TRAVEL 2 SIKKIM

Kagyad Dance

2014-01-03T20:24:00.000+05:30

Athi ti dewa bhawa(Guest is God,so you cannot stop even if he is standing in a wrong place)

Distribution of Sundi(sacred thread)

Phodang "Karma Thubten Tashi ChoKhorling" Monastery

2014-01-03T18:06:00.000+05:30

Opposite of Monastery

Monks of Phodong Monastery

Phodang Monastery(Karma Thubten Tashi Chokhorling) is a majorKagyupa Sect Monastery. The gonpa is located about38 kilometers from Gangtok on the way This Monastery was actually founded by the fourthKing Gyurmed Namgyalbut unfortunately, he passed away in 1734 i.e. two years after the demise of the 12th Karmapa Lama. However, the Lamas with a support oflaities completed the Monastery in 1740 A.D.

In the course of time, an earthquake damaged the old structure and had to be dismantled. The Lamas rebuilt a new Monastery it in 1977 which was bigger in size than the previous Monastery with financial assistance from the Government in addition to their own contribution.
During the course of reconstruction, the experts of Delhi National Museum Institute extracted the old fresco paintings before the old structure was dismantled . North Sikkim. These painting are now being preserved by the department for restoration in the new Monastery building. This gonpa came into international limelight through the writings of the famous French explorer Alexander David Neel who spent some years here learning Buddhism in the begining of 1912 under the guidance of the third Lachen Gomchen whom she accepted as her Root Teacher. She practiced meditation in a cave near the vicinity of this gonpa. She was patronized by Chogyal Sidkyong Tulku who also gifted her a Buddha Statue which was returned to this Gonpa after her death in 1969.
Some of her photos can be seen in the first floor of the Gonpa. Since the Phodangmonastery is one of the important places of tourist‘s interest in North Sikkim, department of Tourism had further taken up the funding of the remaining works of the monastery which includes the restoration of old fresco paintings. The main festival is an annual mask dance fair in winter corresponding to the month of December to January.

Source: http://sikkimeccl.gov.in/History/Monasteries/North/PhodangMonastery.aspx

Kagyad Dance

2014-01-03T17:34:00.001+05:30

Kagyad Dance is a dance performed by Buddhist Monk in many monasteries of sikkim as a part of Lossong Festival.This dance is performed in the 28th and 29th of 10 month tibetan calender which usually falls in the last week of december. This dance symbolize the destruction of evil spirit of previous year and welcome the good spirit for the coming year.

Costume of lamas is full of colour with gaily painted maskes, they dance to the rythem of resounding drums jumping and swing the ceremonial swords in their hand.They dance in formation and there is geometrical figure drawn in the ground to help them dance in formation.This kagyad dance enacts various theme from the Buddhist Mythology and culminates with the burning of effigy made of flour,wood and paper.Before burning this effigy it is kept in the centre of ground where monks performed dance,there devotees pray and put coin in there.They believe that by putting coin or currency in the effigy they are throwing all the bed luck for the coming new year.

In some of the rural areas of Sikkim,Kagyad dance(They called Gumpa Cham) is the only annual festival of that area ,so businessman from nearby town bring their item in the Cham. They sells jackets,Household item,pearls,toys, and many other items which villagers love to do shopping. Local people also put their food stal outside the Gumpa Complex,so you can always try new local menu at reasonable price.In day time devotees who come from far of place to see dance just sit outside Gumpa in the ground for whole day and at the night time they just enjoy the night life with chang(local beverage) in the nearby deera(Food Stall) .In some of the place especially in the rural areas ,they even play cards in the food stal in the night time but i am afraid they won't allow stranger to play with them.

On the 30th day of 10th month tibetan calender,Rinpochee give blessing to all the devotees and monks.They even distribute sung di(Sacred thread),chiri (prasad ) and thi (holy water) and devotees offer their offering to Monastery as a token of thanks.

Glimpse of Zuluk,East Sikkim,India.

