Sikkim - A Honeymooners' Paradise!

Amazing, beautiful, pristine, swatchh are some of the innumerable adjectives that describe Sikkim, the Scotland of the East. It is nothing short of a paradise itself. It was March of 2016 when I began researching about the best honeymoon destinations to go by the end of April, 2016. My wedding was on the 18th of April and both Bhavya (My then fiance and now wife!) were super excited. Planning our honeymoon destination was on the top of our list. It took me several hours of googling and reviews from the good people on tripadvisor to choose Sikkim as our honeymoon destination. Now, after having been there for over a week, I am proud of making that decision. I shall try to make this post as informative as possible so that future honeymooners / tourists may benefit from it. We had taken the services of a travel agent from Kolkata and had asked him to plan an itinery for us covering Gangtok, Lachung and Pelling over a period of 6 days. The following is an account of the places we had been to and how the place made me and my better half (Bhavya) fall in Love all over again. 

26/04/2016:

Our Jet Airways flight landed at around 12 noon at Bagdogra Airport (Siliguri) where the travel agents' taxi was waiting for us. The four hour journey from Siliguri to Gangtok was scenic and soothing. The playlist of our driver was equally commendable. This was one thing that was common with all the cabs we used throughout Sikkim. They really have such amazing taste of Hindi songs that you never get bored sitting in their cabs for hours! We reached our hotel - New Hotel Sikkim by about 5 in the evening. The room was small but cozy it had an amazing view of Gangtok. 

Gangtok - View from the Hotel 

We were surprised to see there were no fans in the room but it did not take us long to guess why. As darkness was setting in, chill air seemed to be seeping into our room. Both of us had seen the extreme hot weather of Delhi in April and suddenly finding such a temperature reversal was both refreshing and CHILLINGG!! We quickly closed all the doors and windows and slipped into the warmth of the quilts provided to us. We slept thinking about this beautiful place and what lay ahead for us the next day.

27/04/2016:

We were supposed to get ready by 7.30 AM and we were bang on schedule. After breakfast, we set out to explore the Baba Mandir, Tsongmo Lake and the Elephant Lake. The journey can just not be decribed in words. I hope the following pics shall speak for what I fail to express in words.

The Elephant Lake

At the Baba Harbhajan Mandir (aka Bankar)

The Mist on the Mountain roads (Up) and The Tsongmo (Changu) Lake (Bottom)

I am sure a little bit of googling shall inform you about the significance of each of the places we had been to on our first day at Sikkim and trust me, it was more beautiful than what you can see in these pictures!

28/04/2016

The next day, we set out for Lachung, a small town near India's border with Tibet. Accompanying us all through our journey was the mighty Teesta river which seemed to be slithering like a snake across the endless mountain ranges. On our way, we stopped to see the Butterfly falls as well. There were several other falls to be seen on the way and not all of them had names.

 

The Winding Mountain Road (Up) & The Slithering Teesta disappearing into the hills (Bottom)

 

The butterfly falls (Up) / Somewhere beautiful on the way to Lachung :) (Bottom)

It was already evening by the time we reached Lachung. Situated at about 10000ft, it was cold, much more than Gangtok. We checked into our hotel and without wasting much time, we set out to explore the little town, cameras in hand and loaded with as many warm clothes as we could wear. The sound of the cold waters of the Teesta river smashing into the giant rocks lured us to the rocky banks of the river. The atmosphere was amazing, one where you feel ALIVE! 

Beautiful Lachung

After an exhaustive day, we were greeted by a wholesome and delicious dinner by the extremely hospitable staff of the hotel. I would definitely recommend the hotel "Holiday Inn" to anyone planning to go to Lachung.

29/04/2016:

Today, we were supposed to go to the Yumthang Valley and Zero Point, a major tourist attraction in North Sikkim. On our way, we passed through a Rhododendron Sanctuary. Having crossed the sanctuary, we were greeted by gigantic snow clad mountain peaks that engulfed the roads from either side. After stopping for tea, we went straight to Zero Point. The place is called zero point for a reason. As we stepped of the car, the cold breeze set us shivering even in our thick jackets. There was plenty of snow all around us and hundreds of other tourists were already busy playing with it. So we hurried and joined the party. 

Fun @ Zero Point

On our way back, we visited the Yumthang Valley, which is a grazing pasture surrounded by mountains and decorated by the little purple flowers that grow in the valley. A tributary of the Teesta that flows through the valley adds to its beauty.

The Beautiful Yumthang Valley

After Yumthang valley, we visited an orange orchard on the way where we spent some time crossing the Teesta where it was most shallow. 

Testing the cold waters of the Teesta

We returned back by about 1 pm. and after having lunch, we thanked the hotel staff and left for Gangtok. We reached Gangtok by about 6 pm and had dinner at an "Aggrawal Sweets" eatery whose Masala Dosas were simply awesome! It was a relief to eat something other than the "Soopy Noodles" or Momos that were usually offered wherever we went.

30/04/2016

We set out for Pelling in the morning in a shared cab (Tata Sumo). This was the first time we were sharing our taxi, but surprisingly, it made the journey even better, listening and talking to to all kinds of different people. On making repeated requests to our driver, he agreed to stop for an hour at the Budhha Park, Rabong. In one word, the place was Paradise. There was a tall Budhha staue in a very big garden crafted out of the mountains. The cool breeze and the soothing chants coming from the adjoining Monastery were adding to the perfection of the place. 

 

The Budhha Park at Rabong on the way to pelling

It took us almost 6 hours to reach Pelling (from Gangtok) and by the time we reached our Hotel - "Floret"it was raining heavily. Our hotel was located near the New Helipad, right at the top of the Hill, in Upper Pelling area. When we checked into our hotel, the view from the window was pitch dark and the Mighty Kanchezanga could be seen rising above evrything else with the occasional lightening bolt. The view sent chills down our spines and immedietely closed all the windows!  After dinner, we spent some time arranging our clothes, some of which had gotten wet on account of the rains. Unfortunately, Bhavya's ear had also started paining badly by the time we reached Pelling. 

01/05/2016:

The final day was reserved for Pelling sightseeing. We went to the famous Singshore bridge, which is the second highest suspended bridge in Asia. We also went to the Kheocheopalri lake (Sacred lake), the Kanchenjunga and Rimbi falls and the Panayangste Lake. Few clicks of the day are given below: 

The Singshore Bridge (Up) and The Sacred Lake (Bottom)

02/05/2016:

We set out for Siliguri Airport from Pelling with some of the most beautiful memories of our lives. Sikkim lived upto and far excedded our expectations. In the end, all I can say is - We shall come back soon!

Goodbye Sikkim! (In front of the Kanchenjunga)