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Archive for the ‘States of East India’ Category

Language : Nepali, Sikkimese, Bhutia, Lepcha, Hindi, English

Best time to visit : October to March

STD Code : 03592

About The Place

Ensconced on a ridge flanking the Ranipool river, Gangtok at an altitude of 1870 m, is a destination that would lure anyone who has a taste for natural beauty and an inclination or interest in the Buddhist religion and culture. For it is a place that has beautiful monasteries, including the esteemed Rumtek – the head quarter of Kagyu order; vistas as breath taking as the awe-inspiring Khangchendzonga – the third highest mountain peak in the world. If you are flying to Bagdogra (nearest airport to Gangtok), opt for window seat on left for a glimpse of it.

But then, had it only been the monasteries and the natural beauty, Ladakh (another very popular Indian destination) would have easily stolen away a big chunk of tourists from Gangtok. So, there has to be something more to it. And that something is the glamour of this city and the easy accessibility. It’s a beautiful town with broad roads, flyovers, posh markets, fast food outlets, discotheques and all other modern amenities that one can ask for. Hotel ‘The Royal Plaza’ at Gangtok has India’s first land based live casino, and is the only place besides Goa to brag a casino in India. The tastefully lit and decorated and absolutely no traffic M.G Marg (street) is an ideal place to spend the evenings in the town.

Major Tourist Attractions In Gangtok

Himalayan Zoological Park : This Park exhibits a wide species of Himalayan fauna like the black beer, barking deer, snow leopard, civet cat, red pandas and the spotted deer.

Nathula : It is a mountain pass situated about 56 km from Gangtok at an altitude of about 14,200 ft and is covered with rich varieties of alpine flora and fauna. It is a calm place to visit and is open only for Indian Nationals.

Pemayangtse Monastery : It is one of the oldest monasteries in the state which was established by Lhatsun Chempo, the Lama who is said to have performed the consecration ceremony of the first Chogyal of Sikkim. This Monastery is located at the hill top and gives a wonderful view of the Himalayan ranges and the surrounding hills of the region.

Khecheopalri Lake : This Lake located at East Sikkim is considered to be one of the most sacred lakes in the city both for Hindus and Buddhists. This lake lies in the rich forest cover and is believed that the birds in the region never allow a single leaf to keep afloat on the water of the lake.

Menam Hill : This hill situated at an altitude of about 10300 ft gives a wonderful view of the scenic beauty of the Kanchenjunga Hills and its surrounding ranges. On a sunny day, one can even see the plains of Bengal spanning across Kalimpong and Darjeeling Hills in the South.

Ropeway : To capture the most stupendous scenes of the city, an easy way out here in Gangtok is to take a cable car ride that brings to your view Gangtok market, valley and assembly hall of state of Sikkim on its 15 to 20 minutes journey. There are 3 stop points on the journey. The lowest point is at Deorali market and the highest point is at Tashiling. There is a mid point stop at Nam-Nang. One can enter from any point and return to same point after touching other two points.

The Sundarbans is formed by an alluvial archipelago of 54 islands, made by the waters of Ganges, Brahmaputra and the Bay of Bengal. The Sundarban National Park got its name from the Sundari trees found here in abundance. Sundarbans’ also shares its boundaries with the Sajnekhali Bird Sanctuary.

Sundarbans National Park in India is one of the world’s largest deltas and the mangrove forest formed by the confluence of three rivers- the Ganga, the Brahmaputra and the Meghna- covering an area of 2,585 sq km wildlife sanctuary, which extends into Bangladesh too. The Sundarbans Wildlife Sanctuary, the world’s largest estuarine sanctuary is really worth a visit. With a series of densely forested islands and saline water channels, Sundarbans is home to 270 Royal Bengal Tigers along with the spotted deers, wild pigs, monkeys, herons, kingfishers and white-bellied eagles.

The most unique feature of the Sundarbans is the tigers in the park apt at swimming and are strictly amphibious! The Park is also famous for its conservation of the Ridley Sea Turtles. The other wild animals found in the Sundarbans National Park are estuarine terrapins, Olive Ridley turtles, estuarine crocodiles, Ganges dolphins, water monitors and a wide variety of birds, fish and crustaceans. One of the major tourist attractions is the Sajnekhali Visitors’ Centre, which has a crocodile enclosure, a shark pond, a turtle hatchery, and a Mangrove Interpretation Centre.

