Thought-process

Tathagat and I leave Delhi in the first week of October for the North-east of India. Early morning flights are my favourite because I get to see the morning sky at close quarters. We reach Guwahati by noon. The rest of the group, which includes my parents, sisters, brother-in-law and nephew, have reached an hour before and are waiting at the airport. All of us (group of 8) head to the transit mess for lunch. Eaten and rested, we head for the hills to Shillong.

The Garo, Khasi and Jaintia hills surround this beautiful green state of Meghalaya. The drive from Guwahati is a scenic one and it takes four and a half hours to reach our destination. By the time we begin the climb, it gets dark and we are caught in the midst of the Durga Puja celebrations and the traffic jam hampers our progress. All hill stations have this problem. The road is a single lane which gets jammed easily. We are headed towards Upper Shillong (Laitkor) which is several kilometres above the main city. For the next 4 days we shall be staying in a beautifully located house perched on top of a hill and I plan to make the most of it.

I am up at 6 am as sunlight streams through the windows. The walk around the beautiful campus is exhilarating, what with the pure air carrying the aroma of pines. Gardens bloom with colour. Birds chirping and butterflies fluttering around me complete the blissful picture.

After breakfast, we leave for Laitlum canyon. We reach our destination in half an hour. This area consists of a vast flat land surrounded by deep valleys. The view is breath-taking. Clouds float past and waterfalls can be seen far below. The green in Meghalaya is hypnotic. Some time back this area has been fenced off following an accident. In foggy weather, this area is definitely out of bounds.

From here we head towards the Assam Rifles Museum where the person in-charge explains the inception and growth of this para military force.  Right outside the museum are the monoliths which are going to make their presence felt throughout our trip. Close to the museum is the memorial which is surrounded by a beautiful lake. The weather starts to change and mist surrounds us and it begins to rain.

The wonderful aspect of Shillong weather is that sunshine is never far behind. After lunch, as we leave for the Sacred forest at Mawphlang, the sky is clear once again and we reach the forest in an hour. This is a very interesting forest as our guide, 22-year-old Kerri tell us. He speaks English fluently and has been a guide since the age of 14. He tells us that we don’t take anything from the forest and don’t leave anything behind there either. This sacred forest has been guarded by the people of Meghalaya for centuries. Tourists are allowed to walk through a designated area of the forest, always accompanied by a guide. Kerri is technologically very savvy and clicked pictures of us with amazing backgrounds and foregrounds. The forest is thick with trees and because it is evening, all we hear is the sound of crickets. Mornings are the best time to visit here to listen to bird songs.

As we come out of the forest we witness a dazzling setting sun against the hills. Satiated with all the beauty of nature around us, we return to our digs by 6 pm.

The next day, we leave at 9.30 am for Dawki, which is a town situated near the Indo-Bangladesh border. The river Umngot, well-known as the Dawki river, is one of the cleanest in Asia. We reach the town at noon. The road is jam packed with vehicles. It is a single kachha road. We finally get to our boat and the next half hour is simply divine. With cliffs and lush greenery on both sides punctuated with waterfalls, it is pure bliss. Some people sit quietly on boulders by the side and fish. The point where we begin the boat ride is next to Bangladesh and we see our neighbours who have come to bathe in the river. After the boat ride we have lunch at the BSF Border post and then visit the International Check Post.

Now we head for another part of the Umngot river – the Krang Suri falls. It takes us an hour to reach and when we park our vehicle on a flat meadow surrounded by hills and trees, we have no idea where the falls would be. A dirt track leads down towards rough steps leading to the first pit stop made like a gazebo where several people are resting and viewing the falls. We climb down further and reach an area where the river flows smooth and calm and I can see the river bed through the clear water. Moving further down we get to see the waterfall at close quarters. It is a surprise to see the calm river turn into this white cascading curtain of water falling from a height and covering a cave right behind it. The water falls into a pool where lots of people swim around in bright orange life jackets. The rocks are slippery and in places there are rails to hold on to.

Seeing the river and the various shades of blue and green takes me back to the lakes of Ladakh I had seen just a few months ago. I am so thankful to have visited both the places seeing nature at its most vibrant. Reluctantly, I turn back to climb up towards our vehicle and head back towards the setting sun.

Next day with the sun shining brightly, we head towards Shillong View point and get a clear view of the entire city. Why I say clear is because we are lucky to have good weather. It is generally misty and the wait can be long for the mist clears.

We then drive towards the Elephant Falls and reach there is half an hour. This waterfall is worth seeing because it is two-tiered. At the first tier, the waterfall gushes into a crystal clear pool and it seems quite serene and water from this pool flows down over rocks and collects into another pool. Here people are not allowed to swim. The place is quite crowded nevertheless. The steps coming down have to be negotiated carefully as they are slippery.

After we have our fill of this beauty, we relax for some time at a tea shop and then head for the Living Root bridge which we reach after a two-hour drive. Actually, we drive towards Dawki which we visited yesterday. Due to some logistical reasons, we have had to change our itinerary. Here too we climb down towards the river and come to this marvel of a bridge. It is a living entity, made by entwining the roots of rubber trees growing there and has taken many, many years to become strong enough for passage. As the trees continue to grow, so does the bridge. There are many such bridges all over Meghalaya. A waterfall next to the bridge simply adds to the magic.

Very close to the root bridge is the cleanest village in Asia, Mawlynnong. It is 2 pm and we have our lunch. Sandwiches and Maggie noodles disappear from the table in no time. The walk around the village was like taking a stroll in a nature park. The village is clean, no doubt, but it is also peaceful. I do not know what the villagers feel with so many visitors coming every day to peep into their gardens and look at their homes. How do they deal with it, I wonder? The gardens are in full bloom, and a lake has a quaint bamboo bridge over it. As the shadows get longer, we are reminded of our ride back and we leave rather reluctantly.

Next day the first location to visit is Sweet Falls in Happy Valley. The interesting bit is that this area is supposedly haunted. In fact, when we reach there at 11 am, there is no one else there, other than us. This waterfall goes deep into ravines and hardly anyone goes down to the end. But the surroundings are so peaceful with the sun shining, a light breeze, bird chirping, butterflies fluttering and the sound of the water. This part of nature, undisturbed by humans, has a wonderful calming effect.

A twenty-minute drive and we reach Ward’s Lake. This is a beautifully kept lake at the heart of the city. I have been here before as a three-year-old and of course I do not remember anything. My parents however, point out the changes, but they seem quite happy with what it is now. The feature that stands out here is the wooden bridge across the lake. We have a lovely time strolling around among trees and flowers and sitting next to the lake.

The Police Bazaar is out next halt but it takes us a long time to reach there because of traffic snarls. This is the main market place of the city. We buy several things from the emporia as well as the bakeries. While returning we are lucky to catch a glimpse of a music band right in the centre of the market belting out old English hits.

The next day we leave for Guwahati in the morning as we have a flight to catch in the afternoon. On the way we stop at one of several view-points of Bara Pani (Umiam lake). I try to keep this serene location embedded in my mind, to call up when I need it.

Back at home I wonder if those places I visited are for real? Real or not, I feel recharged and ready to take on the hustle and bustle of life back in the city until the lure of Nature gets me once again.