so”. And when she played the role of the moderator, even the chai-wallahs and chane-wallahs stopped on their tracks to watch the drama.

AFTER hours of Mafia-ing, filled in with loads of chips and amul kools and puris (and Justice’s isolated study of a tome on the Mughals, which we wonder is even yet completed or not :), we reached NJP at 9:30 in the night. But peace was difficult to be found for we had not yet crossed the borders into Shangri-la, ah sorry Sikkim. The Hotel rooms were swarming with mosquitoes, with poor Ghate even complaining of mosquitoes bedding with him inside his sleeping bag :P The others didn’t even bother sleeping and went on with long hours of cards. But everyone, awake or asleep was all agog with the prospects of the next day’s travel into the heartlands of Sikkim.

Day 2: 8th March: Onwards to Pelling

THE day began with a hearty breakfast (veg only with no yak’s meat :( and more importantly with the advent of our ‘guide’ - Dipen. With a cool hairstyle and an even cooler accent, he proved easily in the next few days how a pair of shades and a trendy chain can convert even the village simpleton to be deceived into a so-called guide. There were times (well, almost all the time) when we knew more than the guy - oodles of samples to follow.

THE journey was good with sinuous roads, no dancing numbers and loads of ‘Connections’, thanks to AdiJ. At around evening, we reached the Pemyangtse Monastery, the first of many fascinating monasteries full with its quota of rich colored murals, Buddhas and Boddhisatvas and ornate symbols all around. 

At the Confluence of Teesta and Rangeet

A little more on Connexions. We think even AdiJ would admit that the learning curve was pretty steep, especially wrt setting and solving cryptic clues. What was even more fun was finding your dual - a partner who could “connect” with you on niche topics. And more importantly, finding –­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­topics which the word-setter wouldn’t have a clue about. Was awesome fun to irritate AdiJ on places in Mumbai and of course, best was irritating Sud on AOE, geek stuff. << Forgot the name of that civilization that starts with S yet again >>

And yes who can forget the legendary Delhi versus Mumbai fight between Sud and Pandhi, after a while Sud got so excited, poor Pandhi was seen standing at an arm’s length from Sud lest she show an example of Mumbai aggression there itself( for further info check out video recording by Bugger), AdiJ being on phone for good one hour (that too on roaming ) missed the  good fun.

The Confluence Colors (on the way to Pelling)

Around Pelling (getting philosophical :P)

...and we discovered the pool of sacred tears, finally :P

Prayers and a chorten (Pelling)

At the Pemyangtse Monastery

Day 3: 9th March: Yuksom Ho!

We marched off to Yuksom on the third day, but not before saturating ourselves in the ancient ruins of Pelling. One good fun was the photography session in the ruins, where we all tried to perch ourselves in various spots. While Ghate and Pandhi were seeking salvation, Shivku and AdiJ were monkeying around trying to climb the highest ruins,  jumping about from one cliff to another. It was followed by the Rimbi and Kanchenjunga Waterfalls (and a host of photographs), and then a rock gardens, with all being mesmerised by a short sharp shower with the misty mountains in the blue backdrop. Onwards to Yuksom, a small hamlet worthy of idling oursleves in a monastery and a lake, followed by a small hike to a stone throne from aeons back, which was also the meeting place of 3 ancient lamas (incidentally, Yuksom derives its name from this troika’s meet) and more importantly, a huge tree resembling an elder tree from an elfin kingdom. 

Ramble on the Ruins

The Kanchenjunga Falls

Day 4: 10th March: Trek to Tsokha

THE highlight of the trip. Tipped us what damage our bodies will have to bear with all the ass-warming corporate drudgery in front of us. Learnt to encounter Yaks head-on (by jumping to one side). Was a challenging trek. Seemed a little easy initially, went on becoming tougher.

Ghate wondering why he even bothered to start the trek....as ever-fit Justice smiles along

Jai-mata-di Menghani

...and of course, the real matadi :P

REMEMBER every little down slope and the ensuing irritation at the thought that the same distance has to be covered again in an upward slope! The stoppage for a much needed lunch break. Had some orange juice, which was nothing less than elixir for most of us. May be it was true, maybe it was an illusion caused by hunger, but we all agreed that the food tasted divine! And after that, it was all walk, walk and walk. What a satisfying feeling to reach the top. Followed by a mass merciless devouring of biscuits and chai. We settled in our “rooms”. By some logic, the girls chose 3 guys they thought were safest :-p . Didn’t matter too much since we all hung out in the same room. People took advantage of Ghate’s vantage location by taking massages. Once Ghate got bored of that, he moved on to the next obsession - the group photo. Had to be taken in two parts (meant to be stitched later, came out fantastic!) - each group trying to make the other “still” group smile or laugh or something to disturb the 8 second time freeze

The 8 second-time-freeze-multi-stitched group photo...phew!

