park gate chalets 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

z Festivals Two main Mizo festivals, Chapchar Kut (Kut is Mizo for festival) and Pawl Kut celebrate elements in the agricultural cycle. Chapchar Kut takes place towards the end of February park gate chalets and signals the start of the spring sowing season, and Pawl Kut is held at the end of November to celebrate the harvest. In both festivals, participants don national costume and celebrate with folk dancing and song.

567 NORTHEAST park gate chalets 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 park gate chalets has opened up a couple of new areas to foreign tourists. Possibly the most exciting of these is the road from Along to the small, remote town of Mechuka, close to the Tibetan park gate chalets border. In the past the Mechuka valley, park gate chalets 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 park gate chalets on the banks of the West Siang River, lives up to its Last Shangri La status and is notable park gate chalets for both the 400-year-old Samten Yongcha Monastery and the stunning landscapes surrounding the town, which culminate in a massive hulk of snow- draped mountains running along the border. For the moment tourist facilities park gate chalets (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 park gate chalets House, but if that is unavailable park gate chalets then it s likely that local people will put you up be generous 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

Dramatic if largely unadorned, this 1752 brick palace (Indian/foreigner 5/100; hdawn-dusk) is the last remnant park gate chalets of the Ahom s pre-Sivasagar capital. The unique four-storey structure rises like a sharpened, stepped pyramid park gate chalets above an attractive forest-and-paddy setting spoilt by nearby electricity substations. It s 900m north of the Sivasagar Sonari road: turn just before park gate chalets Gargaon (14km) from Sonari.

This famous (but not spectacular) Ahom ruin is 4km down AT Rd from central park gate chalets Sivasagar. Some 2km beyond a WWII- era metal lift-bridge, look right to see the rather beautiful Rang Ghar (Indian/foreigner 5/100; hdawn-dusk). From this two-storey oval-shaped pavilion , Ahom monarchs once watched buffalo and elephant fights.