I came to love Mizoram, a state in North East India, when I visited in 2017 and 2018. It's one of the friendliest spots in India once you scratch the surface, but I thought I would post my first impressions from over a year ago to record the memory.
Mizoram is one of the less visited states in India. This is a bit of an understatement, the policeman at the border looked slightly confused and asked "Is this a passport?". The state is in the Northeast, wrapped around the eastern side of Bangladesh and also bordering Myanmar. Access is difficult, it's right at the periphery of India. It has an airport if you are that sort of traveller, but there is no train line, and the main road into the state is a little bit rough around the edges.
I arrived after a 16 hour bus from Shillong into the capital Aizawl (pronounced eye-zol). As is typical for cities the hotels are a bit pricey, the hotel receptionist had clearly seen foreigners before and already knew that I wouldn't stay for Rs800 per night. Instead I settled in a filthy walled dorm over the road for less than half of this. There is a government built tourist lodge which is just about reasonable at Rs600 per night for a single, but as I discover to be a trend it was built inconveniently far from the city centre. The city itself is fairly pleasant, it really is balanced on a hillside, I get vertigo just walking around. Some of the buildings are two floors on one side and seven on the other! It's a bit cleaner than India, most businesses have rubbish bins outside. I slightly prefer it to Shillong, but maybe Dharamsala is another comparison.
It's about this point I notice something doesn't quite match up from the guidebook spiel, not that there is much of it. The tiresome lonely planet gives barely a page to the state, and wikitravel only a few words. From this I was set to expect a high level of spoken English, and a friendly welcoming atmosphere. I find instead only a little rusty English, and widespread slightly suspicious glance. Often when I am spoken to it takes me a while to realise it was English. The sentence will be much more colloquial and better constructed than I was expecting, but half of the sounds will be missing or unpronounced. Sort of like a British person really. When I enter some shops I'm watched, really watched, followed around every inch of the store. It's as if someone has been spreading the word foreigners are thieves, criminals and so on. I'm not the only one to notice this. While reading another travelers sickly-smug blog post about traveling between fairytale villages in Mizoram I notice the same story. After a few villages, a colder reaction, and only a gesture towards the government guest house.
I decide Aizawl isn't a place to sit around and head out to Champhai, a large town in the east not far from Myanmar. Owing to the state of the roads it's a 10 hour Jeep (15 kph average speed). This town is also spread over a hillside, with a similar routine. The cheap hotel in town won't accept foreigners, the locals recommend Chawngthu, but this is a bit pricey at Rs800. I find Hotel Holiday home offers a reasonable room and price, and settle in. There is also a government lodge for Rs400/single, but as usual it's a fair walk out of town.
It's pleasant in Champhai, I can't fully explain why. The streets are mostly clean, many of the houses are decorated with flowers and shrubs. The traffic is light, and there is a little bit more social warmth. I'm invited into a few houses and have short conversations until the English is used up. On a good day I walk around the town, the boundary roads to the north and west give views of the hills and valleys around. The only issue I've found is the near absence of anything after the evening church service. I get my dinner through the hotel, I think it's expected here.
Mizoram is one of the less visited states in India. This is a bit of an understatement, the policeman at the border looked slightly confused and asked "Is this a passport?". The state is in the Northeast, wrapped around the eastern side of Bangladesh and also bordering Myanmar. Access is difficult, it's right at the periphery of India. It has an airport if you are that sort of traveller, but there is no train line, and the main road into the state is a little bit rough around the edges.
I arrived after a 16 hour bus from Shillong into the capital Aizawl (pronounced eye-zol). As is typical for cities the hotels are a bit pricey, the hotel receptionist had clearly seen foreigners before and already knew that I wouldn't stay for Rs800 per night. Instead I settled in a filthy walled dorm over the road for less than half of this. There is a government built tourist lodge which is just about reasonable at Rs600 per night for a single, but as I discover to be a trend it was built inconveniently far from the city centre. The city itself is fairly pleasant, it really is balanced on a hillside, I get vertigo just walking around. Some of the buildings are two floors on one side and seven on the other! It's a bit cleaner than India, most businesses have rubbish bins outside. I slightly prefer it to Shillong, but maybe Dharamsala is another comparison.
It's about this point I notice something doesn't quite match up from the guidebook spiel, not that there is much of it. The tiresome lonely planet gives barely a page to the state, and wikitravel only a few words. From this I was set to expect a high level of spoken English, and a friendly welcoming atmosphere. I find instead only a little rusty English, and widespread slightly suspicious glance. Often when I am spoken to it takes me a while to realise it was English. The sentence will be much more colloquial and better constructed than I was expecting, but half of the sounds will be missing or unpronounced. Sort of like a British person really. When I enter some shops I'm watched, really watched, followed around every inch of the store. It's as if someone has been spreading the word foreigners are thieves, criminals and so on. I'm not the only one to notice this. While reading another travelers sickly-smug blog post about traveling between fairytale villages in Mizoram I notice the same story. After a few villages, a colder reaction, and only a gesture towards the government guest house.
I decide Aizawl isn't a place to sit around and head out to Champhai, a large town in the east not far from Myanmar. Owing to the state of the roads it's a 10 hour Jeep (15 kph average speed). This town is also spread over a hillside, with a similar routine. The cheap hotel in town won't accept foreigners, the locals recommend Chawngthu, but this is a bit pricey at Rs800. I find Hotel Holiday home offers a reasonable room and price, and settle in. There is also a government lodge for Rs400/single, but as usual it's a fair walk out of town.
It's pleasant in Champhai, I can't fully explain why. The streets are mostly clean, many of the houses are decorated with flowers and shrubs. The traffic is light, and there is a little bit more social warmth. I'm invited into a few houses and have short conversations until the English is used up. On a good day I walk around the town, the boundary roads to the north and west give views of the hills and valleys around. The only issue I've found is the near absence of anything after the evening church service. I get my dinner through the hotel, I think it's expected here.
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