Day 5: 11th March: There and back again! Return to Yuksom

THE day couldn’t start any better...well, at least for most. The morning sun’s ruddy rays awakening the snow clad mountain peaks one after another was an enlightening scene. (Of course, some chose to seek enlightenment by continuing to doze :P) The sunrise on the Pandim peak especially was frozen in a multitude of photos. But someone (named Preeti), having nothing better to do, thought of conversing with the yaks, ignorant that the unspoilt animal kingdom cannot bear intolerable Globe. The continuous yakety-yak had a few consequences - some kind of re’butt’al to remember :P . Shivku set a record of sorts to be the first person to walk BACKWARDS for a good 1.5 hours or so.

On the way back ...Ghate asking for one for the rocks, Yogs examining millet seeds for that night's preparation of Chang, while Nishant lazes in a rare display of lethargy


THE trek ended with a wonderful, albeit late lunch near a sparkling waterfall, the only casualty being a Mr.Splat-Footed’s (Ayan) plonking into the slippery waters. It also saw Shivku set yet another endurance record by managing to stand in the ultra-chilly waters for 11 min, 30 sec. Nightfall saw people skygazing and seeing stars(well, literally) in the clear night - a privilege long snatched away by citylife. Dinner included b’day celebration for Pandhi Boy (yes, and there was a cake too!). He was gifted some fancy modified enlarged tie called ‘Khada’. Of course the real b’day gift came a few days later for Pandhi :) And celebration included the local brew - Chang, fermented from millet seeds and served in bamboo tumblers with bamboo straws ! The night ended with a game of mafia, with the angel Ayan somehow “SIXTH-SENSING” (yes, that was his logic too!) the Mafia members all. And Justice breaking the bed :D

Vignettes on the trail

Day 6: 12th March: Travel to Gangtok via Legship, Rangpo, Ranipool

WE were accommodated in a spacious apartment thanks to a Mr.Rajesh. And with a brilliant hill station, (with a newly bedecked pedestrians - only mall road (and Bose speakers!) that could give any European city centre good competition) beckoning us with open arms, guess what we did ? We tucked ourselves in the cozy confines of our apartment and ta-dah! watched the India SA encounter. Sachin’s century and India’s wonderful last over defeat.

Day 7: 13th March: To the McMahon Line and the pass of listening ears!

TO start with, Pandhi left the brotherhood (ok girls, i don’t have a better word, so please bear with me) for good, to seek his own fortunes in the faraway lands. He left in the wee hours of a dark dawn, lest the others wake up and persuade him to stay. But the dozen stayed a dozen for Nikhil had joined us the day before. And for once, there was a brief respite from the incessant gramophone called Preeti ;)

A breathtaking day with oodles of luck!  Yes, the pass was blocked for one week, we were allowed to go in the eleventh hour, it snows at an altitude of 14000 ft and presto, the pass is blocked for another 4 days! But the road was at its sinuous best (looking like a grey ribbon strewn about on the mountainside from top) and the snow clad peaks majestic. Of course, there were army houses everywhere, reminding one that the border was not far.

The Sapphire Tsomgo

AFTER about three fourth of the journey was unveiled the Tsomgo lake nestled like a jelly-ish sapphire with its half frozen and half watery visage. But we had to hurry for the pass would be closed to visitors before half past noon. As we approached Nathula, we saw an Axis Bank ATM in those heights, not to mention a BSNL exchange, proudly proclaiming itself to be the world’s highest telephone exchange! At Nathula pass, things took a patriotic turn (so long as the photos were being clicked :P) with people posing with jawans and the national flag et al. But kudos to the armymen for rolling out brilliant marketing strategies! ‘Incredible India’ can learn a lot from the measures. Not only was there a cafe (not there 5 years back at least) whackily named ‘cafe 14000’, but also badges and souvenirs and certificates signed by the Armymen, that naive tourists were buying in the dozens.

