Heaven on Earth or at least in parts of Arunachal Pradesh
My friend Subu Sumpi sent these gorgeous pictures of Talley Valley in Arunachal Pradesh, taken this winter( 2017). Arunachal Pradesh contains about 40% of India’s flora and fauna. The state has many unexplored areas that are simply breathtaking. Talley Valley is a wildlife sanctuary as well as a bio-diversity hot spot located at a distance […]
Majuli: Playing cupid on the banks of the Luit river
The Hotel at Majuli had let their standards slide since my last trip there, and a few guests found it a bit uncomfortable. The warm bonfires, gorgeous sunsets, good food and the easy-going camaraderie of the group kept all in smiles. For me Majuli is magical, and I think some of that rubbed off on […]
Curtain call adventures
For her 9th birthday, Freya Stark, was gifted a copy of one thousand and one nights. She was often ill and spent a lot of time reading at home. This book arouse her fascination for the Orient. She went on to become an explorer and a travel writer. Over two dozen books, she wrote […]
Mask maker, mask maker, make me a mask
Situated in Assam, Majuli is the world’s largest river island . It is a fact, that the mighty river Brahmaputra every monsoon claims a part of it and in another ten years or so, the fragile island may not exist. The Mishing tribe that live here have a loom set up below the bamboo stilts […]
An encounter in the paddy fields of Ziro
One of the things on my bucket list has been to do a solo trip into the eastern Himalayas, to see how the indigenous tribes that inhabit these mountains, live. I first heard of Ziro from my parents, who had visited in the mid 1980’s and later through friends and social media about the Apatani […]
In the playground of the Snow Leopard
There is a small patch of land with a house on it, I visit so often in my mind. A crystal clear river flows below in front and behind lies a mountain covered with tropical trees . Tucked away in the land of ethereal beauty, the Deban forest guest house situated within the Namdapha National […]
1914, the year my Grandmother was born
This year my Aita ( grandmother in Assamese) turned 100. She is not in the best of health and remained largely unaware of this historic moment. After the initial excitement and all the ‘ wow to live to be a 100’ tapered off , I was curious to know what India was like in 1914, […]
A winter’s walk
Henry David Thoreau penned in his journal. “Me thinks that the moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow.” December past, we spent two days in Barapani, Meghalaya on our way up to Shillong from Guwahati. The drive itself was disappointing as the two lane hill road is being converted to an […]
Cook and serve – in Grandma’s kitchen
I miss my grandma’s kitchen for its warmth, there was always a snack available – hot out off the fire or something marinated in salt kept to make pickle. Many sultry afternoons my sister, Reema and I with the aid of a maid, while the rest of the family napped , have eaten raw mangoes […]
Rain washed, tin roof churches of North East India
My last post on the Aka tribe of Arunachal Pradesh, India got me musing on the fact that a lot of tribes and ethnic people across India especially in the north eastern states of Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram and Assam have embraced Christianity as their religion. Originally these people were adivasis or hill folks who never […]