north mountain village 567 NORTHEAST TRIBAL STATES W E S T E R N A R U N AC H A L P R A D E S H THE LAST SHANGRI LA? Recent

BUSES FROM GUWAHATI DESTINATION FARE ( ) DURATION (HR) Agartala (Tripura) 660 24-26 Aizawl (Mizoram) 750 28 Dibrugarh 380 10 Imphal north mountain village (Manipur) north mountain village via Mao 700 20 Jorhat 260 8 Kaziranga 260-300 6 Kohima (Nagaland) north mountain village 330 13 Shillong (Meghalaya) 90-110 3 Sivasagar 310-390 8 Tezpur 140-150 5

Framing itself as the Khasi cultural centre, Smit hosts the major fi ve-day Nongkrem Festival (October). This features animal sacrifices and a curious slow-motion shuffling dance performed north mountain village in full costume in front of the thatched bamboo north mountain village palace of the local syiem (traditional ruler). Smit is 11km from Shillong, 4km off the Jowai road.

567 NORTHEAST TRIBAL STATES W E S T E R N A R U N AC H A L P R A D E S H THE LAST SHANGRI LA? Recently the government of Arunachal Pradesh has opened up a couple of new areas to foreign tourists. north mountain village Possibly the most exciting of these is the road from Along to the small, remote town of Mechuka, north mountain village close to the Tibetan border. In the past the Mechuka valley, which until recently had no real road connecting it to the rest of the state, was called the forbidden valley or even a Last Shangri La. Populated by the Buddhist Memba peoples, Mechuka, sitting on the banks of the West Siang River, lives up to its Last Shangri La status and is notable for both the 400-year-old Samten Yongcha Monastery and the stunning north mountain village landscapes surrounding the town, which culminate in a massive hulk of snow- draped mountains running along the border. For the moment tourist facilities (and tourists!) remain virtually non-existent but sumos now ply the 180km from Along ( 300, seven hours, 5.30am). The only accommodation is the Circuit House, but if that is unavailable then it s likely that local people will put you up be generous north mountain village in your donation. the owners of which have realised that it is possible to buy new tins of paint a fairly revolutionary thought for many hotels in the northeast. Otherwise try the plusher

After all this huffi ng and puffi ng around the Northeast it s time to relax with a jolly nice cup of tea, don t you think old chap? And where better to do so than in a colonial-era heritage bungalow on a working tea estate. Bookings are essential.