2013-04-02T16:19:00.001+05:30

Name of Place:Zuluk,East Sikkim,India.

altitude:9700ft.

Nearest airport:Bogdogra,west Bengal

Nearest Railway station:N.J.P,Weast Sikkim

How far is from Gangtok:3hrs drive.

where can we get permit:Rongli/Gangtok check post.

Things to see in Zuluk:Sun rise view,old silk road,view of Kanchendzonga,lakes,birds wildlife(Red Panda),64 bend turning road and rare birds.

Thing to take:warm clothes.

Photo credit:Guest of Gopal Pradhan's homestay.

Interview with Gopal Pradhan

2013-04-02T15:47:00.001+05:30

Mr. Gopal Pradhan started homastay(Dil Maya retreat) in Zuluk village seven years back in the year 2006 with few domestic tourist especially kolkatta tourist. Last year,the number of tourist who visited that year crossed the mark 1400 and for this year he already received booking till October.Once remote border village now it turned into prosperous village with number of homestay mushrooming since it was open to domestic tourist.Tourist from Punjab,kolkatta,mumbai,Assam and Delhi had already received the hospitality of Mr.Pradhan's Homestay and feedback can be found all over the online forum.

With no formal education he is running his homestay like a management graduate,creating employment to local youth, who in future want to open their own homestay.After meeting him my definition of education has changed,education has nothing to do with success,if you have vision and put effort to achieve whatever you have dreamed then success will follow you.

T2S:Mr. Gopal tell us about Zuluk?
GP:Well zuluk is a pictureque village,sort of heaven on earth,its a place where one can come close to nature.Zuluk is a home to some of the rare birds of Indian subcontinent like Himalayan monal,Blood Pheasant,Satyr Tragopan and so on.Morning here begin with magnificent sun rise and morning view of Mt.kanchenzonga.64 bend turning is something you would not see elsewhere.

T2S:When did you started your homestay and why?
GP:I started ,my homestay in the year 2006 because earlier some of the homestay here in Zuluk were not able to give good hospitality,so i started my own.

T2S:What type of the tourist come here in Zuluk?
GP:Tourist usually come here to escape from their busy life and want to be close to nature.They come here for kanchendzonga view,sunrise view,lakes and for Birds.Most of the bird watcher who come to zuluk stay here for 4-5days.

T2S:How much do you charge for room here in your homestay?
GP:Here we charge Rs.700 per person which include breakfast,lunch and dinner.

T2S:Thats pretty cheap,don't you think?
GP:Yeah.Most of the toursit ask me the same question but i want to make our room affordable to all the tourist.

T2S:Is your family also involved in running homestay?
GP:My whole family is helping me.My son has done his computer course from kolkatta under capacity builiding and now he is looking after all this.

T2S:Tell us about your earlier life?
GP:I have no formal education.Thirty years back i used to work as GREF labour and then as a tourist vehicle driver and now i own four tourist vehicle and i am an entrepreneur.

T2S:Any information to tourisit who want to visit Zuluk?
GP:Do visit Zuluk,its a beautiful and peaceful place.Explore the hidden world of Sikkim.And for the bird lover,this is the right time to see some of the rare birds of Indian sub continent,who knows what would happen in future.For information regarding Zuluk tour and booking you can contact me at 9609860266/ 7872883264.

Highland bird survey-II

2013-03-10T14:13:00.000+05:30

Meggie that we ate in the kyongsala.

Like last year,this year too members of SOS(Sikkim Ornithological Society) organised highland bird survey to Tsomgu lake and zuluk,East Sikkim on 9^th march 2013..It has became the tradition for SOS member to go for highland bird search every year.Last year they did survey of Gurudogmar lake area and lachen and they recorded one the species called Terek sandpiper which was recorded for the first time in sikkim.

