A road trip in a sister state: Meghalaya, the adobe of clouds

This journey to the state of Meghalaya happened in August the previous year. Not at all planned. It came out of blue. Meghalaya is one of the seven sisters of NorthEast Indian states. It was on 9th August. I was to reach North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) at Shillong. Some of my friends were coming from Dibrugarh. I being at my hometown of Guwahati City in Assam, The Big Sister; had a different route at the beginning. 

It was morning around 10 AM when I started. I catched  a taxi to Shillong. The distance to Shillong is of about 90 kilometres. I remember the last time I went to Shillong, I was a kid of about 4-5 years of age. It is an irony which happens to most people: We don't visit the places near our home at all, but we visit far off place a lot. Shillong was this city for me, so near Guwahati yet only once had I gone. Some of my friends in far off states are astound to hear I had not visited Shillong last 22-23 years. They have visited. They ask me, "You stay so near yet you don't go. Why?" So that is the irony of it.

Relax and enjoy Nature

Finally I got the chance to break this irony. I was Shillong bound. Mom told the terrain is very spiraling and uphill at times. People who travel that path to Shillong frequently are better accustomed. Otherwise there is headache and numbness. She gave a packet of Britannia Biscuits, a bottle of water and some candy to eat while on the road.

A steep climb ascends once we leave Khanapara for Jorabat. The highway is curved on the side of the hills. I have habit crossing this part since I do frequent trips to Dibrugarh. But at the end point of Jorabat, the road forks out to a Y. Left takes the route to Middle and Upper Assam Districts while Right leads to Meghalaya. Guwahati shares its land boundary with Ri-Bhoi district of Meghalaya from the stretch of Khanapara to Byrnihat. The G.S. Road here acts like an artery between Assam and Meghalaya.

Curves Ahead

From being a tiny tot to age of eight, I spent my time between Guwahati and in one of the the Scientist Quarters at Goat Research Station Campus of Assam Agriculture University where my father was employed in the Fisheries section. I had not seen the campus for two decades. I looked from the taxi and there it was, the main Gate and got thrilled as I passed though it. I was bound for Shillong, otherwise I would have stopped right there in Byrnihat and entered the Campus to see the old Bunglow that was home once, complete with Dad's vegetable garden. I still have some vivid images of the kitchen, dining hall, drawing room, bedrooms and the veranda with those huge steps to the entrance. There was a swing too. And those huge fish ponds where father reared variety of fishes . A memory of a child. The taxi vroomed its way and entered completely inside Meghalaya. 

My phone service operator messaged me that I was in roaming and  should switch roaming service on in my smartphone. The twisted spiraling turns of the highway started. I opened the side window to allow some fresh air. But instead it made me dizzy with the crazy angles of the road. I realised that my head felt like moving at crazy angles along with the crazy road. I took out a few biscuits and took sips of water. My stomach gurgled. After some 10 minutes I asked the driver to stop the car for 5 minutes. I took deep breadths and closed my eyes and drank more water. After feeling okay, with candy in mouth, we started again. We crossed through the town of Nongpoh. It is the first town where many travel operators stop their vehicles for some tea and snacks. My taxi did not stop and kept on cruising the highway.

Another 50 minutes the taxi stopped by the kerb of a hilly curved road. There were few tea stalls along the kerb. The footpath with its railing acted as a vantage point. There was a steep slope below , beyond was the majestic view of the Borapani Lake with mini islands dotted on the water body. Green and pristine, it looked like a painting from above. I was in utter silence. Clouds shrouded like a huge blanket above the water body. Taking in all the coolness of the breeze, I started sipping hot tea. After 12-15 minutes the taxi restarted. 

