Post trip blues .....

After we came back from Sikkim it is seemingly taking us a long time to get back to normal. First there was a gas leakage at home when I opened the valve for cooking. Calling the emergency number made us realize we would not get any action in the night. So we wound the pipe which we suspected was leaking with brown cellophane. When finally the gas people - 2 people turned up. Well at least the 2nd guy came with the required pipes so we went ahead with him and got both the pipes changed. It was clear the last guy had cheated us ( specifically me ) - first by overcharging for the pipes and second by giving a pipe that was to expire soon ! Anywayz ... the gas leakage taken care of .... the next problem started ...

I found the front tyre of our car had no air. Hmmmm .. hardly had that been fixed when the car would not start !!! Uh oh .... looks like the cold weather in Pune had had its time to work on the battery. So today the battery people came - said the battery was not drained by was less charged so had to take the battery to the battery re-charging unit. It will be done by tomorrow.

And the week is not yet over ... wonder what else is in store ??? All small small things .. but nuisances nevertheless ..... ! :)

Sikkim - Tips for Travel

Ideally this post belongs to my traveljaunts blog but then I write about travel here too and I see no harm in repeating.

Hmmm ... so Sikkim travel tips ..... where do I begin ?

• The roads of Sikkim are truly tortuous !! I mean this literally .. the road has turns on average every 25 - 50 meters. Unless you have a cast iron stomach - this is going to be a real problem when you travel. There is winding .... and there is "winding". Sikkim is tightly tightly wound ! :)
• The soil of Sikkim is very loose - so the roads are always half eroded due to landslides / rockslides / water erosion / road being done etc.  Always the road state is in a flux ! :) BRO works through out the year to keep the roads clear.
• Due to the above reasons - distances of even 20 kms are a long long journey. Did I mention tortuous roads that feel torturous ? :)
• In November - it is very cold. Temperatures go to minus so yes one needs lots and lots of warm clothing. Don't go with what the Sikkim guides say - they think the temperature is not too cold in November ! :)
• North Sikkim needs permits. The travel agents take care of this - but you need approx 6 PP snaps and 6 ID proof xeroxes. Yes even for a child. We took our baby's school ID. They seem to prefer Voter ID for adults! 
• Out of 6 days we felt we actually saw points of interest only on 3 days. Travel to the places takes time. Not that the scenery is not pretty but still.
• North Sikkim - altitude sickness is very prevalent. Be prepared. 
• Our driver mentioned that for every itenary - there is an extra driver's point that can be taken to by the driver on extra cost. For e.g. - on the Yumthang valley drive - travel to Zero point is optional and extra. On the NathuLa drive - travel to Kachenjunga view area is optional and extra. Do your research.
• BSNL is the only service provider up in the mountain and that too only to a point. 
• Since Nathu La is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays - if you are going to this place on the last day of your itenary you may want to consider driving from there onwards to Zuluk and then go to Bagdogra airport / JBP  railway station. You need permit for Zuluk so you  should take care of this before. We came back to Gangtok which I felt could have been avoided and instead could have made a circular route with Zuluk in the fray.
• Places to see include points in West Sikkim and Bhutan which can be accessed by road. We felt - those areas could be done in another trip in which we would include Darjeeling too. This is a personal preference. 
• Unless otherwise mentioned - driver is not available for the full day. 
• Try and include meals in your hotel stays - there are not many options on the road other than Maggi and tea.
• I would definitely recommend home stay - Hidden Forest Resort in Gangtok and Teen Taley Eco Resort ( home stay again ) in Rumtek. They were fantastic.
• And last but not the least our driver - Mr. Ketan Pradhan - 94343-56528 / 94348-69042 who is associated with Alpine Nature Beyond was wonderful. Safe driver , very interested in actually showing us places and very punctual. He is the best driver / guide I have come across so far. 

Change ...

After sometime a beautiful picture begins to pall , a lovely perfume you get used to and can no longer smell it, wonderful scenery is taken for granted , novelty of possessions fades off ....

Water still for a long time stagnates and a constant diet of rich chocolate desserts would become boring ... and fattening too :) When the same exercise is done daily your muscles get used to it ; within a single day if you were to do the same task obviously you would go out of your mind due to the monotony !

So what does this all mean ?

CHANGE !!! It never ceases to amaze me that change is the only constant and the only thing that one can really like .. and yet it is always fought ... we fight to keep things same .. !!!

Why ???