“O dear Himalaya…why are you so amazing, can I kiss your peak or can I just let your silence speak…O dear Himalaya…”
I visited Ghum and Darjeeling with my family. It was a wonderful trip. We enjoyed the scenic views of the Himalayas, the tea gardens, and the toy train ride. Ghum is the highest railway station in India and has a famous monastery. Darjeeling is a charming hill station with a rich cultural heritage. We had a memorable time there.
Tinchuley is a small hamlet located about 28 km from Darjeeling and around 3 km from Takdah. The name means “three ovens” in Tibetan, because of the three prominent hilltops that resemble ovens. The confluence of Teesta and Rangeet is also known as Triveni. Some call it Lover’s point. It is considered to be a holy place where two great Rivers meet. Rangeet is considered to be a male river who meets his beloved Teesta at this point, hence the name ‘Lover’s Point’. Lamahatta stands for Lama for Buddhist monk and Hatta for hut: a monk’s heritage. Lamahatta Eco park is a famous spot with its vibrant bright flowers.
Takdah is a small hill station in the Darjeeling district of West Bengal, India. It is surrounded by lush green tea gardens, pine forests and orchids. The place was once a British cantonment area and thus has a number of old British bungalows. You can enjoy the scenic views of the Himalayas, breathe in the fresh mountain air and experience the local culture and cuisine. A homestay at Takdah will give you a chance to live with a host family and learn about their traditions and lifestyle. We fell in love with the place Takdah and the Rose Villa heritage homestay. I would like to extend my thanks and gratitude to the Lama family, who owns the Rose Villa for making our stay so memorable. We would love to visit again.
Among the snowy peaks of Nepal and Tibet, stories tell of a mysterious ape-like creature called the Yeti. Purported to be a towering human-like figure covered in shaggy fur, the Yeti continues to excite dedicated believers still hoping for evidence that the mythical creature is real. The lack of hard evidence despite decades of searches doesn’t deter true believers; the fact that these mysterious creatures haven’t been found is not taken as evidence that they don’t exist, but instead how rare, reclusive, and elusive they are.
Lachung and Yumthang are the two most picturesque places in the whole of Sikkim. The bounty of the nature, sky-kissing mountains, green meadows, flowing river, hot spring make Yumthang valley a tourist's dream place to visit and to enjoy the beauty without any sort of infringement. Yumthang Valley also embraces the renowned Shingba Rhododendron Sanctuary with 24 species of Rhododendron.
Gurudongmar lake is located at a surface elevation of 17,800 ft (5,430 m) and covers an area of 290 acres making it the largest lake in the whole of Sikkim. The India-China border is just a few kilometres away from the lake. This lake is considered very sacred by both Buddhists and Hindus. Guru Padmasambhava (8th century) and Guru Nanak (15th century) had blessed this lake.
Sikkim is a land of exotic waterfalls. The Dzongu area and the road between Lachung and Mangan in North Sikkim are blessed with the maximum numbers of waterfalls in Sikkim. Numerous waterfalls astride the main road make the trip to North Sikkim extremely picturesque.
The Teesta River originates in the Himalayas and flows through the Indian States of Sikkim and West Bengal before entering Bangladesh, where it flows into the Brahmaputra. Flowing through the length of Sikkim, the Teesta River is considered to be the lifeline of the state. The Teesta valley in Sikkim is rich in biodiversity, and the river provides livelihoods for the residents along its entire length of 393 km.
The Rumtek monastery, a replica of the Tsurphu monastery of Kham region of Tibet belongs to the Kagyu lineage. Rumtek is the largest monastery in the Eastern Himalaya. It was built by the 9th Karmapa Wangchuk Dorje during the reign of the fourth Chogyal in 1740 in the East District, at an altitude of about 1,550 m (5,100 ft).
Malana is an ancient Indian village in the state of Himachal Pradesh. Much before going to Malana village, I had read quite a lot about it. This solitary village in the Malana Nala, a side valley of the Parvati Valley to the north-east of Kullu Valley, is isolated from the rest of the world. The peaks of Chanderkhani and Deo Tibba shadow the village. It is situated on a remote plateau by the side of the torrential Malana river, at a height of around 10,000 feet above sea level. Malana has its own lifestyle and social structure and people are strict in following their customs.
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