Cheimatophobia , the fear of cold. If you
have this phobia, better do not venture here in winter as temperature here may
touch zero sometimes. If not, come and visit Shillong, The Scotland of the
East.
Shillong was the capital of Assam, till 21st
Jan, 1972, when the state of Meghalaya (the abode of clouds) was sliced out
from the Southern Part, where lies the Garo, Khasi and Jaintia hills. Hemmed by
hills and wrapped by mists almost throughout the year, this city is best
visited after monsoon when fog infringes the least, cloud doesn't clout with
the weather to impede your outing.
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| living root bridge Mowlynnong |
Our plane landed at the Gopinath Bordoloi
Airport at Guwahati , from where we took a cab for the four hour journey to
Shillong. Once we crossed Barapani, the reservoir of a Hydel project, locally
known as Umiam Lake, we knew that Shillong is not far behind. The cab dropped
us at Police Bazar, a chowk from where the main market was located. We checked
into a hotel and freshened up before strolling around gathering information
about sightseeing in the local Taxi stand.
We learnt that a minimum of three days were needed to roughly complete
all the spots. We decided to cover the
far off places first leaving the local spots for the last day.
Day I : Destination Mowlynnong , Asia’s
cleanest village. In the entire 90 Km stretch cloud made the surrounds play
hide and seek with our Maruti 800. The knolls carpeted with bluish green
vegetation, the bamboo cottages or Rawais, the green valleys played the game in
tandem. The road took numerous turns in the forest in the last leg and all of a
sudden we reached the village. A hamlet as clean as one can be as littering is
a crime over here. From a 5 year old to
an octogenarian, all busy in sweeping off twigs and dead leaves with obsessive
zeal and dumping them in bamboo baskets
. A stream cuts through the village and across it stands the famous ‘natural
root bridge’. Crossing over is an
experience in itself, where you are enveloped by roots on three sides and the
canopy above. Next we were escorted to the watch tower, resembling a tree
house, from where vast expanse of grassy plains of Bangladesh could be seen.
Soon the cloud played a spoilt spot,
drawing the curtains over the feast. We climbed down. Before leaving Mowlynnong , we had our lunch in
a villager’s living room turned into a makeshift restaurant . The desi
chicken preparation has left an indelible mark on our taste buds.
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| Wahkaba Falls |
Day 2: Next day was for Cherrapunjee ( 55
Km south of Shillong) which is locally called Sohra, receives the highest rainfall in the planet just
next to Mawsynram, 16 Km west. Our first break was at Wahkaba Falls. We descended a few hundred steps to
first see a small spring followed by the huge rumbling falls splashing into a
pool below amid foams and froth. The mountain greens with its varied shades
dive hundreds of feet down to touch the spring below. We stood engrossed.
‘Chaliye
saab aaj bohut kuch dekhna hai’, said Vaisyaji
our driver. We climbed up panting
all the way. Heart patients should not venture down at Wahkaba.
Next, we headed for Mawjimbuin Cave, where
we had to squeeze through the dark entrance of the watery cave. Rounded
stalactites and stalagmites oozes water
making the short stint adventurous. We went to The Ramakrishna Mission which
houses a big school, a hospice ad a temple. The Khashi tribesmen are in debt to
this organization for their help.
Finally, we went to the Nohkalikai Falls,
one of the heighest in the country. Fog, here, played spoilt sport again. We
heard the roars but thick fog obstructed our vision. We returned after seeing
the seven sisters falls, which is a cascade of the broken stream that falls
parallel down into Bangladesh. The cloud
cover restricted our view though Vaisyaji said that vast part os Shylet could
be seen from here on a clear day. We spent some time in the adjoining garden,
helped ourselves with some snacks and started our journey back.
Day 3. The third day was scheduled for
local sight seeing. We started with the golf course, one of the oldest in the country,
set up by the British in 1898. At 5200 feet above the sea level, the lush green
undulating turf is a treat for the eye.
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| wards lake |
Botanical garden was next, which is a
repertoire of both flora and fauna. Wards lake, situated at the heart of the
city, was near by where we crossed a wooden bridge and went to the point from
where boats are hired for boating. The flowers and the garden around were
striking. If you love photography, here
is your hunting ground. Shoot.
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| Elephant Falls |
We came down to the city and next in our list was Don Bosco
Museum, the seven storied house which is the repertoire of the indigenous
culture. Artifacts weapons, dresses of Meghalaya and the sister states
displayed under one roof. At the top one can have a 360 degree view of the
city.
W didn't have time for the museum of Entomology ( study of
the insects) and a couple of nearby falls
( Beadon, Bishop and Sweet), as it was dark already.
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| Barapani |
The next morning we had to go down to Guwahati to catch our
flight back. While crossing the Barapani
again, I was missing the mist draped green, undulating expanse of rounded
hills, sparsely dotted with monoliths and occasional epitaphs reminding the
frugality of our existence to nature, yet the time we spend in her lap is so
precious, so meaningful in our lives.
Text : Courtesy Orissa Post
For more infos:-
| Tourist Information Centres, New Delhi Meghalaya House, 9 Aurangzeb Road, New Delhi – 110001 Ph no: +91-11-23014417 | Tourist Information Centres, Kolkata Meghalaya House, 120, Shanti Pally, Rash Behari Connector Kolkata – 700107 Ph no: +033-24412159 Fax: +91-33-24411930 |
| Meghalaya Tourism Development Corporation Polo Road, Shillong – 793001 Meghalaya, India Ph no: +91-364-2222731/ 2224933/ 2505012/ 2224471 | Indiatourism Tirot Singh Road, Shillong – 79001 Meghalaya, India Ph no: +91-364-2225632 |
