Sikkim is an area sandwiched between Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan, that became a part of India in the 1970's. As such, it feels a million miles away from, well, India, and the contrast between Siligiri and Gangtok (a 4-8 hour drive, depending on who is driving it seems) is huge. It would be even bigger if HALF OF INDIA wasn't in Gangtok on holiday, ostensibly to avoid the heat of the pre-monsoon period.
I meant i spent 2 hours trying to find somewhere to stay, eventually settling for the most expensive room i had on my whole trip. £10 for a pretty rubbish room. I did manage to snag a spot at the cheap backpackers place for the rest of time though.
(the newly redesigned main street feels a lot like a European one)
Not much to really do or see in the town itself - a few small parks and a Tibetan museum, but the main attractions are all harder to get to. Given the nature of Sikkim's geographical location ( i.e next to China), it is hard for foreign tourists to get around. For the most popular places, it just requires getting an extra permit, but many places are totally off-limits to non-Indians.
Not only is there not much to see in Gangtok, but the weather has been terrible- cloudy and rainy, so i went to watch Men in Black 3 to help pass the time. 40p for a ticket was a bargain, and it made up for the mediocre film and shoddy cinema (half of the film was out of focus), although the wooden chairs and rats certainly led it a certain charm. The cinema was also next to a huge farmers market, and i bought some broccoli, mainly as i haven't seen it on a menu in India at all. It was very tasty, amazingly cheap, and helped some poor local as well.
(not the most comfortable seats, but CHEAP!)
There was also a zoo - after Japan and their horrible concrete boxes for animals (well, Oji-koen zoo anyway, i couldn't face visiting any more) i was rather hesitant to visit one in India, but after the positive reviews from fellow travellers, i gave it a visit. And while being suitably Indian and run down, the animals had space, and greenery and didn't seem to be suffering too much. And i finally got to see red pandas and a snow leopard! Amazing animals.
(feeding time for a baby red panda)
(roar!)
(snow leopard)
The trumpets and cups made from human bones at the Tibetan museum were very interesting, and suitably creepy! Lots of nice art and artefacts from Tibet, and India's treatment of the Tibetans it has harboured since the Chinese invasion of Tibet in the 1950's is commendable.
While i was in Gangok, i was persuaded to take a trip up to the north of Sikkim - primarily as it promised to be quieter. I am glad i went, but it wasn't really worth the money, as it was very similar to Nepal, in terms of scenery and culture. It also involved A LOT of time sitting in a jeep. We saw many waterfalls, some of them were huge, and i did get to see Mt. Kangchenjunga, the world's 3rd tallest mountains, meaning that i have seen 5 of the tallest 6 now! Only K2 in Pakistan to go. There was also a hot spring, which was a very nice way to spend some non-jeep time!
I spent another day in Gangtok on my return, and went off to see some of the local monetary. The most famous being Rumtek, home of the black hat sect of Buddhism. The music the monks were plays was fantastic, and the complex was very nice, but far too many Indian tourists who were clearly underwhelmed by it - Buddhist temples are certainly more civil places than Hindu ones.
I meant i spent 2 hours trying to find somewhere to stay, eventually settling for the most expensive room i had on my whole trip. £10 for a pretty rubbish room. I did manage to snag a spot at the cheap backpackers place for the rest of time though.
(the newly redesigned main street feels a lot like a European one)
Not much to really do or see in the town itself - a few small parks and a Tibetan museum, but the main attractions are all harder to get to. Given the nature of Sikkim's geographical location ( i.e next to China), it is hard for foreign tourists to get around. For the most popular places, it just requires getting an extra permit, but many places are totally off-limits to non-Indians.
Not only is there not much to see in Gangtok, but the weather has been terrible- cloudy and rainy, so i went to watch Men in Black 3 to help pass the time. 40p for a ticket was a bargain, and it made up for the mediocre film and shoddy cinema (half of the film was out of focus), although the wooden chairs and rats certainly led it a certain charm. The cinema was also next to a huge farmers market, and i bought some broccoli, mainly as i haven't seen it on a menu in India at all. It was very tasty, amazingly cheap, and helped some poor local as well.
(not the most comfortable seats, but CHEAP!)
There was also a zoo - after Japan and their horrible concrete boxes for animals (well, Oji-koen zoo anyway, i couldn't face visiting any more) i was rather hesitant to visit one in India, but after the positive reviews from fellow travellers, i gave it a visit. And while being suitably Indian and run down, the animals had space, and greenery and didn't seem to be suffering too much. And i finally got to see red pandas and a snow leopard! Amazing animals.
(feeding time for a baby red panda)
(roar!)
(snow leopard)
The trumpets and cups made from human bones at the Tibetan museum were very interesting, and suitably creepy! Lots of nice art and artefacts from Tibet, and India's treatment of the Tibetans it has harboured since the Chinese invasion of Tibet in the 1950's is commendable.
While i was in Gangok, i was persuaded to take a trip up to the north of Sikkim - primarily as it promised to be quieter. I am glad i went, but it wasn't really worth the money, as it was very similar to Nepal, in terms of scenery and culture. It also involved A LOT of time sitting in a jeep. We saw many waterfalls, some of them were huge, and i did get to see Mt. Kangchenjunga, the world's 3rd tallest mountains, meaning that i have seen 5 of the tallest 6 now! Only K2 in Pakistan to go. There was also a hot spring, which was a very nice way to spend some non-jeep time!
I spent another day in Gangtok on my return, and went off to see some of the local monetary. The most famous being Rumtek, home of the black hat sect of Buddhism. The music the monks were plays was fantastic, and the complex was very nice, but far too many Indian tourists who were clearly underwhelmed by it - Buddhist temples are certainly more civil places than Hindu ones.
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