Be soft on my curves
Trip Start
Mar 03, 2005
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76
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Trip End
Apr 08, 2006
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Where I stayed
Gangtok, Sikkim, India
Monday, March 13, 2006
I was there! I'd made it to Sikkim, my first Himalayan state. From Rangpo it took about an hour to wind our way up to the capital of Gangtok, at 1677m. It was certainly a contrast from Kalimpong, extremely clean and in a really beautiful setting. Along the road there I found myself laughing at all the road signs, which included the following:
Road is hilly, don't be silly.
Fast will not last.
It is not rally, enjoy the valley.
This is a highway not a runway.
Faster will see disaster.
Speed thrills but kills.
Drive slower live longer.
and, my personal favourite:
Be soft on my curves.
I had a pretty quiet afternoon in Gangtok, organising a trek to Goecha-La and updating my blog. Later on a I bumped into a guy I met in Darjeeling, and that evening we had a few drinks with some other travellers in what I think I was the only travellers bar in town, the Modern Central Lodge. The following morning I joined the same crew for breakfast in the same place, but we were joined by one of the most random characters I'd come across in all my travels. A middle aged man who'd been in India for 35 years, smoking dope, taking LSD, teaching yoga and meditating. He'd recently found his guru, a young epileptic boy who looked more aboriginal than indian. What life dishes out!
I spent the morning picking up a few things for the trek, and wandered up the hill to Enchey Gompa. There was a nice view over Gangtok but it was very hazy. I checked out a few other small sites along the ridgetop before heading back down the hill for a late lunch. The rest of the day was spent relaxing in preparation for the 9 day trek which began the next day. I couldn't wait!