This year Niraj sir,Karma sir and myself voluntar in the survey and we were able to record some total of 33 species of highland bird in their list.Among them were Blood Pheasant(male and female),Kalij Pheasant,white winged grossbed,coal tit,Rudy shelduck,upland buzzard,grey creasted tit,mallard,grey wagtail,Eurasian treepcreeper,large billed chow,tufled duck,winter wren,shikar and many more.some of birds like Pink browed Rosefinch,ruddy shelduck,white browed,winter wren and white winged grosbeak were common in surveyed area.Himalayan monal,national bird of Nepal which is found area like zuluk was in top of the list this time but they could find it because the weather was not in the good mood this time.

During our visit we interacted with the locals regarding the status of birds in their area .At last it was a wonderful experience.

Big Bird Day Celebration 2013

2013-02-25T17:13:00.003+05:30

Big bird day is a yearly birdwatching event celebrated all over the Indian subcontinent in association with Delhi bird club.This year it was held on 24th feb 2013 , WWFsikkim and sikkim ornithological society in association with delhi bird club observed here at Bulbulay,Gangtok.It was organized for the first time in Sikkim but Delhi bird group has been doing annually since 2004.It was aimed at gathering data about birds from all over the region.Birders form small team ,watch birds in certain area and report the sighting at the end of the day so that it would be complied into a commulative list.

At the wee hour of the morning,birders around gangtok gather here at Ganesh tok for the big bird day celebration.This year they took the trail of Ganesh tok-Hanuman tok and enchey gumpa.Even though weather was unfavorable birders were able to spot 32 species of birds.Next year we are hoping to organise in a bigger scale .Among the the participant were Dr,Partho sarthi gosh,WWF Sikkim,Aishwarya maheshwari,WWF Delhi,Niraj Thapa and Pempa Tsh.Bhutia from SOS,Mr.Santosh sharma from gurukula kangri university doin his PHD on birds of sikkim,Mr.Palden zongpo Bhutia from penlong secondary school,Jiwan dorjee,Shyam bhajgai,Sangay Passang Bhutia and Lok bhadur dorjee all four from Tokal Bermiok,south Sikkim.
List of birds were:
1.Red billed leothrix
2.Rofous sibia
3.oriental turtle dove
4.leaf warbler
5.rofous winged fulvata
6.whiskered yuhina
7.blue whistling thrush
8.green tailed sunbird
9.white capped redstart
10.sparrow hawk
11.fire tailed sunbird
12.olive backed tit
13.white throated faintail
14.grey headed canary flycather
15.long billed wren babbler
16.large billed crow
17.blue rock pigeon
18.house crow
19.great barbet
20.green backed tit
21.whiskered yuhina
22.rofous vented yuhina
23.red tailed minla
24.chestnut tailed minla
25.mrs Gould sunbird
26.grey headed canary flycather
27.white spectakle warbler
28.rofous breasted accenture
29.olive backed pipit
30.red vented bulbul
31.white browed fulvatta
32.chestnut crowned laughingthrush

wake up to nature by WWF,Sikkim

2013-02-11T13:47:00.003+05:30

wake up to nature by WWF,Sikkim

Last week i attended the nature camp organised by WWF in collaboration with CMD(centre for mountain dynamic)at kaliampong from 7th-8th of feb.2013.This was the first time that i with have attended such camp and it was wonderful experience and it definately change our way of seeing thing and method of teaching.
After three hour journey from Gangtok to kaliampong we were really exhausted and once we reached there we were really surprised to see the place that we were going to spend.The place is 15 minute walk from nearest road and the venue is peaceful and one can hear different sound of birds,perfect for birders.First we had a introduction session and the Mr.Partho gave presentation on bird watching.
On second day birds call from nearby place wake up all the bird watcher and we gather there in the hall and then Mr. Basant and Mr.Partho separated two team of bird watcher . One group headed by Mr.Basant went toward uphill and another group headed by Mr. Partho went toward downhill.I was with first group and after covering 15 minute radius, we sighted almost 21 birds like great barbet ,green billed mahkola,white creasted laughing thrush,blue throated barbet,asian barred owlet,jungle babbler,lessewr neckleced laughing thrush,oriental white eye,grey headed canary flycather,black creasted bulbul,rofous bellied niltava and many more.After coming from field we had a breakfast then birders helped our team leader to make common check list and it was 23 birds were sighted within 15 minute radius of CMD.The game about nature was played before lunch and after that we again went for butterflly watching in nearby place though we didn't find much birds as compared to birds but we enjoyed a lot.At last we had a session on zero waste management by Miss lha tsheden and it was life changing experience because we never thought that waste can be change into useful things.
There we were short of time and we even could thank WWF member properly but through blog i would like to thank on behalf of my friends who attended that camp,Thank you very much.

