Exploring My Beautiful India: The beginning.

Our trip started from NJP Railway Station, we were heading to Darjeeling via Mirik. The route was alluring. The way between the moutains, fluffy clouds, breathtaking. The experience was divine. Once we reached the Mirik Lake, which is also called Sumendu Lake, has a gorgeous long arch footbridge were we took some time to relish the beauty of the place. Early morning fog, the breezy wind, the calmness of water, very soothing. The Lake is surrounded with pine trees, moutains and tea gardens. We took a tour to the tea gardens. Close to the lake, there are lot of restaurants and cafes where we had our breakfast.
Now was the time to visit Pashupathy Market at Nepal. ( We had to change our vehicle as we had to use Nepal Vehicle, the charges including the return were Rs.400 approximately for 4 seaters).
We spent our evenings walking around the Mall Area where we saw local handicrafts, tea shops and so much more the markets take you back in the times of British Era.

The most amazing start of day 2 happened by witnessing the sunrise over Mt. Kangchenjunga from Tiger Hills (8364 ft/ 2550 Mts). For reaching Tiger Hills we started around 4am in the morning. The view from top felt like we are in lap of mother nature. We experienced the true state of bliss. That's how we started our Day 2. On our way back we visited Yiga Choeling  Monastery, the surroundings of this place has a captivating positive aura. After our breakfast we visited Peace Pagoda (this is a must visit place, it has breathtaking view of the mountains in the midst of the peaceful surrounding). The most beautiful part of this place is the prayer hall, the chants along with the drums made our experience so serene.  Our next stop was Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park & Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (CLOSED ON THURSDAY) In India, this is the largest high altitude zoo. As you enter through the main gate, you can  see a  souvenir shop on left side. This zoo has received the prestigious International award "The Earth Heroes". You can see Himalayan animals like Tibetan wolf, Red Panda, Yaks, Snow Leopard, Black Bear and so on.  As you walk along, you can visit the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute. HMI was built as a tribute to Tenzing so that he could pass on his skills to all those who practiced climbing activities in Himalayas. It has residential school for students, museum with mountaineering artifacts, expedition displays, has a tea parlor and a souvenir shop. 
Last location for day 2 was Tibetan Refugee Self-Help  Center (CLOSED ON SUNDAY). As the name suggest the refugees have adopted the principle of self help so they can become self independent and can live in a foreign country. Production of handcrafted items is the main activity of this center. There is an outlet located in the premises if you wish to buy some items. As you enter you will notice there are sections one for Tailoring and Leather Works, Knitting and Painting Sections, Wood Carving, Carpentry and other such sections. There is also a Photographic Exhibition Hall, where you can see pictures of old group of Tibetan refugees.

This day we bid adieu to Darjeeling and started our drive towards Gangtok. We reached at our stay at Valley Vista Resort (a special mention as the view from the room was spectacular, it was surreal. It was dreamy, it almost felt like we are living in a castle of clouds.)
On Day 3, we visited  Do-Drul- Chorten (it's a stupa) it has a golden dome which is seen from various places in Gangtok, It is an important stupas of Sikkim. Around this place, you will get to see a sight of monks filling up lamps, there are spinning prayer wheels. Nearby to this stupa, is located the Institute of Tibetology. Followed by Gangtok Ropeway, Flower Exhibition Centre-  It is a small garden where you have to pay Rs.20 per person. The walk through colours of nature is beautiful, the garden also has a waterfall on the top. Talking of waterfall, we also saw Bansjhakri Falls, the sound of water is absorbing. There are a lot of adventure activities here, enroute is paragliding which will almost consume all of your day.  We spent rest of the evening strolling around M G Marg , the street has lots of shops and have cool bakeries.

Our fourth day was all about snow. We were very excited as we were  going to experience snow for the very first time in our lives. It was freezing cold. Our trip today was at Tsomgo Lake also called as Changu lake. Words will fall short to explain how much we are in awe of this place. As it is a glacial lake, the lake was frozen. It falls in the restricted area and thus requires permit to visit the place. Foreign nationals require special permits to visit the lake. This is also a must visit spot, there is a ropeway to go to the top, also you can have a yak ride for a fee. Snow covered mountains, mesmerizing view. We spent a lot of time in snow, made a snowman, enjoyed the snow to fullest. Moving ahead, is Baba Harbhajan Singh Memorial Mandir, it is believed that he protects every solider in the inhospitable high-altitude terrains of Himalayas. Nathu la is one of the highest motorable roads in the world.This is a mountain pass which connects Sikkim and China. YOU NEED A VALID PERMIT TO VISIT NATHULA PASS.

Last day in this beautiful state, By this day we were fallen in love with Sikkim. On the last leg of our journey we started the day early and took leisurely drive stopping over at Hanuman Tok, Ganesh Tok, Tashi View Point. This trip has given us unforgettable memories, this trip is very close to our hearts as it brought our hearts closer and ignited the spark to break free and live our passions. Stay tuned for many such travel blogs as it was just the beginning.