I’ve recently gotten back from a trip to NE India with the company Holiday Scout and have so much amazing stuff to share with you guys. It was an 11 day trip and in some time, I’ll be sharing a review about the company but first I’m going to share a few posts about the area up there and what we saw and got to do.
NE India is a really interested area of the country that isn’t frequented by tourists often. Check out the link there to read about this unique section of the country that’s often forgotten about when planning a trip to India. Our trip focused on two states Arunachal Pradesh and Assam.
baby goat lovin’ time!
amazing views during the drive
We started off in Guwahati, Assam “the gateway to NE India” which is where you’ll probably fly into. We got in late and drove a little bit to stay at Brahmaputra, an adorable jungle resort near the lake which would be the start of our trip. It had amazing chicken malai tikka and had so many activities like zorbing so would be a good place for families to stay. The rooms had amazing views. It rained on and off through the night which was loud on the tin roofs but actually sounded really nice and relaxing.
views from the room and the room’s balcony
There are other places to stay near Guwahati, it’s better to stay a bit outside of town so that the next day when you head north, you’re already on your way there! Nearby is an area called Nameri Tiger Reserve, which was our intro to Assam, and the Juberali Resort is another great place to stay.
When we walked in I saw a cow, which as you may know, I LOVE. But it turns out, I actually have way more of a thing for goats, baby goats in particular. I saw this little itty bitty black goat running around and said to Sange, our tour leader, “can I pick up a goat or will the mom get mad at me?”
He said it’s totally fine and I picked that little nugget up and cuddled it for a few minutes before it did a serious goat scream that was a bit shocking so I put him down. It set the mood for the trip, which was “goat love” where I would pick up any and all baby goats that I could. By the end, baby goats were running to me when I would squat down and say “come here!!”. They are basically puppies.
His feet are kind of blocking his face in these photos, but not to worry over the next month many articles about NE India will be on the blog and there will be no shortage of goat photos. Your welcome.
Before we left Assam to start our journey North, we stopped for lunch at Jia Bhorelli and for a surprise show from locals and we had an Assamese Thali which was a first for me. MMM I loved the fried eggplant, the local greens, chicken curry, cauliflower, and fish. The rice is kind of like Goan rice when it’s unpolished. The fish are actually caught in the paddy fields when they fill up with water. They put small fish in, and let them grow until they can eat them.
The dance the locals did is called Bihu which is the Assam state dance which many tribes in Assam will all partake in collectively. I cannot see a dance in India without the lovely women pulling me up to dance. You can’t really say no can you? But it makes me so nervous. I always turn BRIGHT RED and just awkwardly laugh. I enjoy it much more watching ;) But it gives everyone a laugh so I don’t mind. They were amazing and even though we were a small audience, gave it their all and laughed and really seemed to be enjoying sharing their culture with us.
so serious in photos, so smiley when no camera was up :)
It was time to temporarily leave Assam toward our next destination, Bomdila, in Arunachal Pradesh. We would have to pass through Tezpur and cross over the state lines, where suddenly the roads got very bumpy!
There are approved tourists routes once you are approved for a permit in Arunachal Pradesh. You have to stay on the track. This track leads to the “Tibetan” area of Arunachal Pradesh, of which Bomdila and Tawang are the hotspots. The drive from Guwahati to Bomdila is about 7 hours.
I can’t wait to share more about this trip. It’s my new favorite area of India. Up next: Bomdila!
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I was just looking at the pics and start imagining how wonderful the trip would be in such places. The food was so yummy :P
Good post.
Wow! I also want to go such places alone. I think it is more fun sometimes to explore world alone. It gives you high feeling. Feel free, Meet new people, Explore world! What else a traveler requires? Loved your post and got so much inspired. Thank you for sharing these awesome moments with us :)
Thanks for sharing your experience of beautiful Assam. It is really pleasant destination of northeast India. It’s been my dream to visit Assam once, especially I want to go for wildlife safari at Kaziranga national park, sip fresh tea at the tea gardens and enjoy sight of Bihu dance in traditional wear.