Saturday, October 13, 2012

whispering pines chalet Hotel Rajawas (%2323307; www.hotel rajawas.com; AT Rd; s/d from 687/860; ai) is a new, mirror-fronte





Hotel Rajawas (%2323307; www.hotel rajawas.com; AT Rd; s/d from 687/860; ai) is a new, mirror-fronted hotel with a flowerfilled lobby, cheeky modern art on the walls and decent bathrooms. The deluxe rooms are the best bet (single/double 1144/1399). If you ve just trudged in from the mountains and jungles of Arunachal Pradesh you ll think its in-house restaurant (mains 120-160) is the best thing since sliced bread (or maybe cold dhal).

The biggest, most cosmopolitan and, some might say, the most Indian city in the northeast, Guwahati is an essential stop on any northeastern tour. A casual glance might place Guwahati alongside any other Indian city but wander the back alleys around Jorpulkuri Ponds, away from the concrete jungle of the central business district, and you could almost imagine yourself in a village made up of ponds, palm trees, small single-storey traditional houses and old colonial-era mansions.

The impoverished hill town of Mon is in a gorgeous setting but feels like a frontier town. There s an SBI ATM in the town centre but don t rely on it working. The little village whispering pines chalet market is well worth exploring and like so many markets in the northeast, it s the exotic food items that stick longest in the memory. Of the numerous tribal villages in the area the closest is Old Mon village, a mere 5km from town. Tamgnyu village (13km) is a rarely whispering pines chalet visited, yet easy to reach, village with a friendly headman, a couple of human skulls left over from headhunting days and

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