[lucifer1881]

The obviously clickbait title aside, the punning game is also strong here. I am the last of the “language” dinosaurs who still holds on to the “classical” ways of writing. I believe punning is the lowest form of humour but I also believe that clickbaiting is several rungs lower.

Then again, pulling off a “bait and switch” is what the cool kids are doing these days. I am cool. And I choose to remain a kid. So there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwLKJV2JoVY

#shamelessPlug from an earlier trip to illustrate the point

It is that very kid in me who has been aching to drive to the North East ever since a famous Laura (I am looking at you, Ravveendrra) drove across Arunachal way back when. Somehow or the other, life kept getting in the way. Life kinda tried to put the brakes on this trip too but I am wiser now. I think.

For all the places we wanted to drive to, 30 days wouldn’t suffice. Who ever got a one month vacation from their job? No one. But I am eating a lot of spinach these days. Granted that most spinach I eat is in the form of paalak paneer but those are details that bother lesser mortals. Long story short, I am intelligent now.

Take spinach and make it fat. Taste supremeness guaranteed.

The intelligence in me simply customised the plan to the number of vacation days available. This may be straightforward for many. It is life changing for me. Never have I ever done this. I am the kind who plans a trip and then takes the requisite days off.

Anyhoo. The plan was simple. All of North East isn’t remotely possible in 19 days. We restricted ourselves to parts of Arunachal and Meghalaya. Could we have flown to Guwahati, rented a cab and saved us 8 days of to and fro between Hyderabad and Guwahati? Sure. But as they say, “Banality has never created amazeballs memories.” #trueStory

Here is a teaser of epicness to whet the appetite before the main course comes along.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnYlJSPuAbk

[lucifer1881]

This time, the sister-in-law (SIL) was joining us. She has been with us on road trips but none of this duration. The burning question wasn’t if SIL would be able to adapt to our trailblazing trip style. That is small potatoes. The question, simply, came down to this: The Rapid or the Elantra?

My Hampi log (Hampi - A Tale of Two Cars and Two Seasons) is a neat comparison of two very different cars in one specific environment. Those points still hold true. The whipped boy in me was pro Elantra. SIL was pro Elantra. Wife was insistent it be the Rapid. Two against one. Guess who won?

The Rapid it is

On 22 September at 5:15am, the journey began. Surprisingly, the Rapid’s dickey (As I said, last of the language dinosaurs) is cavernous.

A surprisingly big boot holds 3x19 person days of luggage plus shopping of 2 women as well

This was a relaxed day. Drive upto Nagpur and chill there for the rest of the day.

Situation Report: Roads up to TS-MH border are absolutely fantastic. The median is beautifully painted and landscaped. Once you hit MH border, it immediately goes downhill. While the dualisation work is complete, the road surface is nasty. Potholes all over. Dips and rises. The lot.

There is something about Nagpur. Every time I drive through the town (i.e. do not take the bypass), the Indian cricket team has a match scheduled there.

But this time we didn’t just drive through Nagpur. We spent the night there. Lo behold, we had the Indian cricket team staying in the same hotel as us. Who knew that Virat Kohli looks exactly the same in person as he does on TV? Umesh Yadav is unrecognisable in person. Javagal Srinath manages to look more dignified.

Between lunch and dinner, somehow the two sisters rode the elevator twice with Kohli but were weak kneed so much that they didn’t even remember to take a selfie. Yes, apparently it’s possible. The selfie obsessed sisters can get overawed in celebrity presence.

The trip was off to a great start. Where do we go from here?

[lucifer1881]

Before we go anywhere, here is a TLDR version for those with better things to do than read a stranger’s travelogue on the internet.