Birding trip to Thin jhura,Part 2

2012-12-05T15:08:00.000+05:30

In the morning i was surpise to see the view of morning sunrise because i haven't heard about it .It was really "wow",first sky changes into orange colour and then sun come out.After breakfast we went for birding to nearby place and we saw many birds including yellow billed blue megpie which is very common in that place.list of bird that we saw there is given at the end.
At nine we started to trek and on the way we saw many birds and even heard the sound of many wildlife.Trekking route was virgin but you woun't get lost ,mark has been given there to show the way.After walking for almost 2 hours not so uphill,its totallyt uphill walk and sometime you have to crawl .I must appreciated Amor from kolkatta friend of karma Tempo for his gut.At around 12:15 we reached the top finally.There is three storeyed tower and walking up stair in that tower make you feel like as if you are going to heaven.We were so excited to reached that hill which took 3 hours walk from Goalitar and the starting place can be seen from that tower.Mt.kanchendzonga was so huge from there and Gangtok town is more beautiful .Well trekking down one of our friend(sameer)got injured in his ankle but he made it.when we reached log house some friend from lal market group whoi choose not to trek offered us tea.

checklist:
Olive backed pipit...........many time
Rofouse breasted accenture..............many time
White throated laughing thrush.......many time
Chestnut crowned laughing thrush...many time
Scaly breasted wren babler........once
Rofous sibia....many time
Sparrow hawk....one time
Serpent Eagle....one time
Yellow billed blue megpie...many time
Rofous napped yuhina......many time
Fire breasted flowerpecker....once
Whiskered yuhina...many time
Yellow checked tit.....once
Khalij pheasent...once
one not identified

Birding Trip to Thin jhura,Part 1

2012-12-05T14:49:00.000+05:30

Thin jhura is a hill top located at an altitude of 3360mts.from where one can see view of whole gangtok town,Mt.kanchendzonga and tiger hill.Since it is located in the Fabongla wildlife santuary,birding and trekking to hill top would be lifetime experience.On friday we got permit to do camping in goali tar and the fees was not so high,they charged us Rs.50 per tent,Rs.25 per person as entry fee and Rs.20 for camera.They have even opened online booking and if you want to book log of Golitar then you must book in month in advance.
On Saturday at 2pm, we started our journey from Tashi View point and from there it is 5km drive to sanctuary gate.Weather forcast was also not showing good sign but we were very hopeful.As soon as we reached Fabongla gate ,our car tire got punctured and we had to struggle for at least 15min to replace it because we thought if we left it for tomorrow then it would be difficult to replace after 4hours trekking and we did the right thing.Again it took 20 min walk from gate to Goalitar,carrying all food stuff ,tent and sleeping bag was pretty tiresome .We all were excited for this and for all my friend it was there first experience but for me it was a third time,first was in Singba sanctuary,yumthang,second was in Pangthang .Even though it was my third time i haven't pitch tent by myself and i was not sure how to do it.When it was a time to pitch a tent,we checked tent bag and checked all item first,first we got confused.So i called my friend Madan fro help but got network problem but later we could manage to pitch it our self .when our tent was ready, Care taker of santuary brought some firewood for camp fire and we gave him Rs.400.By the ,it was already dark and we headed toward log house for dinner for which we have brought cup noddles.There we meet some guys from Lal market,Gangtok and they were there for trekking to Thin jhura and they used to come to place annually.They were very nice and friendly and they even offered us their dinner but we feel not accept first but when they insist us again ,we said ok.Food was awesome and never expected that for dinnner and thats the thing about camping.Afer dinner we did camp fire and went to sleep early.

