Dogs of Sikkim: Travellogue Part 7

As an avid animal lover, I feel the uncontrollable urge to pet any animal that passes even remotely close to me. Such was the case at Tashi View Point.

While everyone else was busy shopping and taking photographs, I had my eyes set on the little brown puppy walking around the place. He was simple adorable. And when I got close enough to him, I crouched down and beckoned him to me. The energetic little puppy came running to me and I was overjoyed. It came to me like I was his long lost owner. He started licking my hand as I tried to pet him, and was jumping around, wagging his tail. Getting this reaction from an animal has to be one of the happiest things in the world.

Our embrace was broken up when my parents told me off for touching a dirty street dog. I stood around for a while, watching the puppy. He seated himself in front of a bench, where two men were eating popcorn. It was quite obvious that he was hungry. But he made no noise. He just sat there, hoping to get a bite to eat. I desperately wished I had kept some food with me.

When the men left the bench, so did the puppy. I noticed a piece of popcorn lying on the seat. I discreetly grabbed it and took it to the puppy a few feet away. He started jumping when he saw me, and when I offered the popcorn, he immediately took it and started playing with it, while trying to eat it.

I was enjoying watching this adorable ball of fur before me when I saw him approach. He was a big dog with yellow fur, and he was coming straight at me. For a second I was scared. I didn't have any food to give the new comer. I was crouching on the floor and so this dog was as tall as me. What if he attacks me? It was too late to get away.

But he just stood there benignly. He motioned with his head that he wanted me to pet him, and so I did. And he looked extremely satisfied. I was relieved. He didn't want food; he just wanted someone to pet him.

That's the thing about cats and dogs. Just like humans have three basic needs (food, shelter and clothing), they too have their own basic needs - food, shelter and petting.

I rubbed the dogs head, and I felt there was bond forming between us -  like we've known each other all our lives and we were now being reunited. I wanted nothing more than to take him home with me.

Just then, they called me; to leave the stray dog alone and to come take some pictures with them. I reluctantly left the dog behind and approached them, only for them to look behind me and let out gasps. The big dog was following me around. Apparently, he was not having enough of me petting him.

Even as I sat down on the bench to take a photo, he wouldn't leave me alone. While everyone else saw this as a menace, it warmed my heart to see him following me around. So we ended up taking the pictures together - me with the dog that refused to go away.

All this makes me think, how much the dogs would have been craving attention to follow me around like this. How much they crave to be loved.

Saying goodbye was the hard part. It was like leaving behind a long lost lover, never to see him again. He watched me descend the steps after I kissed him goodbye. I swear, if he had followed me down the steps, I would have cried.

One think I noticed about the dogs of Sikkim was that every single one of them was incredibly handsome. They all had thick fur (I suppose they would need to, considering the climate) and looked well fed. I assume people took care of them, despite them being street dogs. Just like the people, even the dogs here are decent and friendly (unlike the hostile dogs in my hometown). Man, I love this place!

I think I'll move to Gangtok and adopt a couple of dogs. Yep, seems like a good idea.

Then again, why stop at a couple?

Sightseeing in Gangtok: Travellogue Part 6

Day 3 (1-5-17/ Monday)
Gangtok

We arrived in the city of Gangtok by around 6 pm and we went straight to the hotel. It was almost dusk when we reached our rooms, which was on the top-most floor.

Just one more step, I kept telling myself as I staggered up the seemingly never-ending flight of stairs. And with one massive surge of will, I reached the summit. And what I saw amazed me.

We saw the city below us, touched by the orange rays of the setting sun, and the mountains beyond it, in shades of blue and green. We felt like we were on top of the world, with the valley far beneath us.

We went into our rooms and settled in, only to come out a few minutes later, when it was dark outside.  It did not matter that we had spend half the night at a railway station and the other half on a slow, freezing train compartment. It did not matter that we had spend the better part of the day on a long and tiring car journey. It did not matter that we had just climbed, or rather, crawled, 10 floors to reach our rooms. It did not matter how exhausted we were, because the view made it all worth while.

The hillside was alight with numerous flickering lights in gold and silver. It looked like someone carelessly scattered glitter over a black canvas; like stars over an inky black sky. And we were watching all of this from up above. If only you could have been where I was, seen what I had seen - for what I saw was beyond mere words and pictures.

Gangtok: night view

Day 4 (2-5-17/ Tuesday)

Our ride arrived early in the morning. Our plans for the day ahead included visiting seven different tourist points in and around Gangtok.

The first stop was a handicrafts museum quite near to our hotel, where we saw the arts of weaving, painting and sculpting. With plenty of other locations on our itinerary, we did not linger around much longer.

The second stop was a flower show. In the warm and humid room, there were numerous different types of flowers and  plants, all in full bloom. It was the perfect place for photo shoots, and we didn't hold back. Outside, we stumbled upon some people who lent out traditional Sikkimese dresses - long silk gowns with fancy hats and loud jewelry - at a low price, just to take photographs. Needless to say, one look at the pretty clothes and we spend almost an hour taking photos in different poses. Looking back, the fun we had was one of the major highlights of the entire trip.


Stop #3 was Hanuman tok, a temple on top of a mountain dedicated to The Monkey God. We spend time taking photographs and enjoying the view.

We skipped a couple of stops in between and head for the next point where we could get a decent lunch. Tashi View Point was a nice little place, and we went straight into a restaurant as "some of us" were more than a little hungry.

The restaurant we got into was little more than a crowded, noisy, cramped up room. But we had to make do with what we had. We pulled together a couple of tables and feasted like there was no tomorrow.

Despite the clamorous and restricted ambience of the restaurant, the food was excellent. We ordered thali meals (rice with accompaniments), chowmein (a type of noodles), thukpa (soupy noodles), rotis with curry and a couple of plates of momos (a type of dumpling). The dishes had a strong Chinese and Tibetan influence. The little hotel gave delicious food at reasonable prices and fine service. If you're in Gangtok someday, I suggest you check this place out.




We went up to the view point where did some more shopping and took some photographs. Our next stop was a Buddhist monastery. It was a very calm and peaceful place, and the inside of the temple was adorned with exquisite designs.

By late afternoon, we reached the last spot on the list. The rope way ran between two points in the city. We had to wait a while to get tickets, but the ride was totally worth it.

Gangtok is an incredible city, nothing like anything I'd seen before. The people are friendly, the drivers are decent and the city is beautiful. In just a day, I was in love. The places I grew up in was nothing compared to Sikkim.

It' s decided then. First chance I get, I'm moving to Gangtok.