1. The Rapid moves. Really. It munches distance and doesn’t even burp.
2. There is one major difference between a car designed as a sedan and one designed as a hatch that later had a boot strapped to it - the departure angles. The Elantra's rear overhang hardly ever bottoms out compared to the Rapid's.
3. 3 people in the Rapid is a little tight. But that’s okay when you are family. With friends, it may put a strain on relationships. You have been warned.
4. The 11 states we drove through are TS, MH, MP, UP, BR, WB, AS, AR, ML, OD, AP.
5. The three borders we visited are Bhutan at Bhairabkunda, China at Bum La, Myanmar (almost) at Pangsau. The borders we drove close to but never visited are Nepal and Bangladesh.
6. Between 2016 (Where no Elantra has gone before - 5500 kms, 6 States & Bhutan!) and now, MP and UP have taken giant strides in road infrastructure. MH and BR have regressed. And how!
7. To reuse a phrase from my Spiti log (The Elantra does it again: 6233 km, 9 States, 18380 feet above sea level. Spiti, Ladakh & more), it wasn’t all rainbows and unicorns. We had a flat tyre on the Purvanchal Expressway. The tyre shredded itself to pieces. Drove with the space saver spare (as far as nomenclature goes, whoever in marketing first gave such a positive spin to what is essentially a cost saving measure must be given a raise for sheer innovation in thought and then promptly excommunicated for the great disservice to road safety) for over 100km until we found a tyre shop. Bought a tyre, got the alignment done and lost about 3 hours in all.
8. We also had the front brake pads wear out on the return somewhere near Guwahati. Don't know if this is because automatics in general have their brakes wear out in 17K km or if that is a Skoda issue. My driving style wasn't any different for that to be a factor.
9. A good word for Skoda service (against the general grain of perception on this forum). They were absolutely fantastic in both Siliguri and Kolkata. Credit where it is due.
10. The Rapid is a hardy beast. I have taken the Elantra to places that no one has taken a sedan with over 1.5 lakh km on the odo to. The roads the Rapid traversed were far worse:

    • An entire iBeam grazed completely across the undercarriage on one of those bridges one finds in those parts of the world. The car did not flinch.
    • It traversed the 30km between Tidding and Hayuliang in 3 hours that takes SUVs about 2.5 hours to do. At one point, we met an oncoming Thar whose passenger told us that the Rapid will not make it to Walong. His driver, however, said that she will.
    • The front suspension must have bottomed out at least 10 times a day courtesy the humongous potholes in Assam and West Bengal. She trundled on.
    • There was only one water crossing that the Rapid did not make across in the first attempt.

11. West Arunachal has superb infrastructure. East Arunachal, sadly, has an excuse of one.
12. Do not ever in your entire life visit Shillong. It is a lovely city and all that but you will spend half your holiday in traffic.
13. Kolkata is fantastic at this time of the year. The city is all lit up. The food is lip smacking. And meeting old friends is always lovely (note: friendship is old, the friends are all young).
14. Revisiting Konark, Puri, Pipli was pure nostalgia. I spent about 8 years of my formative life in Cuttack and these were usual weekend destinations.
15. There are too many speed cameras on the Chennai-Kolkata highway. Beware.

[lucifer1881]

Where did we go? Well, where didn't we?

The list is long:

1. Nagpur
2. Varanasi
3. Siliguri
4. Hugrajuli Gaon
5. Bhairabkunda / India Bhutan 0 Point
6. Dirang
7. Sela Pass / Lake
8. Jaswant Garh War Memorial
9. Jung Waterfalls
10. Tawang
11. Bum La
12. Sangetsar Lake
13. Tezpur
14. Tinsukia
15. Pangsau Pass (almost)
16. Wakro
17. Walong
18. Kibithoo
19. Shillong
20. Kolkata
21. Konark
22. Puri
23. Pipli
24. Vishakhapatnam

And how was the Rapid through all this? Absolutely ravishing.

The Rapid at Dirang.

[lucifer1881]

Let's begin. Much dilly dallying has been done already .

From Nagpur, we make our way to Varanasi. The wife and I love the city. It was SIL's first time there. We left Nagpur at 4am and reached Varanasi around 2:30pm.

The butter smooth roads in MP and UP eat up the km in no time


A quick halt to stretch those legs

Took a quick shower, and a nap. Then made our way to Assi ghat in time for the Ganga Aarti.

The boats docked until sunrise


Not a great viewing angle for the Aarti but the vibes were still there

The Ganga Aarti is a feast for the senses. It is light and sound in perfect harmony. Fewer sights in the world come close to it in spectacle.

Post Aarti groupie


The view of the city from a rooftop restaurant where we had dinner

[lucifer1881]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gu_qbmYF5Uw

Two days. 1500 odd km. Three chuffed travellers. And a beautiful sun rise over the Purvanchal Expressway. Then the flat happened.

It may be a flat but why should that get in the way of a dramatic picture?

The Rapid comes with these weird plastic covers over the wheel / lug nuts. It is almost impossible to get these off unless you watch an instructional video or comb through the manual. This is a total fail in my opinion. Lug nuts should not require a degree in online searches to get off. We lost about 30 minutes just trying to get those covers off. The rest of the tyre change process took less than 10 minutes.

Then the search began for a tyre shop to buy a replacement - the tyre had shredded itself. Mind you, all this happened around 6 in the morning. And while people in Bihar / UP start early, they don't start this early. I had to drive on that space saver spare until Chapra. I have ranted enough on low profiles and space savers. So I will just stop now.

