North East Road Trip - 5: Siyom - Siang sangam, Mechuka

Day 25, Jan 20.  

Yesterday, at Pasighat, we checked into a homestay run by a Kham Tibetan couple.  It's clear that they take their role as hosts seriously.  They received us ceremoniously, and they courteously sit and talk with us when we are having tea and meals.  This morning, after a nice breakfast and a ceremonial send off with white scarves, we set out for Aalo.  And sure enough, after 3 hours, the thing that we had been expecting for days, but not on this route, happened. We were faced with a road closure and the prospect of having to wait for two and a half hours!

 

We  must have looked really crestfallen, because a passenger in another vehicle suggested that we pass time by going to a nearby bridge and looking at the view. It turned out to be excellent advice, because from the bridge we found a path leading very close to the point where the dark green Siyom river merges with the light green Siang. What a beautiful sight! We happily passed one hour sitting perched on rocks above the water.

At the riverside we could hear loud Bollywood music playing and much dancing and merriment. A young woman called out to us to come. Turned out to be a mixed group of younger and older women. As far as I could tell they were Tibetans celebrating the start of Losar, their new year. Kannan was startled when the one who called out said that they would dance for us if we paid some money. He hastily refused, and they didn't take offence. Obviously quite a bit of liquor had already flowed. The bold one, somewhat bleary eyed, shook my hand gravely and wished me happy new year.  As we moved away, another one called out to us to stay and have food with them. The only man seemed to be a young guy who was handling the loudspeaker and music, and who looked slightly embarassed at the boldness of the young women.

We resumed our journey and reached Rakken Homestay near Aalo while it was still light and enjoyed some green tea with our host couple on a sun filled terrace. After it got dark the hosts lit a roaring fire in the kitchen cum dining room. The host and his wife, their 5 year old daughter and a neighbour all sat around the fire  with us and chatted in a relaxed manner. We found out that they are mostly self sufficient in the vegetables and grain they consume, the fish they catch from their own tank, and even in the rice beer they brew. We shared some rice beer with them and I found that it had a pleasant taste, like fruit wine. 

A traditional house opposite Rakken homestay 

Day 26, Jan 21.  

Today's road was the worst we have encountered on this trip.  Kannan was so determined to get past the road closure points before we found our way blocked that he got up at 4 am.  I too reluctantly got up at 4.30, and we were on our way at 5.30, before sunrise. 

We did get through the road closures, but the less said about the road the better.  The devastation wrought by the hill cutting is  enormous.  I think it will take at least 5 years to finish the road to Mechuka.   But from the impression I get from the homestay hosts at least, they are all excited about the "development" that is seeping into Arunachal, and are quite philosophical about the accompanying chaos.

The journey that Google maps said would take us 3 hours and 36 minutes took us 7 hours and 45 minutes, including a half hour wayside stop. The bad road ended exactly at the doorstep of Mechuka. Unlike the other small towns we have passed through, which mostly have terrible roads, Mechuka's streets are neatly white topped. The Arunachal government is doing a lot to promote tourism here. I can see why.  After the narrow valleys and hills covered with jungles, the river here, known as Yargap Chu, opens out into a broad valley, with  light coloured rounded hills and tall snow peaks all around.  Very picturesque.  We reached Zenyor Homestay around 1.15.

I have never felt so cold anywhere as I have here. The temperature inside our room is 7 degrees.  Luckily, they keep a roaring fire blazing in the central room where the family and guests gather. It is not just the problem of network and connectivity they have here. Power has come for only an hour since we arrived. And that is true all the time except for the summer. A hot bath eluded us.

Although the sky was overcast and the weather blustery when we  got here, we had a good walk from 2 to 4 pm up the hill near the house from where we got a great view of the town, the valley and the mountains. The top of the hill was dotted with small army bunkers, obviously used once to keep an eye on Chinese intruders.  But they are not in operational use any more, and are only used, our host tells us, for army practice. A somewhat eerie sight. 