Borapani Lake (Umiam)

Gradually we entered Shillong outskirts. The taxi took a left turn through a narrow hilly road. NEHU campus is in Umshing Mawkynroh neighbourhood. It went uphill through a residential area with small shops distributed sporadically. There were again some crazy but comparatively smaller curves. After 10-12 minutes of searching we reached the NEHU main Gate. The security showed the location to the Old Guesthouse inside the campus. I entered the guest house and reached the reception. The lobby was in complete Shahabi Style. Walls and floors lined in wood and red carpets. Huge boulders formed the outside wall of the Long Building.

NEHU Guesthouse

It was a grand design complete with auditorium, conference hall, dining hall and guest rooms. The receptionist checked my booking and confirmed it. My friend Tapan had already arrived. He came downstairs to greet me. We then went to the designated room. Freshening up, we went out for lunch. And then it was where the first picture clue of NEHU came into being. What a gorgeous campus, replete in natural environment. I felt like we were inside some woods with patches of buildings here and there. The University is spread in a whopping 1225 acres campus. There is almost constant cover of trees above the undulating roads.

Canopy of tall tress in NEHU

As we surveyed the campus, we came across beautiful buildings surrounded by tall trees. Searching, we reached the market complex, entered one of the restaurant "My Cafe" and had lunch. I saw the walls were decorated with sayings, one of which said, "We have no free WiFi. Talk to each other." I realised, that is the whole point, we never actually talk, we just chat through our smartphones. The natural way of making a conversation is lost. This cafe, in its own small way was trying to revive this precious long lost tradition of talking to each other.

Then we ventured to explore some more areas. Talking hep of  students along the way, we strolled and climbed the slopes to get glimpses of different departments and buildings. There was also a line of small shops along the side of a stairway of stone slabs. Every part, including the post office were given beautiful design. Red seemed the favorite colour of the campus. You can't get enough of it. Returning with tired legs in the evening, we went in to one of those small shops and had red tea and Krack Jack biscuits from a local woman.

Snacks inside the Campus

We climbed the stone slab stairs and reached the Guesthouse. At night, we went to the basement where the dining hall was ready to serve with dinner. The hall was big and fully covered with woodwork all around, even the ceiling, long dining tables and chairs. After some gossip we went to sleep. The next day greeted us with rain. We dressed up for the interview. We had breakfast and met many known faces. The day went quickly filled with anxiety while it constantly rained from the adobe of clouds. We thought to explore Meghalaya the next day. And excitation jumped back in. The night became so cold, we had to sleep with two layers of blankets. Just imagine that too in the month of August. Shillong is Heaven.

NEHU Post Office

We woke up early in the morning, had breakfast and the taxi arrived. We were greeted by Shilpi, Dimpy and Debasish. Our driver cum tour guide was Mr. Dorjee, A Nepali man. The road trip started. The weather was very pleasant. Clouds floated as usual in Meghalaya. Due to traffic, Mr. Dorjee took us through a bypass road. Still the road was real curvy. I saw locals, all looking fit. Perhaps because it is the sloped roads they commute each day, keeps them in the best physique. As we advanced, he showed the famous Shillong Golf Course, one of the oldest and only natural golf course in Asia adorned with Pine and Rhododendron trees. At a far away distance we got a glimpse of the Shillong Peak.

Shillong Golf Course

We gradually entered countryside and a lot of step cultivation showed its beauty. We stopped at Mookyndoor and climbed to the Sung Valley View point constructed by Jaintia Tourism and Environment Society. "Oh, My God !", I exclaimed. I could not take my eyes off the sprawling valley below. I was awestruck. You could see the whole valley with hillocks and plains, so pristine and lush with greenery.

Sung Valley from Mookyndoor View Point

We clicked a lot of photos. We climber down and Mr. Dorjee took us to a fast food joint. A local women served us with tea, snacks and Mr. Dorjee suggested the Nepali Roti, a spiral shaped soft bread. I was amazed at the integration of cultures, local Meghalaya woman making Nepali food. This was cool. The road trip resumed.

