Friday 15th November

Ok I just woke up and had a fairly hot shower which was great, Dinku is hibernating (it's cold) and Piyush is snoring like some kind of rhino. It's almost 8am.

I'll try to keep this brief as I need to wake these guys up soon, but to continue the blog….

Plans didn't work out. Everything is just on somebodies word here, nothing is confirmed until you actually have it.

So our first man who was going to drive us couldn't get a car, and our second option couldn't get the car fixed, and our third option was trying to rip us off. So our forth option was to get a bus, which this time is basically an old minivan packed with people which leaves when it's full. We'd just missed the last one so were early for the next one and piyush made sure we got the seats behind the driver (better to see out or get out and less bumpy than the back seats), but as I'm learning everyday here that you need to fight for everything regardless of if you have paid for it. Other people took our seats and the arguments ensued, but as always Piyush and Dinku didn't put up with any of it and before we left we were sitting in our front seats.

We left Guwahati around 11:00 and got to Tezpur around 17:00. The road was dusty as hell and I was still suffering from a sore throat and blocked nose, so it didn't help.

When we got there we intended to get a car/driver, but as it was getting late and dark prices were not in our favour, plus they saw a white guy which always puts the price up (cos the colour me skin innit). So we refused 18000Rs for a car/driver for 5 days which was way over the price, and intended to get the sumo (jeep type bus) the next day at 5am and gets to Tawang at 8pm, but it turned out the bus leaves at 11am and gets to Tawang the next morning at 5am or something like that. Eventually we got a car/driver (Mukhtar Ali) for 16500Rs for 5 days, and decided to get some distance cover that evening to Bomdila which took about 5-6 hours.

The roads are what slows everything down out here in the remote areas, as they are mostly just dirt tracks and rough terrain you need to go much slower over. The roads are really bumpy and some parts look like a warzone (200Kms can take over 6 hours).

We drove through a lot of little villages and communities out into the remote areas. Eventually we got to the border of Assam called Balukpong (the state Guwahati and Tezpur are in) and Arunachal Pradesh, the state above (between Bhutan and Tibet/China) where Bomdila and Tawang are.

Going out with my permit (the one we got in Delhi) and passport up to these guys with guns I thought we'd be fine and we'd be on our way quickly, but these guys looked confused and weren't really sure what to do. Eventually I went inside with this dude and he wanted to know why I was here and some other things which was fine, but then things got lost in translation and fortunately Piyush came in and helped things along. A while passed, this guy read my permit thoroughly (like he had never seen one before) and Piyush went across the border to get some photocopies (had to find and wake up the shop owner for this). In the meantime I went outside and sat with the initially confused and armed dudes from earlier.

Of course these dudes were staring at me, and talking between themselves….all very uneasy. Then one guy swings his machine gun and strap off over his neck, sits down next to me, and says "my brother has lived in England for 8 years, he likes it very much". The next 15 minutes was basic very broken English banter and joking between me and these guys, which was really funny and made me feel much less concerned. Piyush came back and eventually we got it sorted. He (in usual Piyush style) said he also bought a small bottle of whiskey and that we'd collect it once we crossed the border, which we did. Tried having a drink in the back of the car….spilt most of it because of the bumpy roads.

A long drive on and we made it and stayed at Bomdila that night.

Next day we left at around 6:30 and eventually drove on over Sela Pass with is around 13300ft high in the Himalaya Mountains with settled snow….Sela Pass is the second highest motorable road in the world. At this height we were warned we might feel a bit off, and when I got out I did get a bit of a head rush for a while. Also at this height a crisp packet we had in the car burst open because of the pressure, which the driver said happens all the time when he drives out to Tawang.

The road was became more terrible, very bumpy, dusty, and climbing up and down the mountain side. Most of this road has to be done at under 30kmph. Tawang was really nice, and so was the long drive though not easy, but very scenic.

I've never been to a place like this, which is a very simple way of life. Generally very limited electricity which comes and goes, and people living very simple but difficult lives. In the winter it's common for these people to store a few hundred kg bags of rice because it snows and Sela Pass becomes blocked off (the only way in our or out by road).

Along the way there are a lot of army bases and troops patrolling around in big trucks. In the 1960's India and China had a war when China was pushing through Tibet and into India, and still now the Indian army are there in big numbers (as with most Indian borders) in case anything kicks off. The is still conflict between India and China over the entire state Arunachal as China believe it's theirs, and for example recently some local people from Arunachal went to cross the border to China (2 hours from Tawang) and instead of getting their passports stamped actually were given a permit stating they were already Chinese citizens and didn't need a visa……the Indian government were pissed.

When the Dali Lama escaped Tibet from the invading Chinese, he cross the mountain range on foot and eventually got to Tawang. People believe this is the oldest route that spread Buddhism to the rest of the world.

It is certainly the most remote place I have ever been to, and although I hate to say it about any place I got to, I do think I will never go there again simply because the road is too long and difficult. There is also no safe way to get there, with the helicopters struggling with the turbulence and the roads prone to landslides (which were easily visible along the way).

That afternoon/evening we walked around and took in the views of mountains around us and the local way of life.

Looking for a place to stay that night went like this….

- Dinku went in the first place to have a look and get a price.

- Piyush and I in the meantime went to a second place and got offered 750Rs for use of the family western toilet (with seat missing), electricity for a few hours (via big batteries and an inverter) and could just heat a bucket of hot water.

- Dinku didn't have a good place as it was not clean.

- The third place was fine but just two single beds for 1300Rs and wanted 1600Rs to put another mattress on the floor. We left this because they wouldn't agree to put the mattress in and keep the 1300Rs price.

- The fourth place was great and even had a second attached room where we could store the snoring Piyush (we all snore, but he's unexplainably loud). This place was 1200Rs.

- Then the third place told the driver to come and tell us that now yes they would do the extra mattress and keep the 1300Rs price…..but too they were too late.

- Dinku then went down and got it knocked down to 1000Rs for the fourth (and best) place.

We went around seeing Tawang the next day, including the largest Buddhist Monastery in India which was very impressive, as was their museum. It's a 17th century monastery and one of the most important for the Tibetans, built by the 6th Dalai Lama who was born in Tawang.

9:10…got to go.