Sikkim Tales

 It was at the end of March 2021 when we decided to go for a trip to Sikkim and Darjeeling. So we made a plan to visit there. We boarded the train on 1st April 2021  from Sealdah, Kolkata to New Jalpaiguri. It took us 12 to 13hrs Via train to reach there is NJP(New Jalpaiguri). We took an early morning train and reach there by evening. We already pre-booked a hotel at https://www.booking.com/ near the Station since the area is quite near to each and every facility. We halted that night over there. 

The next morning we took a Cab from NJP to Gangtok. One can easily get a sharing cab or an Individual cab near the station of Jalpaiguri. It takes 119km i.e. 4 hrs drive from Jalpaiguri to Gangtok. Our hotel was prebooked, yeah it's 15mins away from the Mahatma Gandhi Marg. But I would definitely give that Hotel North Inn 5 star rating. They deserve it. The staffs were extremely good, well behaved and many more. 

Once we reach there, we thought of going to MG marg. The evening was well spent by roaming around the markets and the good food available there. We did not make a prebooking of cars for the sightseeing because of the fact that due to sickness caused by the high altitude. If you have a fear of high altitude sickness better don't book a car in advance, rather wait to reach there you will find plenty of options. So, while we were returning to our hotel, we got a cab and we hired him for the local sightseeing.

On the next morning, we move forward with local sightseeing. We went to see the Banjhakri falls which is around 10-12kms away from Gangtok. The name Banjhakri is composed of two words- 'Ban' meaning forest or jungle and 'Jhakri' meaning traditional healer. It's a waterfall that falls from a rocky height of  40 feet. Then we moved to Tashi viewpoint which is situated 8km away from central Gangtok. Tashi Viewpoint is a scenic beauty from where travelers can get a view of the magnificent Mount Sinilochu and Mount Kanchenjunga.

Jawaharlal Nehru Botanical Garden is around 24kms away from Gangtok and it's a must going place since you may see heaven over there with different flowers.

Ganesh Tok is situated in the hills with a mind-stirring view of Kanchenjunga. The sublime place takes you a step closer to nature with its surreal surroundings and comforting ambiance. It is situated 6500 feet above sea level. And there is Hanuman Tok which is 7200 feet above sea level and is maintained by the Indian Army it is juxtaposed with Kanchenjunga. It is a place where Hanuman Ji stopped to rest while carrying Sanjeevni to Lanka from the Himalayas. 

Namgyal Institute of Tibetology and  Do Drul Chorten are almost nearby each other. Do Drul Chorten is one of the most important stupas in Sikkim. It has mantra wheels by rotating them you can chant it. And the Institute is having a museum associated with Tibetology.

One may find a few more monasteries and places. But due to this Covid, it was closed. There Is also a zoological park which you may go to.

On the next day, we move ahead towards North to see the silk route, Nathula Pass, Baba Harbhajan Singh Temple, and The Tsomgo Lake. While we were moving to see Nathula pass we experienced snowfall which augments the beauty of the black and white hue of the mountains. You need an extra permit to go there. Nathu La pass is one of the most important Himalayan passes. From Gangtok to Nathula you will see a gush of the waterfall. While going there is a rich of wildlife. Of course, we were lucky to go there while we were returning a heavy snowfall occurred and hence it will close the road. The silk route was visible.  Baba Harbhajan Singh temple is located on the Road passing to Nathu La pass and Jalepla Pass and is 20km from that road.  Baba Mandir is the shrine that was built at the Samadhi of Harbhajan Singh. It is the local belief that every person visiting the Nathang Valley and crossing through this enchantingly beautiful terrain has to pay their respects to Baba Harbhajan Singh. He was the Sepoy who has sacrificed his life on this Indo- China border. Due to its heavy snow, his body might have been buried there. And it was believed that his soul has helped the Indian army present thereby giving information about the enemy. This made him extremely exceptional and the Indian army to give Moksh to his soul has made a samadhi there.  