What this incident managed to do was add 3 hours to what should have been a 12 hour drive to Siliguri. It totally helped to have the wife share the driving duties this time. Especially since it enabled me to take pictures of this beast.

An Armoured Personnel Carrier

[lucifer1881]

Phew. Siliguri. Check. Boring bits are done. Let the fun begin .

On day 4 of this trip, we made our way to a small hamlet off the Tezpur-Guwahati highway called Hugrajuli Gaon. Why Hugrajuli Gaon? Great question. Even a local contact who was helping us with the itinerary had the same question. But is that even a question? Great things are always achieved by asking "why not" instead.

Little Red Tea Cups Riding the Skoda's Boot

Picture in Picture. Is this Meta?

Self serving statements aside, do make a detour to Hugrajuli Gaon. There is a fantastic property there nestled in a tea garden called Kanoka Village Resort. And geographically speaking, it is closer to Dirang than Tezpur is.

The first of the many Assamese Thalis on this trip. Big fan now






The Kanoka Village Resort

https://youtu.be/KHly-s2BOrI

A technique that is all my own, but a 3 pointer is a 3 pointer

Courtesy google maps and my total ineptitude to double check the suggested route, enroute Hugrajuli Gaon I drove over a bridge made of I Beams. They grazed across the entire length of the Rapid's undercarriage. A few km later, I found a garage with a lift on the Guwahati-Tezpur highway to inspect the car. The damage was superficial - the underbody lining took the brunt of the hit.

The garage was owned and run by a woman. This was my first ever experience of a woman-owned woman-run car repair shop. The more I travel across the country the more such stories I come across. And they fill my heart with joy and pride.

[lucifer1881]

Quick note: Experts will tell you that Google Maps' driving time estimates do not work in Arunachal Pradesh due to road conditions. The experts are partly right. The estimates work fantastically well in West Arunachal. In East Arunachal, Google Maps gives up.

Anyway. Day 5.

The plan was to visit the Bhairavkund Temple, take a trip to the India Bhutan border and then drive to Dirang.

A traditional Assamese farewell at Kanoka sends us on our way


The beautifully painted rocks in Bhairabkunda


I do too

We walk around Bhairabkunda for quite a while to find the elusive Bhairavkund Temple.

The sisters take a breather

We could never find it. Perhaps it exists only on maps. Who knows. But we did find the best puri bhaaji in the history of all puri bhaajis.

Total yum

Next we go to the Bhutan border.

The border opens at 10:30am and it was only about 8:30 or so when we got there. I tried to charm the wonderful border guards of Bhutan to let me step across the imaginary line.

Charming as I am, the border guards would have none of it


The Guards allow me to take a picture into Bhutan from behind the border line


We get back to India

[lucifer1881]

And drive onwards towards Dirang.

https://youtu.be/d-lnBuwdzW0

Please apply for your Inner Line Permits at least 1 week in advance and choose DC Office Kolkata for processing. It took me 3 attempts to get the permit. The website is: https://arunachalilp.com

Once we crossed the Dhansiri barrage, the tarmac disappeared for about an hour or so. But when it made an appearance, the wait for it was more than worth it. Absolutely stunning piece of road with scarcely believable vistas.

https://youtu.be/AHe9xTn00bY

There was a massive landslide on the Tezpur-Bhalukpong-Dirang road just a day prior. The road was closed to traffic. We did not know this at the time. But me being me, my plan was to anyway take the road less travelled via Bhairabkunda . We got to Dirang around 2pm or so.

A Rainbow comes out to greet us


And Quiet Flows the Dirang, with due respect to Sholokhov


Do you see it in the distance? It says "I love Dirang".

Our next stop was the new Monastery built at Dirang.

In the evening, we found a nice little rooftop restaurant atop The Mandala Hotel.

Dusk falls over Dirang

[lucifer1881]

The sun rises over Dirang

Day 6. Tawang Ahoy!

Statutory Warning: Pictures of stunning vistas coming up

The first stop on the way to Tawang is the Sela Pass. Much has been written and said about this wonder of nature. Nothing that has been written or said does justice to its beauty. The wife and I have been on many high mountain passes. We have been overawed. We have been excited. We have been floored. But Sela did something else. It had us stop and take a deep breath.

Show me a better Pass

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3ZPf88cX50

The Rapid comes into its own at Sela

The Buddha keeps a silent vigil

The SSB Canteen serves piping hot coffee and Maggie


The highest Maggie of the trip


A customary picture with the Lamas

Sela Lake in all its glory:

We spent a good hour or so at the lake, soaking in the sights and sounds. This is the big advantage of starting early. You get there before the tourists do and have the entire place to yourself.