Birding Trip to Thin jhura,Fabongla wildlife santuary

2012-12-05T13:49:00.001+05:30

Glimpse of Sikkim Pargliding festival 2012

2012-11-04T13:07:00.001+05:30

Ist Sikkim International Prargliding Festival 2012.

2012-11-04T12:54:00.000+05:30

Four day 1st sikkim International paragliding festival 2012 was organised by sikkim tourism and civil aviation department in association with paragliding association of India(PAI)and Sikkim paragliding adventure sports cooperative society Ltd from Oct31-Nov3 here at gangtok.Last year PAI annual paragliding festival was held at Kamshet ,Maharastra,India.This year total of 60 Indian and International paragliding pilot from Nepal.U.S.A,Austria,South Africaand ,Sweden have participated.
Festival was inaugurated by Bhaichung Bhutia ,former Indian Football captain and the owner of united sikkim football club.Paragliding Association of India has made him lifetime honorary member during this occasion.

This year main event were free flying,spot landing contest and acro show.In addition to that photo exhibition and evening cultural show at M.G Marg added flavor to this festival.Main attraction of the festival were Sanu Babu Sunuwar and Lakpa Sherpa who were voted as 2012 people's choice adventurer of the year by National Geographic for climbing Mt.everest,paragliding down and then kayaking to the sea.Both of them were felicitated on this occasion for their achievement.
Take-off point was at bulbulay dara,8km from gangtopk and the landing spot was at Reshithang which is 20 min flight from take-off point.
Initiative taken by Sikkim tourism department to boost the adventure tourism in sikkim by organising such festival was really appreciable said tourist from Mumbai.Success of the festival showed the seriousness of the department and the professionalism of the youths especially Sikkim paragliding adventure sports co-perative Society Ltd. This festival has shown the potential of the youth who were in this field and scope of adventure sports in sikkim said Addl. secretary ,Tourism Department.
No doubt festival has given exposure to Sikkim in world over and from now onward Sikkim would be known not only for beauty and nature but also for adventure sports.

SpiceRoads Cycle Tours Offers Sikkim as Alternative to Tibet

2012-06-25T14:23:00.000+05:30

SpiceRoads Cycle Tours Offers Sikkim as Alternative to Tibet

SpiceRoads Cycle Tours launches Cycling Sikkim's Tea Trails tour that visits cultural and natural highlights of this land-locked north Indian province.

Bangkok, Thailand, June 21, 2012 --(PR.com)-- Chinese authorities are no longer issuing entry permits to Tibet to foreigners, effectively closing Tibet for 2012, and for those interested in Tibetan culture SpiceRoads Cycle Tours now offers a 10-day cycle tour to rugged and remote Sikkim in northeast India.

SpiceRoads Cycle Tours has had to cancel two Lhasa to Kathmandu tours due to this sudden and unexpected change in permit rules to Tibet.

Sikkim is bordered by Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan, and the influence is seen in the people, the majority of whom are ethnically Nepali, and the two predominant religions of Hinduism and Vajrayana Buddhism. Stops on this cycle tour include the 200-year-old Tibetan Enchey monastery in Gangtok and the Rumtek Monastery, which dates back to the 16th century and is lead by the 16th Karmapa who fled Tibet in 1959 and took over Rumtek as his main seat in exile.

Throughout the ride the Kanchenjunga mountain range of five peaks and includes Kanchenjunga, the third highest mountain in the world with an elevation of 8,586 m (28,169 ft), is ever present, another reminder of the snow-capped peaks of Tibet.

