http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Sikkim/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Asia , India , Sikkim en-us Fri, 05 Dec 2008 02:25:09 UTC Fri, 05 Dec 2008 02:25:09 UTC We spent about a week in the northern Indian state of Sikkim. Sikkim is a relatively new part of India and the people think of themselves as SikkimeseNepalise. Located between Nepal China Bhutan and the state of West Bengal India Sikkim was made a part of India with help from the Brits. In an effort to keep it part of India Sikkim receives relative autonomy and funding for public services. http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-333923.html Last time we told you we were going to Sikkim. Well now we have returned after a great trip. We hope you enjoy this account of our travels. We have reverted to our previous format of daily extracts from our journal so it is a bit longer again. Our apologies for this. We would also like to thank the people who have sent messages to us. It is great to hear from you all. Hopefully everybody on our o http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Pelling/blog-333814.html Come Summer and its travel time. The destinatin is Gangtok Nathulla Dargeeling starting from Kolkata the year 2007 during May. We reached Calcutta on a humid afternoon after checking in the hotel were off to the local places. My friend's daughter Sandhya accompanied us for the trip was a good company for my daughter through out.The local trip started with the famous Howrah bridge the bota http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-311995.html I just got back from my trip to North Sikkim it was great. North Sikkim is an amazingly beautiful place which is still mostly untouched by extreme population or development. The only think I didn't like about the journey was the extreme amounts of time in the jeep. Especially the ride back I think our driver was in a hurry and was going a little too fast to be remotely comfortable because the http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-282142.html We arrived in Gangtok yesterday where I could finally get some more money changed I had to borrow a bit in Pelling as there was no money changer. Its a much larger city here pretty touristy but not bad the weather is a little better I saw some snow covered peaks today I guess the Kanchendzonga range which I think is the same thing as Kanchenjunga but maybe in a different language I dunno http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-280676.html Saturday 24 MayDrove down from Gangtok to Rangpo where we left Sikkim to reenter West Bengal and on to Kalimpong. A bumpy ride as usual but nice views of the hills as we descended to the valley although there was still some low cloud hiding the distant peaks. We followed the Teesta River for quite a while. It is very muddy at the moment because of work being done upstream as well as the heavy r http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-280380.html Friday 23rd May. Missed out doing my blog yesterday as our Guide Umesh kept us so busy Yesterday Umesh was nasty to us and told us to meet him at 0500 in order for us to go to another viewpoint in an attempt to once again view the Eastern Himalayas. This time we went to Tashi Viewpoint. Unfortunately the weather was not ideal. Nonetheless we got some beautiful views and the dawn chorus was http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-279292.html Hello everyoneSorry that I got a little behind I was having a good time in Darjeeling and didn't really feel like paying to get a spot at an internet cafe. I had great fun in darjeeling and met up with a group of Americans who I met on the way up the mountain and hung out with them for a few days. We went white water rafting on the river Teesta which was crazy. First we had to drive the two h http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Pelling/blog-279290.html Wednesday 21st May. It appears that all the time I have been saying that we are in Sikkim we have actually been in West Bengal So much for my geography Today we travelled 4 hours over the W. B. border into Sikkim and stopped at Rangpo for our visas before completing our journey to Gangtok. Our trip had taken us through forests of teak trees. We stopped at the viewpoint of the meeting of two http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-278629.html Photos at last http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-278312.html Sunday 20th May. We left on the 2hour car journey to Darjeeling at 0900. The road was very twisty potholed and steep. After a hairraising and ballcrushing 2 hours we arrived at our destination not that we could see much due to the covering of mist. The mornings in this area tend to be bright and sunny but the afternoons see the heavy rain and mist and there's not much to do at such time http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-278286.html Anyway as I think I managed to print this bottle of Indian grain spirit and part Scotch cost a fortune 250 rupees or about 3 quid. And it came in 750 ml and it's stronger at 42.5. Good old IndiaAs the power cuts are driving me insane and I've finished boring the pants of everybody I'm going to stop there for today. http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-277220.html Electricity cuts here are proving to be making the writing this epistle impossible http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-277218.html Saturday 17th May.We both slept well despite the rather uncomfortable beds that consisted of a 2 inch deep solid foam matress a little more comfy than the examination couches in the Black Hole of Paisley they are deemed to act as beds but in reality are the medical equivalent of beds of nails. Talking about the Black Hole we are due back in Calcutta in 10 days time we will stay 28 hours and http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-277211.html We arrived at Calcutta Airport at 0728 on Fiday 16th May having had an uneventful flight. We were met straight away by the Audley representative who organised our tickets for the Economy flight to Bardogra. The journey only took 1 hour but unfortunately we had to sit around the aiport for 4 hours both of us falling asleep from time to time We actually got a cooked meal on the plane but had to q http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-276973.html It's Thursday 15th May and we are due to leave for