Shillong is the capital of Meghalaya. On 29th august we boarded Kanchanjangha train at 12 noon. Train was late by 2 hrs. Train journey was uneventful. A Indian resident foreigner shared the coach with us. I tried to bribe the T.T to place his seat elsewhere. It was not fruitful. Train arrived at Gwahati station at 6 o' clock. Swapan Das was waiting for us at the station. We boarded a Indica and set off for Shillong which was three hours journey. The roads are plane not and not steep as anticipated. Roads are not as picturesque as we thought. Hotel Polo Towers was 4 starred hotel with all facilities. Swapan Das arranged a car for site seeing
Then after the break fast we left for local site seeing. At first we went to the Elephant falls. It was very good. Previously there was a rock which resembled elephant. That's why it was named Elephant Falls. At present the rock is missing---it has been destroyed in earth quake. It has two parts. First Falls and Main Falls.
Lady Hyadri park: Small park with lot of flowers and a few animals. Different types of owls are interesting. There are a few swings, sea-saw, and slips for children to justify its name of park.
Cathedral Church: The church is as usual calm and quiet and awe- inspiring.
WARD LAKE:---A beautiful lake with a wooden bridge in the middle. This place attracts lot of tourists. There are facilities for boating. One can see lots of fishes in the water. Lots of lotus can be found in the sides of lake.
The Golf Course:- The golf course is surrounded by pine trees. One can see boys and girls playing football and cricket. People would prefer to spend their afternoon here.
Rabindranath Tagore: It was favourite spot of Rabintranah Tagore.
Only two stones are found depicting the fact Rabindranath Tagore once lived here and wrote a few poems
The Cherrapunjee (SOHRA):--iT IS SAID TO BE THE WETTEST PLACE ON EARTH. Average waterfall being 12000cm per annum. It is a must-see for all tourists. During the rainy seasons it provides awesome picture. The road to Cherrapunjee from Shillong is downhill. On the way one can see the hills covered with pine and other trees. At places the hills are covered by clouds, mists and fog with no visibility at all. There are frequent showers. So umbrellas and raincoats are always necessary. There are few places to see in Cherrapunjee----
1) MAWKDOK VALLEY -- with fogs and mist behind
Same place with clear back ground
2) Nohkalikai Fall:- Beautiful group of falls.
3) Ramkrishna mission:- The temple is good. There are lot of pictures. There is a museum. Staffs are very cooperative. They will help you to see all around.
4) MAWSMAI CAVE:- this cave has lighting system for going inside.
5) SEVEN SISTER FALLS:- a group of falls falling from a lot of height is a feast to the eyes.
6) ECO PARK:-- massive waterfalls and green range of hills with cloud cover are simply awesome.
Jaintia hills tour:--It is about 65 kms from shillong and is not a hot tourist spot. Roads to the Jaintia Hills are accompanied by green hiils on either side. There is a Durga temple which is said to be 700 years old. Ramkrishna mission reconstructed it. The idol of Goddess looked different.
There is a lake called Third Lasklang lake. There seem to be boating arrangement. It is quiet and beautiful.
Nartiang is a rock garden. many natural stones in the form of pillar are present.
