The dusty track to Lunglei

 Siaha has been lovely, but a few days is barely long enough to scratch the surface of the town. There are lakes, forests and mountains in the region, but travelling is so challenging that several weeks would be needed to explore.


Our transport was due at 0600, and instead of an auto rickshaw the Sumo arrived around quarter past. We had a meander through the town collecting passengers and parcels, including driving across the school field. A pause at a sort of Sumo terminal where the driver dusted the car, cleaned windscreen and tied bags and boxes on to the roof.  At one stopping place Rev Laikai, who was a student of Jenny's father, noticed us and said fond farewells - he's nearly ninety and walks every morning. A few more passengers later we left the town, with eleven on board, and stopped again for a prayer.






We took a dry-season shortcut via Tuipui Ferry which was no less twisty, but included a ford and a temporary bridge. Road surface was inconsistent! There's a massive road building programme and the scale really is vast. I'm utterly stunned by the infrastructure investment here, road, rail, electricity, water, farming, etc. The reality of that is, without any alternative routes most of the time, we drove though a construction site most of the way. One passenger was very travel sick; we fared better. 











Breakfast stop was about three hours into the journey. There were half a dozen cafes clustered on a ridge, and the table was loaded with various dishes from which we helped ourselves for a flat cost of about £2.  





As we neared Lunglei we dropped passengers and parcels at various villages, and continued to our hotel the almost last to be dropped at about 11.30.  So, more than four hours to drive about 70 miles. Further in the wet season. And only about 30 miles in a straight line. 

Once checked in we had a walk through the town for a mile of so, finding a lovely bakery. We'd return for the cheesecake, Jen didn't rate the coffee. 





And a Lunglei street video

There's a lovely rooftop restaurant on the hotel where later we met Lalchungnunga's brother, Mazaha, though by the time sunset neared we had to take shelter as it's pretty chilly. He's been in Lunglei for a couple of years, and tomorrow plans to take us on a tour - though he acknowledged some places he's not seen yet! 

Very impressive football ground



According to Restaurant Guru reviews the top restaurant in Lunglei is KFC! Instead we headed to a place described as "With its elegant ambiance, attentive service, and an impressive menu, it's perfect for special occasions. The fine dining experience here is worth every penny." 

Discovering that it was a tiny takeaway we instead ate in the hotel which was delicious. The fish and chips starter intrigued me - very tasty. As was the beef curry and fried rice.

 



The bathroom here appears to have a warm shower. Looking forward to that! 

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