Day 27, Jan 22.  

We finally got the trek that Kannan has been  yearning for. Went up a broad hill that faces the town and which even has the word "Menchukha" emblazoned across the top in bold letters. Our host was kind enough to take us to the starting point in his car and to pick us up at the end. We took 4 hours and 45 minutes to climb to the highest point, walk along the ridge, and descend down the other end. Compared to the Kudremukh climb we did in December, this was easier. Most of  the terrain resembled the bugiyals of Himachal and Uttarakhand.  They were a light brown colour since this is the dry season. Followed a fairly well demarcated path the whole way. The only living beings we met on the way were a lonely mule and two young women from another homestay who were escorting some guests who had come from Assam. Two of the guests turned back after a while so I felt quite pleased with myself for persevering.

 

There were striking views of the town as well as the hills and valleys that could be seen on all sides. Also snow peaks. We were slightly disappointed that we didn't get the sunny day we had hoped for. But the lightly overcast sky without rain was probably better for trekking. 

We came in for a lot of praise from our hosts for being "strong" for completing the trek  But when we returned to the homestay all we could do was to just plonk ourselves in the fire warmed living room and chill out by watching "Three Idiots" playing on the TV. A real change from our days of endless driving and no TV.

Day 28, Jan 23.  

We woke up to a thick fog, but our host assured us that this meant it would be sunny. And sure enough by about 9.30 there was a bright sun and a brilliant blue sky, the first time  since we came to Mechuka.  That dispelled the chill and gloom and pumped some energy into us. On our host's advice, we set out driving in the direction of the China border, along the Yargap Chu. Drove up as far as we could to Yarlong village, where an army barrier doesn't permit you to go further unless you have a special pass. We found out from the sentry that with a pass, you are allowed to drive another 20 kms, but that the border is 43 kms away. 

Turning back, we passed scattered patches of snow at our level for the first half kilometre or so.  We stopped at a gurudwara named Shri Tapostan Saheb with an interesting history.  Apparently an Indian army Major found out quite by chance that local people were worshipping "Nanak Lama" from Amritsar whom they insisted had visited there. A gurudwara was then erected by the army personnel themselves, and is apparently maintained by them in rotation. We and a group of cheerful Arunachali women tourists got a guided tour followed by quite a passable lunch served by 3 armymen in the langar. The army men chatted with us for a while before we left and admired us for having the 'himmat' to undertake the long drive from Bangalore. Despite the genuine pleasure that they seemed to derive from being the caretakers of the gurudwara, it gives me an uneasy feeling to see the army involved so directly in religious matters and flaunting religious symbols, mainly Hindu, so openly. I feel that it is a fairly recent tendency.  In a part of the country dominated by indigenous faiths like Donyi Polo, as well as Christianity and Buddhism, it looks like Hinduism is making inroads piggybacking on the extensive army presence.

Retracing the way we came, we stopped at a small Hanuman  shrine famous for a fairly recognisable face of Hanuman fabricated by nature on the opposite hill.  Our final stop was at a Buddhist shrine marking a spot where the 8th century patron guru of these parts, Padma Sambhava, is supposed to have meditated in a cave  and warded off the attack of a tiger. A pretty spot with a lovely waterfall.  This ended a day of visiting holy places of various denominations!  About halfway through the drive, the sun and blue sky vanished again and the weather turned overcast and blustery. But at least we caught a glimpse of how lovely it could be.

The Yargyap Chu flowing by Mechuka

Back at the homestay, we had a nice interaction with the just arrived guests, a group of 4 spirited young women from Assam. All fully qualified doctors, long time friends and batchmates, who decided to take a brief holiday together before taking up their first jobs. They had very ambitious plans of seeing everything possible in one day, and asked for our advice. Sitting around the fire, chatting with them, their driver and our genial hosts was a nice way to end our stay in Mechuka.

north-east-road-trip-6. North East Road Trip 1