chalet catherine The impoverished hill town of Mon is in a gorgeous setting but feels like a frontier town. There s a

The impoverished hill town of Mon is in a gorgeous setting but feels like a frontier town. There s an SBI ATM in the town centre but don t rely on it working. The little village market is well worth exploring and like so many markets in the northeast, it s the exotic food items that stick longest in the memory. Of the numerous tribal villages in the area the closest is Old Mon village, a mere 5km from town. Tamgnyu village (13km) is a rarely visited, yet easy to reach, village with a friendly headman, chalet catherine a couple of human skulls left over from headhunting days and

China has never formally recognised Indian sovereignty here and it took the surprise Chinese invasion of 1962 for Delhi to really start funding significant infrastructure. The Chinese voluntarily withdrew. These days border passes are heavily guarded by the Indian military and the atmosphere is extremely calm.

Bansbari Lodge (%3612602223; www.assam bengalnavigation.com/bansbari.htm; chalet catherine d 2000, jungle package 7500). Jungle packages cover full board, early morning elephant chalet catherine safari, jeep safari, guide, park entry fee and village and tea garden excursions. Ask about river rafting. Contact Jungle Travels India in Guwahati chalet catherine (p 560 ) for bookings. chalet catherine Access is from Barpeta Rd.

Eastern and central Meghalaya are mainly chalet catherine populated by the closely related Jaintia, Pnar and Khasi peoples, originally migrants from Southeast Asia. Western Meghalaya is home to the unrelated Garo tribe. Despite their different ethnic backgrounds, chalet catherine these two groups use a matrilineal system chalet catherine of inheritance with children taking the mother s family name. A good time to be in Meghalaya is when the four day, state-wide, Wangala festival takes place. This Garo harvest festival is renowned for its impressive traditional dancing.