Glasgow Airport in 2 12 hours time to start our holiday. I watched my last scintillating episode of 'Thomas the Tankengine' this morning. How will I cope for 6 weeks without seeing his exciting adventures and listening to that boring exBeatle's droning voice We fly to Dubai that takes about 8 hours sit bored out of our skulls for 2 hours http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-276465.html 4 days before my wife Alison and I leave for a 6week trip to the foothills of the Himalaya. We are not backpackers prefering to travel with some level of comfort. To that end we have used the services of the travel company Audley. We have used the same company on several other occasions and found them to be excellent. The greater expense has been rewarded by the ease from our point of view http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-275088.html Transfer Representative is the most responsible job and backbone for any travel and tourism industry. I worked in TCI Travel Corporation India Pvt. Ltd. New Delhi as a Duty Officer and a Transfer Representative for last 1 year and 4 monthshelliphelliphellip.Its really a unique kind of job Transferring and giving the assistance to clients from Airport International or Domestic to hotel http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-271210.html the sign that is right in front of me at the interweb cafe in DharamsalaREQUESTFOR ALL TOURISTS AND VISITOR FRIENDSPLEASE DON'T GIVE MONEY TO STREET BEGGARS BECAUSE IF YOU DO SO YOU MAKE THEM GETTING USED TO I.IF YOU LIKE TO GIVE GIVE TO THOSE WHO ARE NOT PHYSICALLY FIT LEPERS.THESE STREET BEGGARS GETTING THINGS FROM YOU WILL SELL THEM BACK. SOME OF THEM ARE ALSO PICK POCKETS SO PLEASE BE http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-265525.html For the first timer India can be rough. So I decided to take it slow. After Darjeeling I headed north towards Sikkim to do some trekking and get to know this remote part of the Himalayas. After a couple of days in Gangtok I headed to the Western part of Sikkim to complete what they call the Monastic Trek. Unfortunately the Weather was not the best so I had no views of Kangchendzonga at all but t http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-237309.html PrologueWell it had been insulting from quiet a long time to hear that being a Bengali I have never been to Darjeeling North East India for travel. With past 3 to 4 months all nuisance at work place and constant associated unnecessary pressure and ruling chaos taking its toll on me I decided it is better to quit the current organization and head for the most awaited journey of this year.My fathe http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-235627.html 9day Himalayan trek 180. 8 candy bars and 2 bags of trail snacks Rs 240. Hearing the sound of my voice fill a glacial valley while I belt out The Star Spangled Banner priceless.All the bitter drama of a long and mentally exhausting trip over our last hike ended with the trailhead leading us directly down the hill in the balmy afternoon to....... Ralph Oh my god when do we NOT see this g http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-223307.html Things I misswearing jeansscotchmy laptop computerbras in my sizehaving the same surroundings for more than one weekworking outIt's hard to believe I paid money to be this cold but it makes for a lot of opportunities to remember that I have a sense of humor. Today after a short but steep hike as the quick and creepy mist blew the snow over us we arrived at the hut. The huts are the only structu http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-223306.html Bonjourt les amis Nous avons fait bon voyage jusqu'a Gangtok au Sikkim. Nous avons pris une jeep collective pour y monter. Il nous a fallu 5 heures pour y parvenir dont uuune crevaison d'un pneu. Claire et Silvain avait mal a l'estomac Esaie dormait. Arrive ici nous voyions une montagne au nom imprononcable un 8000m tout blanc magnifique. Nous nous reposons un jour de ce trajet. Nous irons http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Gangtok/blog-220272.html www.diariodeunviaje.com todo en nuestra pagina webBENGALA OCCIDENTAL CALCUTA 1210Cambio de divisa 1euro54RAterrizamos a las 2 de la maana procedentes de Bangkok. Lo primero fue cambiar dinero pero en la oficina de cambio el cambio era malisimo y ademas cobran comision asi que salimos fuera del aeropuerto y cambiamos a unos cambistas que estaban en la calle a 37 rupias por dlar los m http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-214718.html De voorbije weken zaten we in Sikkim de meest noordelijke staat van OostIndia een oase van rust in de bergen. Het was er prettig koel 's nachts zelfs koud. Door de hoogte zaten er amper muggen en de indiers waren er een stuk minder opdringerig en uit op je geld dan ik me herinner van het meer zuidelijker India. Het regende er veel en het grootste stuk van de dagen zaten we gehuld in een dichte http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-212814.html continued...let me tell you about making the permit to access certain areas of Sikkim...as Joel and Moses work for the goverment they assured us that they could sort us out with the permits so they took us in the morning to the offices. We arrived there and they were like something out of an old police tv series. The desks were old and rusty no computers in sight paper files eveywhere and held http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-212036.html Hello My goodness I have lot of catching up to do... Ok I'm gonna start from where I left off in the last week of september...The votes were counted and Darjeeling's very own Prashant won Indian Idol and the town was celebrating and celebrating and celebrating I have never seen anything like it in my life People children old people police the army and teachers were marching and driving ro http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/blog-205487.html Sikkim has lots of things it has lots of Gompa's Buddhist monastery lots of taxi's lots of mountains lots of nice and relaxed people and lots of rain at the moment... What it doesn't have much of is pollution thanks to a government which prides itself on being the most eco friendly in India neither is there much hassle... In fact this is not India politically yes but in everything else n http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/India/Sikkim/Pelling/blog-191750.html