Tsomgo Lake is one of the few high-altitude lakes in India situated on the Gangtok - Nathu La highway. It has a magical appearance if you go there. The lake becomes glassy frozen during its wintertime and it is enveloped by steep snow-capped mountains in between the green carpet while leaving you with an astonishing effect. 

Traveling to Himachal

This blog is all about my experience to see that much large apple gardens, big hills, beautiful black and white hues of snowy mountains and the most amazing landscape in India as far as I have travelled. It was my dream to see the big red and green apples hanging from the tree. 

It was in the end of September we took train from Howrah, India to Kalka, situated in Haryana, India. Once we reach the station Kalka after travelling for 2 days in train another train was waiting for us and it's not a normal train but a toy train with the name Shivalika.  As soon as we boarded the train we come in vicinity to the mountains. The speed of the train is not that much good it takes around 3-4 hours to reach  Shimla. Tourist normally prefer this train for its amazing way of moving in between the hills and the beautiful landscape you can observe from this train really marvelous. You might miss the opportunity to see all those beauty if you choose to travel by car. Our hotels, Cottages and car was already pre-booked. So we were a bit relieved by not thinking about that.

Shivalika Toy Train

Once we reach to Shimla we could feel the cold breeze and the smiling sun over our head I think this combination of atmosphere does not let us feel tired after such a long journey. Since our cab was already booked we took the car and moved to our cottage. The cottage was around 2 and a half hours away from the main city. The main city was in the mid of a lot of hustle and bustle so I think that staying in that cottage was worth it. The people near there and the family of the person who took our booking were very loving and welcoming they literally provided us with home cooked food which helped us in maintaining a good immunity in the sudden weather change within us. We enjoyed that night there.

Next day in the morning we started moving towards Sarahan a small village in HP it took 8 hours to reach there via road from Shimla. There is nothing much to see in Sarahan but a temple i.e. Bhimakali temple. It's a temple dedicated to mother goddess Bhimakali. The temple is situated about 180 km from Shimla and it is as holy as 51 shakti peeths it  relates to the daksha yajna incident, when the ear of Sati, daughter of king Daksha, is said to have fallen down in the ground there, making this a place of worship as a peetha-sthan. We halt that night in sarahan and next day after darshan move towards Sangla.

Entrance to Bhimakali temple

Inside of Bhimakali temple

Narsimha temple

Sangla is situated a bit at a higher altitude, it took us around 2 hours to reach there. It's a beautiful town, visiting this place was prohibited since it is close to the Tibetan Border. Spread over an area of over 40kms. It's a magnificent site to behold . Snow clad mountains surround you and you get to see the Kinner kailash peak. It has many big Apple Gardens which adds an extra cream to your coffee. It has another name i.e. the Baspa valley after the name of the Baspa river flowing through this valley. Visit the nearby place Chitkul there, it's the last town of the Indian border after which Tibetan border begins. The temperature of Chitkul is extremely low and there is hardly any availability of the phone connection there. The roads leading to Chitkul is still under construction and so it might take a little bit of an extra time. Apart from that the roads are extremely adventurous with small width and shape of a serpent whose bends are under the umbrella of rocks of the mountains. The fantastic landscape won't let you escape from that place. 

Sangla Surrounded by kailash peak

 

Apple Garden

Chitkul

Next day we went to kalpa, it was a 2 and a 1/2 hour drive. It is situated on the old Hindustan Tibet road. Earlier it was the District Headquarter of Kinnaur. It has all the characteristics of a heritage village. Large Apple gardens across the town, great Kailash peak surrounding the monastry and temples for positive vibes and the biggest plus point is it's hustle and bustle free area. There are several places you can visit by staying at kalpa, those are suicide point, Roghi Valley, Apple gardens, temples and monastries. On next day we started to board back to kalka via road by halting at Rampur for a night.

Chitkul

Temple in Kalpa

View of Kailash from kalpa