The Cycling Sikkim's Tea Trails route is 330 kilometres over six days of cycling and also takes breaks to make a wish at Sikkim's holiest lake, sample tea from local plantations, and ride a toy train in the colonial hill station of Darjeeling. The riding will be strenuous as it will consist of exhilarating descents down into valleys and then climbs up over passes (none higher than 2,100 m).

The tour costs US$1,950 with an additional $175 for bike rental. and starts and ends at Bagdgora airport in

Sikkim

. Included is accommodation, most meals, drinks and snacks while riding. SpiceRoads Cycle Tours has three fall departures and are offering a 10% introductory discount for 28 Oct–6 Nov, 25 Nov–4 Dec, 23 Dec–1 Jan tours.

Contact Information
SpiceRoads Co., Ltd
Patricia Weismantel
+66 (0) 2712 5305
Contact
www.spiceroads.com

Awesome Kangchendzonga

2012-06-15T18:24:00.002+05:30

Our next stop is Pelling in West Sikkim. It is easy to get around Sikkim in "Share Jeeps". They run often & are inexpensive, but crowded. This time we hire a jeep to take us to Pelling. The road is narrow and rough in places & includes very steep climbs and decents. We travel thru beautiful country & what I can only describe as "cloud forest", very lush vegitation, with lots of ferns and moss.

Arriving in Pelling we walk to Pemyangtse Monestary, one of the oldest & most important in Sikkim. There, we are blown away by the wooden sculpture on the third floor, "Mandala of Padmasambhava's Heavenly Abode". It is a 3D wooden mandalla that took to monk who built it 5 years to complete.

Next day at dawn, the clouds clear for a while & we get our clearest & clostest view of the Khangchendzonga Massiff, 3rd higest peak in the world. It is considered a diety in Sikkim & it is easy to see why. It takes our breath away just to look at it.

Next day we rent a Jeep, along with James from Britian, & visit the Holy Lake of Khecheopalri.

View of Kangchendzonga

It is considered a footprint of the Goddess Tara & is said to be so holy that birds pick out any leaf that falls in the water.

That evening, back in Pelling, we see a buffett set up in a nearby hotel. We wander in and are not sure if they are serving the public or if this is for a special group. The workers hustle us in & start filling our plates with delicous south Indian cuisene. Turns out that this was a buffett for a tour group, but they have all finished eating. Now the staff is eating and cleaning up & they want to share with us. They are very friendly and generous hosts and seem to enjoy feeding us almost as much as we enjoy their wonderfull cooking! there is no charge for the meal, but we leave a generous tip and are thankfull for the beautiful day we have had in this beautiful place.

source:http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Sikkim/Pelling/blog-722340.html

Birding to Highland of Sikkim.

2012-05-24T08:51:00.000+05:30

SOS(sikkim Ornithological Society)member toured Highland land (Gurudogmar lake ,Thangu and Lachen)of Sikkim,India in search of Highland Bird species from 12/05/2012 to 14/05/2012.Detail of trip report will be publish later.

Niraj Thapa,Karma Tempo and Pempa Tshering(me)

Thangu,North-Sikkim

Gurudogmar Lake-Sikkim

2012-05-22T06:21:00.000+05:30

As one of my friend said Gurudogmar is the last place God has made.

View of Gangtok from Ganesh Tok

2012-02-24T19:58:00.000+05:30

Sandruptse

2012-02-17T20:12:00.002+05:30

Sandruptse

Sandruptse is 7km from Namchi town,Headquarter of south district of Sikkim and 72 km from Gangtok.Sandruptse means wish fulfilling hill in bhutia language.Sandruptse is famous for world highest statue of Guru Padmasambhava,Buddhist Patron saint of sikkim.

Bronze statue of Guru Padmasambhava is 135 ft tall and it can be seen from many places around Namchi.
The foundation stone was laid by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama on 22/10/1997.The total cost of bronze statue was Rs.4.55 crore.It took nearly three years to complete with 1000 labourers and many experienced engineers,architect and scupltures.Finally on 18th feb 2004,it was inaugurated by Pawan Kumar Chamling,the chief minister of Sikkim.