AFTER many a photo session came the cloudy skies and then the snowflakes. We hurried into our vehicles and rushed to the Baba Mandir. Folklore (or rather army-lore) has it that a young jawan by the name of Harbhajan Singh died in those mountains while trying to cross a crevice. After his death, he apparently appeared in the dreams of many of his friends asking them to erect a temple in his memory, with his spirit guiding and helping the jawans for years to come. Ask any armyman, and you will notice the seriousness in their eyes revolving around this legend. So much so, that his uniform would be taken every year in a special seat by train to his hometown in Punjab and back as if the soldier was actually taking a vacation back home. Now they don’t, for the baba retired a few years back! There was also a cafe here and guess its name? cafe 13000 :)

Preeti keeps a safe distance from yaks

With jawans at the border

Jingoism at dizzy heights

At the baba's mandir

WE hurried back for the snow got heavier. A photoshoot at the lake and we were back in Gangtok.

WE spent a lot of time in the MG Marg with people bumping into IIML friends at every nook and corner. The mall road had literally become a mini Lucknow reunion point. Ghate was at his drinking best downing 1 Hit beer after another. And the result was one palpable hit, as sweetly mentioned below.(read : take out the Tolkiens dictionary)

AT night, the dozen sat together for serious planning ahead. The road to the northern highlands was blocked, the future plans were hazy and people, amidst the chaos of the ensuing darkness wanted alternatives. Some suggested the elfin forests called Dooars in North Bengal, while the braver lot even suggested crossing the entire state, escaping from the Orcs, Urgals, Trolls and what not to go the promised lands - the golden beaches in the south.

AND amidst all this hullabaloo, the leader Ghate woke up from his beery reverie to throw the gauntlet - he was going to try his luck in searching for the mystical kingdom of Druk Yul, supposedly hidden in the far east in the snow clad peaks, irrespective of others’ decisions -  if the others wanted to follow, they would, or the leader would go all alone into the east. After all, if the Ring had to be destroyed, the leader would do it in the shadowy darkness of Mt.Doom all by himself.He could not endanger the brotherhood any more. After an eerie silence that seemed to span light-years, the brotherhood decided to go together, come what may. And that was a scene to remember - men,wizards, the elf, the dragon tamer, all together decided to head east into the land of the thunder dragon. And plans were made for this new route the next day, unfortunately however, with the treacherous goblin duo called Dipen and Sonam. As the saying goes, my friend, never ever trust a scaly-tongued goblin - it only spells trouble, as we were to soon understand.

Day 8: 14th March: To Jaigaon and ‘Phoren’ Phuentsholing 

(enter the land of the Dragon, aka Druk- we’re polyglots!)

AS decided the day before, we were to travel to Bhutan,the rates and packages being finalised  after several rounds of negotiations with the Changu-Mangu pair (the goblin duo) in the morning. While waiting for the cars to arrive, Rajesh spurred us (esp. Sud) to sing along, while he strummed on the guitar, including an enjoyable ‘Papa kehtey hain’ sing-aloud session in chorus by the full group (check Nishant’s video).

Singing time for Sud...while we awaited for the transport to phoren lands

THROUGHOUT the day, we kept on travelling - first downhill along the Teesta, then on the plains by the tea gardens and dried up river bed expanses in North Bengal, finally ending in Jaigaon and then Phuentsholing in Bhutan. It is said that the kingdom of Bhutan starts where a stone stops rolling downhill - i.e. you immediately start ascending from the southern level lands of India to travel to Bhutan. Phuentsholing was one such place on the bottom of this mountain chunk.

The gaudily painted Coronation bridge separating Darjeeling from Jalpaiguri districts

AT night, we roamed leisurely around the town, with a few sticking to the border zone for phone calls back home. We dined at our own hotel after several failed attempts to get a good dining place outside - the places served only Non-Veg or only Veg! And therein we had our first servings of the famous Bhutanese Datsi - cheese with chillies (and by the end of the journey, well, we were too full of mushroom datsi and emma datsi and potato datsi....)

Welcome to Bhutan

Day 9: 15th March: Phuentsholing to Thimpu

Another day that was supposed to be for travelling alone began the first fractures with the Changu-Mangu duo. The day began with a visit to the embassy and consequent procedures to get a permit into Thimpu and Paro. The group found a brief moment of silence again when Preeti and ringleader Ghate went on to fill the documents for the dozen. Nikhil ran into a horde of his IIMC colleagues, while Justice was waiting to clear the proceedings and fill his PWC documentations in a local café.

