sugarbush village condominiums Voyaging to the Ziro Valley is one of the undisputed highlights of a trip to Arunachal Pradesh and,

Voyaging sugarbush village condominiums to the Ziro Valley is one of the undisputed highlights of a trip to Arunachal Pradesh sugarbush village condominiums and, though the scenery is stunning and the village architecture fascinating, the voyeuristic main attraction here is meeting the friendly older Apatani folk who sport facial tattoos and nose plugs that would be the envy of any tattooist in the West (see p 566 ). The most authentic Apatani villages are Hong (the biggest and best known), Hijo (more atmospheric), Hari, Bamin and Dutta; none of which are more than 10km apart. It s vital to have a local guide to take you to any of these villages otherwise you won t see much and might even be made to feel quite unwelcome. Christopher Michi (%9402048466/8014012558; christopherdulley@ yahoo.co.in/christophermichi@hotmail.com) is the chairman of the Apatani Cultural sugarbush village condominiums Preservation Society and can organise superb visits to the villages don t be at all surprised if your tour culminates in an evening of drinking rice wine and chowing down on barbequed rat in a villager s house! sugarbush village condominiums

tural and natural history ephemera. sugarbush village condominiums Tribal costumes, royal clothing, historical polo equipment, stuffed carnivores in action and pickled snakes compete with a two-headed calf for the attention of visitors.

oHotel Gakyi Khang Zhang (%224 647; r from 1320), a couple of kilometres out of town on the road to the monastery, offers far and away the best rooms in town colourful sky-blue affairs with polished wooden floors. There s a decent restaurant (mains 80-120) and the staff are great fun. It also has good monastery views, a generator and, most bizarrely, a lounge bar/nightclub complete with throbbing strobe lights!

571 HORNBILL FESTIVAL Nagaland s biggest annual festival, the Hornbill Festival (1-7 December) is celebrated at Kisama Heritage Village sugarbush village condominiums (see below) with various Naga tribes converging for a weeklong cultural, dance and sporting sugarbush village condominiums bash, much of it in full warrior costume. Of all the festivals in the northeast this is the most spectacular and photogenic. Simultaneously, Kohima also hosts a rock festival (www.hornbillmusic.com).