As we drive away from Sela, we wonder if there is anything else that can match the sheer beauty of what socked us in the face. If this brook was to go by, we had nothing to worry about.

[lucifer1881]

About 20km or so from Sela Pass we stop at the Jaswant Garh War Memorial.

It boggles the mind that during the 1962 war, the Chinese came down as far as this place. The LAC is 100km further north from here. It was a sombre experience learning about the brave sacrifices. And a reminder to never take for granted the freedom we won.

There is a nice canteen run by the Indian Army that serves very good tea / coffee and dosa made of non-fermented batter. That is not for lack of trying - it is simply too cold for the bacteria to do their thing.

Now, let me take you back to 1997. Bear with me. I am getting somewhere.

It was an important year. A year in which International Campaign to Ban Landmines won the Nobel Peace Prize, the Indian Tricolour was hoisted for the first time at the North Pole, JK Rowling published her first book, Dolly the Sheep was cloned, and Kylie Jenner was born. Okay, may be not the last one.

However, as far as West Arunachal goes, 1997 is a seminal year for it was the year of release of the movie Koyla. The West Arunachal timeline does not read BCE and CE. It reads Before Koyla and After Koyla. And for good reason. Koyla is perhaps the first movie, nay the only movie, that has captured the beauty of Arunachal in the only way it can truly be done - on 70mm celluloid. A dinosaur I may be but there is no way 0s and 1s of digital cameras can match the analog grains of film when it comes to dynamic range.

And you need all the dynamic range in the world to capture Jung Waterfalls. Rakesh Roshan did a fairly good job in Koyla. Here is my attempt at it.

The wife runs off to the waterfalls

We have been to many waterfalls. The wife's reaction to all of them has been, "Meh!" This one was different. For the first time ever, she was a little girl who had seen a jar full of candy.

What a day! What a lovely day!

After much frolicking, we resume our journey to Tawang. Tomorrow would bring in much more.

Enjoying the slight nip in the air as we sip a warm cuppa

[lucifer1881]

A cold frosty morning in Tawang


Not a bad view from the room, eh?


The Tawang Monastery bathed in glorious sunshine

Getting permits for Bum La entails a visit to multiple places. We got it done through our hotel. We had the permits in our hand at 7am and off we were to Bum La at 7:30.

We stop at "The World's Highest Cafe" at Tongpen La, about 3km before Bum La.

Chai at 15000ish feet



Around the Tongpen La Cafe


War Memorial at Tongpen La

Angrez Singh, who was posted at Tongpen La, very kindly agreed to give us a tour of the war memorial. Just before entering the area of the samadhi, Angrez Singh stopped and did a full military salute of the fallen soldier. That it gave me goosebumps is an understatement if ever there is any.

The Rapid at Tongpen La

[lucifer1881]

Bad joke alert:

Q: How do you tell someone politely to get here ASAP?
A: Bum La

(I will see myself out now)

Bum La is at 15,200 ft above sea level. We have been to 3 higher passes - Khardung La, Tang La, Chang La. What it lacks in height it more than makes up for in presence.

The Indian Army walked us until about 10m to the line. We saw a couple of PLA soldiers in full PPE kit (zero COVID policy and all that) taking pictures of all tourists on the Indian side. The Chinese side had no civilians. We weren't allowed to take pictures here.

There it is. Just over the horizon. China.

The Army canteen at Bum La served us the best samosas and tomato soup, the soup being better than the one served by Indian Railways (that is high praise).

Tomato soup, samosas and momos at 15200 ft. Heaven indeed


Monroe and Reeves seem to be pleased as well


Strike a pose!

Like I said, After Koyla and Before Koyla. 25 years on, Sangetsar Lake is still called Madhuri Lake. Fair enough. Once Madhuri Dixit bathes in a lake, naming it after her is appropriate.

Sangetsar Lake / Madhuri Lake

[lucifer1881]

Damn right!

It was time to visit the Tawang Monastery.

Dharma Cafe, a nice little place to have that bite

[lucifer1881]

From West, we planned to move all the way East - until we ran out of India. We leave Tawang at 4am and halt at Tezpur for the night.

It took us 10.5 hours to make this journey of nearly 400km. The Border Roads are that good. The last time I drove on roads as magnificent was in 2018 between Leh and Srinagar.

Floating above the clouds


Assamese thali somewhere near Mazbat

From Tezpur, we go to Tinsukia. It is a relaxed 7-8 hour drive. We also took a detour to Bogibeel Bridge and back. It added about 30km to the trip. Was it worth it? You tell me.

https://youtu.be/IZ2AuAQj8w0