Long Day’s Bus Journey from Shillong to Guwahati with a Stop at Orchid Lake at Umiam

19 Nov, Tue:

Shillong-Guwahati

Long Day’s Bus Journey from Shillong to Guwahati with a Stop at Orchid Lake at Umiam.

And so, we finally arrived at the second last day of our trip. This was the day we would leave Shillong, capital of Meghalaya, and make our way to Guwahati, Capital of Assam. So without wasting any time, Llew and I finished up our packing and went down to the community dining room for breakfast. We fueled well on toast with omlettes, poha and fruit with coffee. There was a discussion on the amount of money that should be collected from each tour participant to tip our wait staff at the hotel and also our driver, Steven. And after we had decided on an amount that suited all, the money was collected and the payment was made.

Our bags were brought down to the main Reception area from where we made our way to the Laithumkrah junction and piled into our bus to begin the long journey—about 4-54 hours depending on traffic--that would enable us to leave the mountains of Shillong and return to the plains of Guwahati.

Exploration of Orchid Lake at Umiam:

Yes, we did all take our preferred spots on the bus and before long, we were off. We did have one stop, about an hour later, when we arrived at Orchid Lake at Umiam where we had a longish stop. After alighting from the bus, we walked the short distance to the lake front where boating possibilities lay ahead for anyone so inclined. Most of us, however, declined the opportunity, having done enough boating on the Umngot River, just a couple of days previously. Instead, we made sure we used rest rooms as we had no idea when we would come upon decent ones again. That done, we strolled around, took a few pictures—it is a very wide and very picturesque lake, being encircled by mountains—and then got back on the bus again.

Lunch at Excelensia Restaurant:

We made one more stop before eventually reaching our destination: we stopped for lunch at Excelensia Restaurant, the same place we had eaten on our way into Meghalaya. This time there was a choice of chicken or vegetable biryani or a thali. Llew opted for the chicken biryani while I chose the chicken thali. It was okay—really nothing to rave about. Once again, we used rest rooms at this spot.

And then, after another long stint on the bus, at which point we did try to break the monotony of the journey by singing some community songs, we arrived on the absolute outskirts of Guwahati, very close to the airport but with absolutely nothing around at all except a dusty, construction-ridden highway. Our hotel was called Hotel Ashiyana and I have to say that it left much to be desired. After the cozy homeliness of the hotel in Shillong, this did not appeal at all. Suffice it to say that we all wished it had not been the last stop in our travels because, unfortunately, this was the impression we’d take home with us.

Most of us just stayed in our rooms until dinner time when we made our way downstairs to another community dining hall. Once again, we were presented with the inevitable thali—this time I have to comment on the quantity that was simply enormous. Even though we tried to finish it all, most of us left quite a bit of food behind as there was simply too much of it.

All that was left then was to return to our rooms after eating our fill and going off to bed. It is amazing to be how tired one can feel when all one has done is sit in a bus all day!

Until tomorrow…cheerio.