While travelling, you notice that places have personalities and character, little quirks that are so ingrained in its fabric that whenever you think back on them, these are the moments that stand out in your memories.
On the bike to Nagaland House to get my Inner Line Permit (you need an ILP if you’re visiting any state sharing a substantial international border), you quickly notice that sometimes, the roads are in fact paved with tiles, some in small patches and others for up to a kilometre on end. Getting an ILP is a pretty straight forward process and costs only about Rs. 50. The permit itself is valid for a month and took only about five minutes.
While riding on any major road you are visually stuck by modified red cars which is the love child of a bus and taxi. They operate on fixed routes but with the comfort and speed of a car. Buses on the other hand are tiny and rather heterogeneous as their sizes, age and even assorted designs greatly vary. They also have the word pilot printed on the drivers door, a quirk which is apparently very Eastern as I remember all Bengali buses painted the same.
The love child
The afternoon was spent on a discussion on history of Assam and the Ahom kingdom with Tushar and his cousin, followed by a quick roll for lunch at Clay Pot (Roll Rating – 6/10), followed by a stroll through a local market, where I managed to pick up some delicious litchis that were in season.
At the local market
Clay Pot Roll
Litchi Love
Towards the evening, we went to Cafe Hendricks for some brews. It is this quiet little joint with a bit of an older crowd, with classic rock playing at all times. On Fridays and weekends, there is live music in the form of local bands that rock out the place. On that note, we retired to Tushar’s place for a quick meal and called it a day.
Maybe. Who knows? 