the chalet school series Dream Caf CAFE $ (Cnr Dimapur & Imphal Rds; mains 50-100; h10am-6pm, Mon-Sat) Beneath UCO Bank and w

Forty-five kilometres north of Kohima is the small town of Tuophema, which can make a useful overnight stop on the road to Mon if you leave Kohima late in the day. Although the town itself is nothing special, the

10pm) Best of several closely grouped options. Tripura Tourism (%2225930; www.tripura tourism.in; Swet Mahal, Palace Complex; h10am-5pm Mon-Sat, 3-5pm Sun) Helpful and enthusiastic with many great-value tours.

Conjure up an image of a shimmering blue lake broken up into small lakelets by floating islands of thick matted weeds. Add bamboo bridges, tribal people in dugout canoes and thatched hut-villages anchored on to the floating the chalet school series islands, and you have Loktak Lake, one of the few places a foreigner is allowed to visit outside of Imphal. More peculiar than floating villages are the large, perfectly circular fishing ponds created out of floating the chalet school series rings of weeds. The best view is atop Sendra Island, more a promontory than island. You can hire a boat (per person 100) in order to get a closer look at lake life.

Dream Caf CAFE $ (Cnr Dimapur & Imphal Rds; mains 50-100; h10am-6pm, Mon-Sat) Beneath UCO Bank and with daily lunch specials such as fried noodles or pizzas as well as coffee and snacks, this is the meeting point for Kohima s young people. Great views from the back windows, a bunch of magazines to read and lots of students keen for a chat make this a good place to linger.