Satellite view of Sandruptse

Some other statue of Guru Padmasabhava:
Rewalsar lake,Himachal Pradesh,India

Phamlhagang Home Stay

2012-02-06T19:35:00.000+05:30

Phamlhagang Home Stay

Yet another beautiful homestay in west sikkim,India is Phamlhagang Homestay in village called Singyang,Pelling,West Sikkim.Place is beautiful,simple,neat and clean.Foods are served from family kitchen and vegetables are supplied from their family kitchen garden,purely organic.One can experience traditional way of life and village lifestyle.Location of this homestay is very near to Pelling and Pelling gives you panaromic view of Mt.Kanchendzonga,the third highest peak of world.Phamlhagang homestay is surrounded by many old monasteries of sikkim like Sangcholing monastery and Pemayantse monastery.Even the ruin 2nd capital of sikkim,Rabdentse is also 20 minutes from Pelling.
If one is interested in bird watching,forest of Pelling provide you ample opportunity to see many rare species of birds of Sikkim.
How to reach:Singyang,Pelling is 133km from Bagdogra,nearest airport and 127km N.J.P,nearest railway station.
Room range:$30-$50

For more information visit:Phamlhagang Home Stay

Sikkim Snow And Cultural Festival

2012-02-02T19:21:00.000+05:30

Tandong Hill

2012-01-29T19:58:00.002+05:30

Tandong hill is the highest hill top of sikkim,located at an altitude of 8530ft surrounded by lush green forest .Trekking to this hill top is possible from Damthang,south -sikkim.Every year many local people and people from nearby state trek to this hill in the month of april to enjoy the panaromic view of plains and mountain ranges.Historically, this has been a place of recluse for Buddhist Lamas who spend years in meditation amidst the silent scenic grandeur

Tandong in lepcha language means "the upraised horn ".As per the local legend,Tandong hill rescued the lepchas from the flood.Even now, the Hill is regarded as a benefactor and people pray to the hill every year on the 8th of august(tandong- lo -ram -fat) to keep them away from the calamity of flood always.

Trekking to this hill would be spiritual as well as adventurous experience.

kagyad Dance

2012-01-11T18:59:00.003+05:30

Kagyed or Kagyad is a Buddhist festival held in parts of northern India, particularly Sikkim. The Kagyed dance is performed on the 28th and 29th day of the 10th month of the Tibetan Calendar which usually falls in early December.

The Kagyed dance symbolizes destruction of the evil forces by burning effigies made of wood, flour, and paper. and dance enact a variety of themes from the buddhist mythology. Practitioners also pray for peace and prosperity for every Sikimmese home. Annually the festival is performed by the monks at the Tsuklakhang Palace,Phodong monastery and phensong monastery two days before Sikkimese new year.

Dzongu,Sikkim.

2012-01-10T18:59:00.000+05:30

Dzongu,Sikkim was listed in one of the 12th destination to see in India by Shivya Nath which appear in one the India's national newspaper "Hindu" on 30th dec.2011.Here is the extract of the article.

Why look elsewhere when you have plenty to see — and feel — in your backyard? Shivya Nath lists 12 destinations for which you don't need a passport

Dzongu, Sikkim

A secret paradise near Gangtok, Dzongu is home to dense jungles, hidden waterfalls, and beautifully virgin valleys. Surrounded by rugged Himalayan peaks on all sides, Dzongu's picturesque villages are home to the Lepchas people, who welcome visitors to stay with them in their humble homes and shower them with traditional mountain hospitality and food.

Despite its setting in the Himalayas, Dzongu is different from its northern counterparts in the tranquillity of its setting and the peaceful vibes of its scanty population. A taste of life in the North-east of India makes you realize what a truly diverse country we live in.

For full article read http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/travel/article2760807.ece

Sikkim Snow Fest 2012

2012-01-09T19:26:00.001+05:30