Adventures In Gangtok

Oh my gosh! I woke up with a start. So late and maths exams today! Let me get dressed and rush to school! I looked around. The bed felt oddly different. My room felt unfamiliar. Hello, where am I? Sunlight streaming in through the windows, far away, mountains green, lined with fluffy white clouds and lush flora. Suddenly I laughed out loud waking up my poor slumbering parents. I realized that I am in Gangtok, Sikkim on a splendid holiday.

I sprang out my hotel suite to look out for my best friends. Sara and Tara were identical twins, they looked alike but were as different as chalk and cheese. Sara the detective snooping around for clues everywhere she goes. She would make the perfect Nancy Drew! Tara the calm and serious one who takes part in all our antics, but always warns us of the consequences. So, laughing and joking we ran to the hotel dining hall to gorge on the delicious breakfast served and wolfed down the yummy food in a jiffy.

Outside through the glass windows the pinkish blue clouds looked like delectable cotton candy to us. Our enthusiastic girl gang with our parents started off on our adventure trip to Tsaumgo Lake, Gangtok. We screamed with delight seeing the sidewalks of the lake and the mountains covered with amazing snow. We made snowmen and had a furious snowball fight.

Now came the yaks all dressed up with saddles and their backs covered with colourful and embroidered rugs. They had tiny bells on their horns and gorgeous woollen gear that adorned their horns . Looks can be deceiving. While they were as big as elephants, they were as meek and docile as lambs in the hands of their keepers. We were scared initially to ride them. But finally with the help of the guides, we started the tour of the lake on our beautiful yaks. We were thrilled, scared and excited all at one go. Our parents felt that the yaks might buck them off the saddles, but the guides reassured them that the yaks can carry much more weight and to just relax and enjoy the ride. We giggled looking at our parents poker faced and tense sitting on the yaks. The hill overlooking the mountain was covered with tiny prayer flags held on bamboos. The snow clad mountains and the beautiful orange and yellow flowers in some places made the place look breathtakingly beautiful and out of the world. This was since spring was just breaking out.

In the midst of all this I suddenly noticed that my lucky charm necklace made of semi precious stones was missing . I told only Sara and Tara about it. Sara was absolutely delighted that there was a mystery on her hands to solve. She told me secretly that back at the hotel dining hall there was a rather suspicious looking man sitting next to us and keenly observing us. Sara was sure that he indeed must be the culprit.

The three of us had noticed him earlier because of his funny dressing sense. He wore a sapphire blue coat a red hat and huge black glasses. He had followed us all the way till the lake and he too was riding a yak. Sara then hatched a plan. When we reached the hotel, she said that somehow, we should get hold of his coat and search it for the necklace.

Back at the hotel dining hall,we all settled down with an early dinner and saw that our ‘funny friend’ was also there, looking at us from the corner of his prying eyes like a thief. Suddenly he removed his coat and put it on the back of his chair and went to the other side of the dining hall. Sara supressed a scream, sprang up and looking around like a sly fox. She then took the coat from the chair and stealthily brought it to our table. Our parents did not notice anything unusual since they were busy ordering food from the menu. Alas we couldn’t find the necklace in the coat pockets.

Suddenly we looked up to see our ‘funny friend’ looking at us! He had caught us in the act. We were terribly scared as we thought he might throw a fit and inform our parents. To our utter surprise he smiled, snatched up his coat and asked us what we were up to. Before we could answer, my mom hollered out to me in an irritated voice. In her hand was my lucky charm necklace. She gave me a dressing down for being careless and told me that the guide that she had found it gleaming in the snow at the spot where we began our yak ride.

Sara the suddenly silent 'Nancy Drew' was speechless and we profusely apologised to the gentleman! He introduced himself as Mark and that he was a writer of detective novels and that he was amused by our girl gang antics. He gave us his visiting card and we promised to read his next novel.

So with that ended our short fun adventure in Gangtok. What an irony it had been. Due to our heightened sense of imagination we had conveniently made the writer of detective novels a thief. I treasured the lucky charm from my granny, it had brought us luck, happiness and a new good friend.

Now, off to Darjeeling !!!