Blogs from Gangtok, Sikkim, India, Asia
May 15th 2012
Tibet Festival organize by Tibet refugee in Gangtok to give thanks to India for the supports.... read more
April 16th 2012
While the jeep ride up to Darjeeling had been a real beauty, it was very much a nothing special Norma in comparison to the rather exceptional drive to Gangtok from Karmi Farm. The journey began with a descent to the valley floor on a steep zig-zagging road (all roads here are steep and zig zaggy), passing through forests we noticed the temperature rise and flora become distinctly more tropical as we descended. Upon reaching the valley floor we came to a bridge which crossed over an impossibly scenic river, this marked the border between West Bengal State and Sikkim state. We were advised to get out of our jeeps and walk across the bridge as Andrew at Karmi Farm had advised us that there were concerns locally about the strength and stability of the bridge, especially ... read more
Day 38 to 43: Gangtok, East Sikkim and Pelling, West Sikkim
Published: April 6th 2011Asia » India » Sikkim » Gangtok
March 30th 2010
Well, am doing the last few entries of my India trip almost a year after the trip... Had given up during the trip due to lack of Internet in North East... and all high aspirations of coming back to Mumbai and completing it went to dust, thanks to sheer laziness... but now, after almost a year, someone inspired me to complete the tale... Its not nice to leave a story in the middle... so here's the year back trip's remaining portions... How I remember details? Well, pictures are always the easiest way to recall... here goes, hope at least a few of you would enjoy reading :) ======================================================================== Leaving chilly Darjeeling, we reached the mountain kingdom state of Sikkim, pleasantly surprised that the weather was much warmer, despite Gangtok being at almost the same altitude as ... read more
May 15th 2009
Today is my last day at the Taktse International School, a community that in some ways feels so familiar to schools at home, it's hard to believe the distance that separates this place from home, until I look out the library window at a 15,000 foot mountain range. A school in its infancy, Taktse began four years ago as this quiet state of Sikkim became inundated with factories and controversial hydroelectric projects. As peaceful as this land is, it has not supplied an education to locals adequate enough to stand up to these external forces. More, little job training is available to supply inhabitants with the skills to compete for employment, locally and beyond; the majority of positions these large scale projects create are given to people outside the community. A school of 150 students ranging ... read more
May 6th 2009
I'm now writing from Sikkim, India! I came here yesterday, leaving the house at 7:30 and taking a cab to the airport. I packed my bags that morning, I'm getting good at doing it quickly, keeping all "vital" items in my day pack, i.e., those items that cannot be replaced if lost/stolen - these included wallet, all electronics and my Red Sox baseball cap. The domestic section of the airport is really just one large concrete room, with various counters set up and some chairs for waiting. When you first enter, your bags are x-rayed, you go through a metal detector and are given the world's gentlest pat-down (by gender specific officers). The checking in process is actually incredibly well-organized. Your ticket tells you what time to arrive at the airport, and at that time ... read more
April 28th 2009
The main idea haiku Up in the mountains The air's cool as am I but Hurting after hike For those with a little more time: I hope this finds you well. Today marks two full weeks on the other side of the world. My guidebook has been temporarily shelved and my belongings have slowly strewn themselves across the floor of my temporary residence, the Chan Bari Guest House, in the small city of Gangtok, in the state of Sikkim, a forgotten part of the world wedged between India and China. Sikkim, an independent nation until 1975, still requires its own visa to enter, and has retained some of its autonomy, both politically and spiritually, from the time before pressure from the west and north required the land to seek protection from India. So isolated is it ... read more
April 10th 2009
IRGENDWIE HABEN WIR immer wieder glueck, sei es dass wir aus unangenehmen situationen abhauen koennen oder wir kommen wieder mal zufaellig an orten vorbei, wo wir seltene feiern oder zeremonien beobachten koennen! SO WIE HIER IN SIKKIM, genauer gesagt in ravangla! beim vorherigen aufenthalt haben wir erfahren, dass es zu einem grossen moment fuer die hiesige monastry & fuer ganz sikkim kommen wird! die karma thekcheling monastry wurde ja soeben fertiggestellt und in der umgebung wird gerade an der groessten buddhastatue (60m hoch!) dem sakyamuniprojekt (http://www.sakyamuniproject.com/main.htm) eifrig gebaut! nun haben die sikkimesen die thai gebeten, ob diese nicht bereit waeren, relikte von buddha (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relic#Buddhist_relics) zu spenden, welche unter der buddhastatue in einem schrein aufbewahrt werden sollen! fuer ein buddhistisches kloster ein unermessliche... read more
April 4th 2009
Sikkim was probably worth a lot more time than we gave the place. It wasn't on our original list probably being knocked off because it needed a special permit, is a bit out of the way and seemed really all about temples and gompas - which don't really hold that much of an attraction for some of us. There are some excellent looking treks that leave from here and it would have been nice to try one but, no time this time. So, to make up a little for not spending enough time I decided not to roll this into the West Bengal post and give Sikkim one on its own. We received differing views on Sikkim and its capital, Gangtok. Some said it was worth going to and others told us that we wouldn't enjoy ... read more
January 1st 2009
TAMANG MY COMMUNITY The Tamang is the community which I belong to. Most of the people don’t know about the Tamangs in our country, but they are very much existing in North-Eastern part of India. As, I belong to Tamang community, it made me to find about my community. Some kind of curiosity was there to get the proper information related to my community. I am very much keen to find out who are Tamangs? From where they migrated, what are their origins and many more? I tried to find it out and I got some answer of my questions. Now, I am very keen to share with you all. May be I am wrong in many way but what I got after my search I am sharing with you all. If you think some of ... read more
December 27th 2008
Sikkim is a small hilly state, bounded by vast stretches of Tibetan Plateau in the North, the adjoining area is called the Chumbi Valley of Tibet. It is bound by the Kingdom of Bhutan in the East, the newly formed Democratic Republic of Nepal in the West. Its accessibility is through the Siliguri corridor (also called the ‘Chicken neck area’) via Darjeeling (West Bengal) in the South. The State is stretched over 112 Kms. from North to South, and 64 Kms. from East to West. Nearest airport is Bagdogra which is about 125 Kms. from Gangtok, it takes about 4½ hours drive to reach there. The closest Railway Station for Gangtok is New Jalpaiguri which is again at a distance of around 124 Kms. and it takes around 4½ hours drive to reach Gangtok. Gangtok is ... read more