Sudarban National Park’s Wildlife

The Sundarbans forest houses Royal Bengal Tigers in plenty. At the Sundarbans you are elated to watch Chital Deer and Rhesus Monkey. The aqua fauna in the park include variety of fishes, red Fiddler Crabs and Hermit Crabs.

There are crocodiles, which can be often seen along the mud banks. Sundarbans national park is also noted for its conservation of the Ridley Sea Turtle. There’s is a incredible variety of reptiles also found in Sundarbans, which includes King Cobra, Rock Python and Water Monitor. The endangered river Terrapin, Batagur Baska is found on the Mechua Beach, while the Barkind Deer is found only in Holiday Island in Sundarbans.

Story Behind The Yatra

There is a mythological story famous about the Jagannath Puri Rath yarta. Once in Dwarka, queens of lord Krishna asked Mata Rohini to tell them something about Krishna’s Brij lila, Gopi and their affairs.

Mother tried avoiding at first, but on excessive request of queens, she told them. Then, Subhadra was asked to stand at the gates to house and not to let anyone come inside. Coincidentally, lord Krishna and Balram came there. Subhadra followed the orders of Rohini and did not let them go in.

Standing on the doors, all the three of them heard the narration of Brij love affairs. Dev Rish Narad also heard this and requested lord to reside here in the same love form. Lord agreed to the wish of Narad. The temple here has the idols of lord Jagannath, Balram and Subhadra.

These idols don’t have legs, they have shoulders but no hands. And, the idols are made of wood. They are replaced in every 12 years. This Rath Yatra is carried on from the 12th century. This yatra is carried up to the Gundicha temple. On the way, lord is offered Khichdi in the Mausima temple.

How the Festival is Celebrated

The festival begins with the Ratha Prathistha or invoking ceremony in the morning, but the Ratha Tana or chariot pulling is the most exciting part of the festival, which begins in the late afternoon when the chariots of Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhdra start rolling. Each of these carriages have different specifications: The chariot of Lord Jagannath is called Nandighosa, has 18 wheels and is 23 cubits high; the chariot of Balabhadra, called Taladhvaja has 16 wheels and is 22 cubits high; Devadalana, the chariot of Subhadra has 14 wheels and is 21 cubits high.

Each year these wooden chariots are constructed anew in accordance with religious specifications. The idols of these three deities are also made of wood and they are religiously replaced by new ones every after 12 years. After a nine-day sojourn of the deities at the country temple amidst festivities, the divine summer vacation gets over and the three return to the city temple of Lord Jagannath.

Avani Riverside Mall is the crowning glory of Howrah’s changing skyline. Visible from miles away, it beckons all those who are looking to experience the next level of shopping, eating out and entertainment.

It is an architectural wonder spread over a massive 600,000 square feet area, designed to inspire awe and generate admiration. Showing off the most modern facilities as well as a world of amenities, Avani Riverside Mall is as world class as it can get.

Little wonder some of the world’s most desired brands have opened their stores here, and many more are making plans for a grand entry.

Avani Riverside Mall is already being called ‘The mall of many firsts’. To start, it is the first mega mall to be built in Howrah, which speaks volume for Avani Group’s pioneering spirit. And to strengthen this reputation, it has given eastern India its first multi screen PVR, promising a blockbuster movie experience like never before.

But it’s not only the ‘firsts’ that are so attractive about Avani Riverside Mall. For example, Reliance has come with a bang with its CDIT and Timeout stores, along with Reliance Trends. Showcasing everything from consumer durables to books and DVDs. And if one has a taste for slightly unconventional things, the mall is dotted with kiosks offering a variety of avant-garde and fun products exciting and quirky in every sense.

And after a whole day of shopping, one can look forward to a delicious treat that awaits him or her in the biggest food court in the region. Serving everything from Mexican, Italian and Indian to American and Chinese, it’s a mouthwatering feast for everybody.

The majestic Birla Mandir, which towers to a height of 160 feet at the junction of Ashutosh Chowdhury Avenue is a marvel of India’s indigenous craftsmanship. Spread over a 44 kathas of land, the temple which is built of white marble, is of stupendous dimensions.
This majestic temple has been designed on the pattern of the famous Lingaraj Temple of Bhubaneswar.

According to reliable sources, work on this colossal temple began way back in the 1970’s and it took all of 26 years of painstaking labor to complete this temple. A visit to this temple will reveal the intricate Rajasthani temple architecture, which is predominant. The manner in which the layering and decoration of the temple facades have been done is a pointer to the high degree of skill involved during the construction process.