AT lunch, the group became overzealous and even began pondering the possibilities of going to Punakha from Thimpu. Talks with the local travel agent opened up the Pandora’s Box – Changu – Mangu had messed up all the plans and the payments, and what ensued was a long long discussion (in gentlemen’s words) among Nishant, Ghate and C-M, finally concluding with an additional payment of around 10k.

THE car journey was a long uneventful one. The only masala event occurred when Varun Menghani, nauseated in the back seats decided to sit at the front, while Changu (separated from Mangu after the girls complained of their raucous chattering from the last journey) wanted to smoke some tribal intoxicant with the driver in the front. (Incidentally, even the drivers turned out to be scaly tongued cretins - some luck!) The driver feigned somnolence, but our master talker Menghani didn’t give up either. He forced the driver to keep talking to him, who even ended up showing how car lights are used to communicate among drivers on the highway. As if this was not enough, Shivku (whose form was peaking gradually, ending in some showdown in Paro) diplomatically prodded the driver, ‘Just out of curiosity, how do you drive for long hours when there is no partner to talk to?’

THE entrance to Thimpu looked amazing (and much above expectations) at night - Wide highways and well lit streets with the city lights sparkling in the distance. After dinner, Shekhar, Shivku and Justice asked everyone to assemble at Justice’s room to play a new game called Justice ka adalat. Everyone was intrigued and gathered therein, only to understand that the name was a decoy to pique everyone’s curiosity and bring them together (otherwise some lazybones or the other would always go to sleep every day. However, it was more than just a mere talk - session. Junta were asked specific questions and all had to answer the same one after another. Of course, the group had a gala time with jokes made on each other, especially with Varun and Preeti chipping in considerably, what with their magnificent experience, and on- a-high Ayan heartily pulling their legs. Nishant also announced that on the last day of the tour, we would play another game – well, a more serious kind, wherein each would discuss the benevolent and malevolent qualities of others. However, that plan never saw the limelight, and was nipped in the bud (sigh! How the path of destiny was altered…)

  

Day 10: 16th March: Around Thimpu and travel to Paro

THIMPU sightseeing included a big chorten erected by the queen mother in memory of one of her sons, a monastery, birds eye views of a few royal palaces and dzongs (Bhutanese monastery cum administrative body), a lazy hillside view point and finally a Takin reserve. The latter is the (ugly!) national animal of Bhutan, and although Ayan and Varun were talking of having crispy fried Takin for lunch, one look at the animals and their appetites were lost! Legend has it that a Drukpa Kinley – a divine madman, had made the Takin from the head of a goat and the body of a cow (after feasting on both, of course). Talking of our own madman, Changu displayed his super – intelligence at Thimpu. There was a huge Buddha statue, though a bit on the outskirts of the city. When the drivers were reluctant to take us there, Ghate and Nishant explained the situation to Changu and asked him to request the drivers. He went on to have an avid discussion with a driver only to come back and say that the Tiger’s nest monastery at Paro would take us 3 - 4 hours to trek the next day!!!!!!!

Around Thimpu

The amazing takin

Somewhere only we know...

At one of many monasteries at Thimpu 

AFTER lunch (yes, that included more datsi), we started for the last big stop at Bhutan – Paro. On the way, we stopped at the serene Simtokha Dzong, where each one was lost in his own tranquility, the silence at times being broken only by bells chiming by the rotation of the huge prayer wheels. 

  

At Simtokha Dzong

EN-ROUTE Paro, we saw the quaint and tiny Paro Airport that had only one runway, hidden by the mountains. Paro is a small town that has only one main road, with its Dzong visible from nearly everywhere. We dumped our baggages and moved out, although in different groups. Of course, worth mentioning is Shivku and AdiJ’s antics – they went on to see a Bhutanese Movie. Of course, language was no barrier! AdiJ was visibly moved by the Bhutanese ethos and pathos displayed so opulently in the movie. According to Shivku of course, the local movie industry reminded him of Bollywood 3 decades back (and that even Nishant’s videos were more superior :P ) Ghate, Ayan , Yogs and Varun, on the other hand, went on to taste the local delights in the form of Beef momos and the local brew – ara, made from fermented rice. ‘Ridiculously distasteful’ was the best they could say!

