SIKKIM - DAY EIGHT : WEST TO EAST - ON TO GANGTOK

         The first day of the second week of my third planned trip in India was not as lively as I had expected it to be, but all the same, it was probably for the best. Arthur, Hanna and I woke up at 6 a.m, but the persistent drizzle from the previous night accompanied by the soreness from the last three days' trekking had us cancelling the early morning monastery trek and snuggling into our warm blankets instead. At 7 a.m we awoke to the call of breakfast. Freshening up, we reached the breakfast table to find a huge bowl of oats and an omelette ready for us. As much as we tried, none of us were able to finish the oats. 

Mountains Shrouded in Mist

        Soon after breakfast, we packed our bags, paid the bill and set out down the hill to the town centre and taxi stand. We got a taxi almost immediately and set out the moment we were seated. Experienced at driving in such terrain, the taxi driver swerved along the treacherous mountain track. At one point, traffic was held up because of a landslide across the road. A little delay ensued but soon enough vehicles began moving again, climbing up and down the treacherous pile of mud on the road. Hanna and Arthur showed me photographs of their trip so far - Sri Lanka to Kerala, Hampi, Ellora, Ajanta, the Taj Mahal in Agra, Occhra and finally Sikkim. Yumthang Valley in North Sikkim looked very appealing and I decided to try and fit it into my schedule.

Tree of Faith

        A couple of hours later, we arrived at Geyzing. Low on money, we went around searching for an ATM. The first three did not have money or were closed. Luckily for us the last ATM we tried took pity on us and gave us some cash. I thanked Arthur and returned him the money he had lent me. Since they were headed to Darjeeling and I to Gangtok, the time had come to part ways. We wished each other 'Bon Voyage', exchanged contact information and set out in different directions. 

         Hungry by now, I grabbed some lunch before heading on to Gangtok. Once again, I got the extreme back seat of the jeep. By now my tummy and head were swooning with the winding roads and rash drivers of the land, experienced best from the extreme back seat of a jam packed jeep. However, with no other option, I swallowed my grievances and set out. Some of the other passengers seemed to know each other and the driver, and were joking away in Sikkimese. 

Majestic Views around Every Bend

         The jeep kept halting at little vegetable stands along the way and some of the passengers kept alighting to buy vegetables. A trifle surprised, I watched on in amusement. Anyway, three hours later, we drove into Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim. A modern town, it had all the branded shops most cities do. Like most hill stations, it was a series of levels of roads along the hillside. After searching three of these levels, (that involved a fair bit of climbing up and down), I found Alfa Lodge, a reasonable place to stay.

Fur Ball on Mall Road

        The long journey had taken its toll, and a hot bath was necessary to refresh me. Fresh at last, I ventured out to explore the town. Walking along the shop fronts, I was shocked to suddenly bump into Abhishek Pandey, a colleague of mine from work. He too had come to Gangtok to relax for a few days during his leave. We found ourselves a pub named Chopsticks, which was screening an IPL Match, and had a couple of beers and some mouth watering food.

         At around 11 p.m., we decided to call it a night and returned to our respective lodgings. Though I wanted to write about the day, exhaustion overcame me and I fell asleep with both my clothes and the lights still on.

Next Chapter : DAY NINE - AROUND GANGTOK