Not only is the Mandir an architectural marvel in Kolkata’s landscape, this temple has experimented with innovative ideas to add luster. For instance, episodes from from the sacred Hindu scripture – Bhagavad Gita has been pictorially depicted through stone engravings which means that the eternal message of the Gita is lapped up by visitors without much difficulty.

Major Attraction Of Birla Mandir,Kolkata


The highest tower in the temple reaches a height of 165 feet while the ancillary towers reach 116 feet. The Geeta Bhavan, a hall is adorned with beautiful paintings depicting scenes from Indian mythology. There is also a temple dedicated to Buddha in this complex with fresco paintings describing his life and work. The entire complex, especially the walls and the upper gallery are full of paintings carried out by artists from Jaipur in Rajasthan. The rear of the temple has been developed as an artificial mountainous landscape with fountains and waterfalls.

Built in 1026 A.D. during the reign of King Bhimdev I of the Solanki dynasty, the Sun temple is dedicated to the Sun God. This temple, though ravaged by Mehmud of Gazni, still retains enough of it’s original structure to convey the grandeur of its conception and the superb artistry of execution. Every inch of the edifice, both outside and inside is carved magnificently with motifs of gods and goddesses, birds, beasts and flowers. Modhera is now the site of several dance and cultural festivals. The sun temple and the ambiance here provide a majestic backdrop for the exhibition of performing arts.

Konarak was sacked by the Muslim Yavana army in the 15th century. The central statue enshrined in the temple was smuggled away to Puri by priests, but the Sun Temple was badly damaged in the attack.

Nature took over the destruction from there. Over the centuries, the sea receded, sand engulfed the building and salty breezes eroded the stone. It remained buried under a huge mound of sand until the early 20th century, when restoration began under the British.

British archaeologists uncovered the lower parts of the temple that had remained well preserved beneath the sand and restored what they could of the rest of the ruins. Trees were planted to shelter the temple from the damaging winds and a museum was opened to display whatever sculpture wasn’t left in situ or sent to Delhi, Calcutta and London.

Interesting Places To See

The Konark Sun Temple takes the form of a huge chariot for the sun god Surya, with 12 pairs of stone-carved wheels and a team of seven galloping horses (only one of which survives intact).

The temple also symbolizes the passage of time, which is under the sun god’s control. The seven horses, which pull the sun temple eastwards towards the dawn, represent the days of the week. The 12 pairs of wheels represent the 12 months of the year and the eight spokes in each wheel symbolize the eight ideal stages of a woman’s day.

The main entrance to the complex is on the eastern (sea-facing) side, in front of the Hall of Offerings (bhogamandapa). This was a later addition to the complex and was likely used for ritual dance performances, as its walls are carved with sculptures of musicians and dancers as well as erotic scenes.

The sanctuary tower was once the centerpiece of the Konark Sun Temple, but today it is no more than a jumble of sandstone slabs off the western wing. The imposing structure with the pyramidal roof that now takes center stage is actually the porch (jagamohana).

The roof of the porch has three tiers covered in statues, mostly musicians and dancers sereneding the sun god during his daily passage through the heavens. Sculptures on the bottom platform include a Shiva Nataraja, performing the cosmic dance. The interior is now blocked up.

Just beyond the porch is a double staircase that leads to a shrine containing a statue of Surya, the sun god. The beautiful image is carved of high-quality green chlorite stone and is one of the masterpieces of Konarak. Surya wears tall riding boots and is accompanied by a small figure of Aruna, the charioteer, at his feet. From here you can climb down into the remains of the inner sanctum, where the deity was originally enshrined.

One of the most pristine beaches of Orissa, this small beach is a splendid retreat for sea worshippers, located about 16-km from Berhampur. Once a humming seaport, Gopalpur offers its visitors a slice of serenity in environs that are conducive to introspection and conviviality.

One can still see the crumbling walls and pillars of the jetty, witness to its past glory of commercial activity. The pleasures of the Blue Beach and the Blue Bay of her backwaters continue to lure the water babies. Gopalpur-on-Sea is a surfer’s delight and excellent for sailing.

Discovery of a Holiday Hideout

Originally, a small fishing village on the coast of Orissa, it was so named when a temple dedicated to Lord Krishna was constructed some time in the 18th century. Apart from its temple, Gopalpur was distinguished for its magnificent beach and was discovered as a perfect winter resort.

The East India Company built huge warehouses and godowns because the trade with Burma had picked up and Gopalpur had become a trading point for rice from Rangoon. In those days, there were dances and parties that continued until the early hours and wealthy Bengalis from Calcutta made it their holiday home.

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