Monday, December 17, 2007

The charms of Khasi hills

I am currently in Mairang, 46km away towards west of Shillong. I am
off the highway for a change and enjoying this every bit.

The hills here are unlike Shillong, going up and down. This suits me
much better than continuous climbs. I am mostly passing through pine
forests and paddy fields.

Talking with people is very difficult. I don't understand a word of
the Khasi language other than 'kublai' - meaning thanks. The setting
here is rural, and in many villages the biggest building is actually a
church. People here are somwhat shy and prefer keeping to themselves.
Not having a common language is obviously a hurdle. The folk seem
simple here. Houses are made of anything from wood to cement. Some
have bamboo fences.

food is turning out to be a major problem - with most khasi food being
non-veg. Fortunately for me, chowmein has turned out to be a life
saver here...

My chain broke once, but I fixed it quickly. I am beginning to like
the fact that I am the mechanic now :-)

I am moving towards Nonstoing today.

--
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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

not surprising.. some how I have the feeling that while the highways do speed you up (even Indian ones) they tend to instill a mask around the countryside that surrounds it.. you tend to focus more on the road than around it.out of it one is able to get closer to the surroundings, I remember clearly the 3 days it took us to go from Jiribum to Imphal and how much contact we were to the surroundings (not to mention the many climbs)

Bala Bellary said...

Shree, I have been following your ride...but not leaving comments, (Gautham...ru reading ;-) Curious as to why your chain broke ? Cheers, Bala.

Gauthaman said...

@Shree: We are quite nervous after hearing that your chain is breaking to often...I do not know what makes it go off.

@bala: Yes, I read Shree's blog instead of newspaper every morning.