Gangtok, the capital city of Sikkim, also known as “the Heart of Sikkim”. During the daytime, it is popular among tourists/visitors and for party and club activities at night. As I wrote previously about Darjeeling, Gangtok is not so different from that. The thing that separates it from the rest is the sense of proud and ownership among locals. No matter how Idyllic or peaceful a place is, I have rarely seen this kind of attitude among people residing in the place.

I shifted to Gangtok from Delhi for my job. I was very enervated because of jetlag. The tortuous roads of Sikkim were like a cherry on the cake. As I entered Gangtok, the character of the place and the sense of satisfaction in the air seemed to be invigorating. Gangtok offered surreal sceneries which I couldn’t refuse. I was suddenly feeling better as I was grasping the essence of the City with every revolution of the wheel. Our Taxi diver was waving at and greeting all the other Taxi drivers who happened to cross path with us. It seemed that everyone knew everyone in the city. After going through some of the very tortuous roads we arrived Ranka. It’s a remote village situated 30 mins from the main town. Roads were yet to be made. There were more dogs at the place than road lights.

We established our site office in Ranka by ourselves. It was good to participate in festivals and other day-to-day rituals. I got to learn and experience more about the life and culture of people living in the hills. We imbibed natural water straight from the Jhora (Water flowing down the hills into streams). We never bothered to purify the water. Once in a while, we used to boil it to sanitize. People lived a content lifestyle but everyone seemed to own a Royal Enfield and a 4-wheeler even if they had a thatched roof house. People had their own kitchen garden; they grew their own food. We lived on a simple diet. The food was grown in our backyard using the stepped irrigation system as seen in hilly regions. We ate organic food without much spices which I was not used to being a north Indian. Though the taste of the food was not so great, I never fell sick in those 8 months in Ranka. So, it turned out to be okay ultimately. Gangtok was right in front of our window nestling on the other mountain. It looked beautiful at night. On average we went to Gangtok thrice a month.

The reason I decided to move 1600km away from my home is that I needed a buffer time. I was very much exhausted and sapped by the city life of Noida and Delhi. I was tired of working as a factory worker. Money was also one of the reasons as we were being paid well. I got the opportunity to grow as an Architect under the guidance of Dipang da. Although he was our boss, he never made us feel small. He used to take us swimming early in the morning at Foxland, Ranka. We used to toil on the construction site together administering site supervision and execution of plans. He taught us many things in the most non-snarky manner. Pranav and I adjusted to the lifestyle of Ranka. Things went pretty smoothly for the next 8 months in Ranka.

I realized you don’t need to shift places in search of happiness. “Happiness is in the pluck of Air”. It lies within. I have a natural propensity to become restive when I don’t have anything to do. So, I decided to train myself to be happy no matter if I am living in a halcyon or hell. Gangtok acted as a medicine for me in some ways. Prem daju, Saedev daju, Chabilal daju, Uncle and Aunty took care of us with great hospitality. Sometimes, I feel an urge to visit Gangtok to meet all those people and scream…
Oooo daju…
Kosto Cha?? Ramro Cha??

Gangtok hidden in the midst of clouds as seen from Ranka…

View of Gangtok from my terrace on one of those clear days…