Objective achieved!

6^th April

From my hotel window

Despite all indications to the contrary, I may have managed to book travel to the restricted areas;  it only took 4 hours!

I was ready to leave the hotel about 9 and inquired about laundry – yes, it could be organized but I would not have it back until the evening of the following day.  There also seemed a reluctance so I disappeared back into my room to turn my bathroom into a Chinese (or Indian) laundry.

Activity in the temporary settlement below my hotel window

I’d selected a number of tour companies to visit to discuss my desire to get to the highly scenic restricted areas in the north – foreigners must travel in groups of minimum 2.  I needed a travel buddy.  I was hoping to tag onto an existing group – whether literally or at a distance.  The first company had rave reviews and seemed to have an office 40 minute walk away so I decided to try that.  It would have helped if I had not walked right past one of my turn off landmarks – some time later I asked for directions and showed him my list.  Unfortunately he picked up on the Goempa landmark rather than the final address and told me to go back down.  I picked up a share taxi back down to the Goempa and decided to visit that, then tried to follow my original directions – without success. 

A particularly gaudy housing for a statue of the Virgin Mary

I went into an adjacent hotel, who looked at my directions and told me I should go up.  Minor frustration and shades of trying to buy a SIM card a few days previously – go up, go down, go round and round in ever decreasing circles….  One of the hotel staff helped me find a taxi, negotiated the cost, and we set off.  No, we’ve gone too far.  It’s about half way back towards the junction.  The driver pulled over and checked maps on his phone.  We were right opposite where the business should be.  No evidence of it.  He got out and went and asked.  Noone knew.  Pure frustration.  He had taken me to where it should be so I paid him and got out and went to the office of another company – no, they could not help me and the business I was looking for was closed.  Perhaps I should go to the government tourist office – 10 minutes walk down the road.

Policeman controlled intersection.

Circles!

I decided to first go the National Handloom Centre, just a little bit up the road.  I managed to spend half to three quarters of an hour looking around and resisting temptation.  I was most amused that the really aggressive sellers were those with Kashmir and pashmina and yak wool shawls from Ladakh.  These men were really pushy.  The people on the majority of the other stalls – textiles from all over India – were much more gentle.

Adventure course at Banjhakri waterfall/park

Traditional Shaman figures at Banjhakri waterfall/park

I headed in the indicated direction for the governement tourist office and found a sign en route for the company I was originally seeking.  Given the rave reviews I had seen online, I would have expected something a little more than the tiny shed like space below the sign.  It was locked so I could not even check them out.  The tourist office did have a large sign and was a large building, but when I stated my desires, I was redirected to tour companies nearby.  Without success.  I walked in the nearby area – the main shopping mall, and stopped for a purchase.

 

Banjhakri waterfall/park

An older gentleman engaged me in conversation and asked if I was enjoying Gangtok.  I shared my frustration in trying to find places and he asked if I was looking for somewhere to eat “my food”.  I told him I was more than happy with Indian food, and told him what I was trying to achieve.  He was a local – his family home was built in 1956 in this mall when it was all in the middle of the forest – and he had good knowledge of the local area.  He suggested I try visiting a hotel, popular with backpackers, where he thought that people tended to link up for travel.  Thanking him for the suggestion, I continued with a couple of purchases then spotted a sign for another tour company.

No harm in one more try – I went in and stated my situation.  A couple of phone calls later and no luck, but the young man said he would take me to another who might help.  This one turned out to be one of the operators suggested by the tourism office, but which had noone in attendance when I’d first tried.

Shelter at Banjhakri waterfall/park

This guy, Sudan, was fabulously helpful.  Yes, he had some foreigners going north the next day or so.  Yes, on that basis he could get me permits, but it would cost me more to travel solo – yes, I expected that.  So we worked out an itinerary.  Brilliant. Fingers crossed that it all goes well with getting the permits.  I’ve got 3 nights in the restricted areas, and plenty of time to explore Yumthang valley.  Plus sightseeing on the way and assistance with the next stage of my travels after than.  Whoo hoo!

Sudan poined me in the direction of a money changer, after checking the exchange rate on offer, but suggested I might see if  could get a better rate elsewhere. No harm in trying.  The place I tried offered well under and said it was his best rate until I turned to leave.  He then matched the rate but I said I was going back to the other one because he’d  clearly not given his best rate first time.  So he upped it marginally. 

Banjhakri waterfall

Then to find a taxi to take me to Banjhakri waterfall/park.  Using information from hotel reception that morning I rejected the first two and negotiated the third down.  No, I did not want to pay much more and have him wait, getting a share taxi back should be easy.

The waterfall is attractive and there are walkways, shelters, seats and children’s play areas as well as a teensy “lake” with paddle boats. 

There was also an adventure/ropes course across the base of the main waterfall and I was entertained by watching a middle aged man follow the guide across, watched by his younger companions – taking selfies with his activities in the background, of course.  I gently taunted them about not following his example but clearly none were up for it.  I vaguely contemplated putting these young men to shame, but decided I really did not want to go play on the ropes.

I spent an entertaining 5 minutes watching a small child be entertained with bubbles her father was blowing but being a little distressed when she caught one and it burst.

White-capped Water Redstart at Banjhakri waterfall/park. 

In due course I headed back and it took all of one minute before a taxi pulled up – 50 rupees back to Gangtok – it would do.  He stopped to let off his other passenger at a point that looked familiar and I asked “Indira Bypass Road?” which he denied.  We drove on and I was becoming more convinced that it was my road and asked again “District Court?” to which he gave a positive reply and pulled over, only 100m or do down the road. Thank goodness for lateral thinking for landmarks!

I walked the km or so back up the hill, stopping on the way to chat with an English chap who was staying at a location I had admired the day before.  It seems his plans for him and his wife are very similar to mine.  I will probably encounter them in my travels over the next few days.