The picturesque Paro airport with the Dzong at the backdrop

NIGHTTIME saw an awesome quarrel with Changu – Mangu and Ghate at his furious best. Shivku had the audacity of even recording the same. Get it from him (or perhaps Youtube, by now)

Day11: 17th March: To the Tiger’s Nest

OK! So this was a big day with lots to cover – firstly, the famed Taktsang or Tiger’s nest monastery that demanded a 3 hour uphill trek (ok, we were seasoned players now, so naturally we scaled it in lesser time). But more importantly, we had to be back in Paro by 3pm, to watch the tsechu or the local spring festival, celebrating Guru Padmasambhava’s entry into Bhutan. Apparently, it is also the most popular tsechu in all Bhutan.

SO the plan was to wake up as early as 5 in the morning and be off by 6 - 6:30. The innings opened pretty well, with Ghate, Nishant and Ayan waking up the entire entourage (especially the usual laggards – no names taken, ahem ahem…) on time. Breakfast was around 6, when it was discovered that Ayan’s wallet was missing. Even after frantic searching, when the wallet stayed elusive, Ayan decided to stay back to search in a store he visited last night and block his card, if necessary. What followed? Well, the group goes to the monastery, scales the dizzy heights, are asked to empty their belongings at the entrance, when ta-dah old AdiJ lives up to his reputation for switching things (ask any of his pals of a certain Bike fiasco at Lucknow :P) and discovers that he has Ayan’s wallet instead. Mystery solved, poor Ayan comes up and begins the trek when the rest are descending and has to literally run the last 15 minutes lest the monastery close for lunch!

...and to the Tiger's nest we go

THE hike was an awesome one, giving a panoramic view of the lands below. (Crazy people, building monasteries at such altitudes, unless, of course, height is directly proportional to salvation!) There were occasional streams with clear potable water. There were even prayer wheels rotated by the flow of the waters. Occasionally, the monastery would come back to view and give excellent positions for photos. Towards the end, one could hear the reverberations of a tumbling waterfall along with the echoes of barking dogs, creating a surreal ambience. The monastery, destroyed in a fire in ’98 was brilliantly restored and now has exquisite murals all over.

The Place beyond the Pines (the knoll marking the trek's starting point)

Colors at the Tsechu

WE returned to Paro for lunch (more datsi) and then proceeded for the tsechu. After a while, we proceeded for the local Dzong, when we realized that the guide with us was not a registered one, and hence could not take us inside. Most Bhutanese spots require a local guide as a means to promote GDP (and yeah, let’s admit it, Gross National Happiness (where Bhutan ranks 1) is something, but necessarily not everything. C’mon, we are MBAs after all :P)

WE had all given up and whiled away our time taking snapshots, when Menghani finally proved that when it comes to the fairer sex, none can persuade them better :P . He had walked to the nearby Tourist helpdesk and had asked the lady therein to help us out to see the Dzong (Varun, if there’s a different version, please enlighten us ;) She (gladly) complied and accompanied us as the guide to enter the Dzong.  Another good visit, with Justice finally discovering his adalat (see pic below). We spent some more time watching the slow tsechu dances and then went on for some more photography sessions in front of the Dzong and at a nearby brook. Nighttime included some more sauntering, dinner and finally some local wine (thankfully much better than the ara)

Justice by Justice at the Royal Court of Justice

A river runs through it....(at the Paro Dzong)

Singing the brook's song

Day 12: 18th March: Journey to NJP

WE travelled back to India, our phoren tour finally over, with a brief halt at Phuentsholling (and our last datsi meal – sob, sniff, sigh – were we sad!) Reached NJP at night, stayed in the same mosquito infested place. Shivku and Co. sang till late night, after a few dissidents (ahem ahem) decided to not play the game mentioned by Nishant earlier at Thimpu :(

Day 13: 19th March: Train to Lucknow - All Good things come to an end

TOOK the train at early morn. More Connexions, more dozing offs and a delay of the train to arrive at Lucknow by 8 instead of 3 am.

Day 14: 20th March: Home sweet Home!

RETURNED to Lucknow amidst Holi celebrations (which all missed). Spruced up for the Convocation to take place on the 22nd. Parents start arriving. Pandhi bags his dream job at Citi (after Dharmaraj’s blessing at Pelling – ask him for the full story :) And then the final stay at HelL…

WELL, that’s all, folks, for now, until we meet again…kyunki, Party abhi baki hain :)

March, 2011, 
Contributed by Sudeshna, Preeti & Ayan
Photos: Nishant, Yogesh & Ayan