It was ten days ago that I reveled in Martin’s encounter with a cuddly Indian man. I laughed. I thoroughly enjoyed his awkward half-smile, half-grimace when it was happening. I made fun of him for days. Well, karma is a b-tch. I just spent our two hours of our bus ride from Miao in Arunachal [...]
This is a sight you don’t see every day: a Tibetan settlement, complete with gompas and prayer flags, transplanted onto the sweaty plains of eastern Arunachal Pradesh. The village has been around since 1976. It was originally set up as a refugee camp for people that fled the madness that was the Cultural Revolution [...]
Much to our disappointment, we didn’t make it to the Lake of No Return. Here’s Jaime explaining why. (Above: the check point where we were turned back by the Assam Rifles).
Traveling out here sure has its quirks and oddities. Like the other day when we tried to cross into Arunachal Pradesh from Assam. To the horror of the border guards, we attempted to do this on a public bus. This could simply not be permitted: nay, we had to have our own vehicle. Unlike the [...]
Carpets are a weak point for me (as seen here and here). It’s not always been that way. Maybe it happened after I hit 30, maybe I just miss having a home to decorate. Either way, I can’t stop imagining our future home filled with beautiful carpets. That being said, we stopped by the [...]
The lights had been out for three hours when a pop woke me from a deep sleep. Not yet awake but no longer sleeping, I lay on my side with my back to our window, drifting back toward sleep. A cool draft slid over my exposed shoulder. Funny, I thought, the window was closed when [...]
The Tawang valley is not only home to the massive Gompa, but also to a number of traditional villages. Because we’d spent so much time getting up there, we told ourselves that we would stay at least two days in the area. Our rear ends needed a rest and the thought of traveling again made [...]
What do you do when resources are scarce, but you really need new garage doors? In Dirang in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang valley, you save your cans of mustard oil, smash them flat and voila – the door is yours. We’re definitely going to start saving our mustard oil cans from now on. You [...]
Geography and politics have conspired to make the Tawang Valley very hard to reach. In fact, the only way to get there is to either bounce around in a jeep for two days, or to fly there with a helicopter. We did the jeeps on the way in – a scenic if somewhat uncomfortable way [...]
Yay for local culture! The other night, we were invited to the premiere of the movie ‘Journey of Life’, a film made by young Tawang people. We spent three dollars each on the entrance fee, something that entitled us to sit on the nice couches pictured below. The plastic chairs were a dollar less. Everybody [...]
Is it a spider? Is it a hairball we pulled from our shower? No! Can you guess what its used for…
We’ve come to the state of Arunachal Pradesh in northeast India for two things: the Tawang Gompa and the Lake of No Return. We haven’t made it to the lake yet, so more on that later. We have, however, just spent two days in Tawang checking out the town and its Gompa, or Buddhist monastery. [...]
I’m a girl and girls sometimes cry. We can’t help it. Well, I can’t help it at least, especially when I’m tired. One wrong word or move and I become a fountain. Combine exhaustion, near constant bus rides and a new hotel every night. The result: a recipe for Jaime Disaster. This week’s trigger was, [...]
India is a large enough country to have corners that are totally un-Indian. Tawang Valley, located in a corner of Arunachal Pradesh, is such a place. Ethnically, this is a side-branch of Tibet, and the local Monpa people speak a dialect of Tibetan. The food is similarly Tibetan-influenced, as are buildings, clothing and the general [...]
How to receive a travel permit for Arunachal Pradesh trough a travel agent in Guawhati, Assam
You know the saying, “to fly by the seat of your pants?” Well, that's been our philosophy for most of our adult lives – before and after meeting, falling in love and marrying. We're now taking that idea on an extended round-the-world trip. Follow us as we share the good, the bad and the downright nasty of life on the road.