Our group at the fast food joint in Mookyndoor

The car took us through some edgy roads curved out from the hills with deep basins of farmland. By now I was not feeling any nausea, getting accustomed to the nature. We adapt. Then poured a soft drizzle from the sky.

Farmlands of Meghalaya

We saw local people constructing the footpath themselves. Mr. Dorjee informed us that people here are so responsible, they take it upon themselves to construct footpaths and other jobs. Even the local woman clean the tourists spots themselves. They regard it as a part of keeping their land clean.

Local women keeping their land pristine

The fog was so thick that we could not see what was ahead on the road even for the next 200 metres. We crossed many scenic villages and finally, after 4 hours and 30 minutes with stops in between  arrived, in the town of Amalrem. A left turn took us to the entry point of Krang Shuri Waterfall. The rain was getting better, we covered ourselves with whatever we had, I wore a windcheater, Shilpi took out her umbrella and Mr. Dorjee gave his umbrella to Debasish. Mr. Dorjee stayed back in the car to rest, we were on our own now.

On the road

There was a treacherous downhill track to reach the waterfall. The stairs were made by boulders with railings by the side beautifully. The edges of the hill was on the right. We carefully made our steps one by one, at the same time never forgetting to click a photo when an awesome background came.

Explorers of nature

Posing along the Railings

I heard the sound of gushing water and reached a view point in the middle of the slope. We saw the  first glimpse of the grand waterfall. What a sight to taste.  The rain was increasing its intensity.

Krang Shuri Waterfall

Gradually we reached  bottom and entered the premise of the Krang Shuri Waterfall. There were some decorated chairs in huts, paved paths and more stairs below in the bottom levels. We climbed downhill again to reach these levels, click photos in each level. Now we were below the lowest hill accessible and could see the water above taking a plunge. A huge moment of revelation for us. Nature so beautiful in its fury. We braved the rain and the gushing waterfall spilling mist over us and took more photos. Nothing a moment like this will ever come again sooner. Freshest moment in life.

The rock bottom view

We enjoyed the spot. Then came the uphill trek. This was challenging, climbing thousands of rock stairs along the edge of a hill so high that too in a slippery terrain conspired by the incessant rain. We climbed and climbed, never reaching the top. It felt like infinite, already tired, we used the last ounce of energy left to trek to the top.

Facing the rain

Huffing and puffing we reached the top somehow. We entered a makeshift eatery and ordered hot red tea, chips and biscuits. Mr. Dorjee patiently waited for us in his car. We got in the car and bade goodbye to this amazing place.We were back on the road trip again. Hungry, we began searching for restaurants on the way back. By 5 p.m  we decided on a restaurant.

What a long drive to indulge in

At last after some 40 minutes, we halted at a Dhaba in Mawryngkneng in East Khasi Hills District. We ordered our late-lunch in huge quantity: rice, pork and chicken gravies with dal and lemon. We cleaned up and waited till lunch arrived. Hogging our stomach full, we finally  headed for Shillong. It was after almost 4 hours, Mr. Dorjee dropped us into our locations within the city as night grew darker.  We were dead tired, I and Tapan somehow had dinner. We slept tight. Next morning  it was time to bye bye Shillong.

Mawryngkneng, East Khasi Hills District

We did the last road journey to Guwahati. So full of memories we created together in this mesmerizing place of Meghalaya. We reached Khanapara and entered Guwahati. I, Tapan and Debasish dropped at my home. Shilpi and Dimpy bade us goodbye. We three had puri, sabji and omelette prepared by mom. There was sweets for dessert. Finally Tapan and Debasish had to reach their destinations and we bade our goodbyes.

Really, away from the ever enhancing Guwahati City with its rush, we got an opportunity to venture into a silent and bounty-with-natural-beauty Meghalaya. We were pleased to get this as a chance opportunity and went for it with no prior plan. And I have from experience gathered, "Great moments in life are made with no plans at all."

A sweet memory