Places to visit and Information of Mizoram

Hi,
I hope this new thread is informative (i moved from topic under Manipur : practical info., as Mizoram is another state so it is more appropriate to put under new post)
To get to Mizoram is, by flight from Kolkota to Aizawl capital of Mizoram or by train that stationed in Guwahati, Assam, and from Guwahati get a 15 to 17 hors bus or sumo car travel to Aizawl, the bus passes Meghalaya state, so people who want to see the view while travelling on the long montaineaous road, this option by bus may be interesting as there are scenery to pass through, but be sure that the bus passes Shillong area of Meghalaya during the day, i mean let the bus be not a night bus so there is chances of having a view.

So here are my suggestion of place to stay in Aizawl, Tourist Lodge, Chaltlang, Hotel Arini, Khatla, these are the 2 places i am sure which is clean etc. though im sure there are other hotel too, im just writing as an advoice no advertisement of the 2 places here.
The following are places you can visit from Aizawl the capital of Mizoram-
1.Reiek Tlang -It is about 1-2 hrs drive from Aizawl, the capital. It is a mountain, where you can trek, beautiful, covered with nature with great view. Definite place to see, specially that it is not far from Aizawl.

2. Hmuifang Tlang - 1-2 hrs drive from Aizawl, this is becoming a favourite place for picnics, weekend hangout place among youngters of Aizawl youth and of family too. Have nice view, beautiful place,naturally covered.

3. Sialsuk Tlang - Next to Hmuifang tlang, Sialsuk tlang is located, this is also a nature place, beautiful.

4. Falkawn - This is a village on the way to Hmuifang Tlang, in this village, Mizoram Art and Culture Department, built an artificial village that can show the past of Mizo and the Mizo culture, in this artificial village we can see - Chief's house (there are no kings but Chiefs in past Mizo history) , Zawlbuk (a place where all young Mizo men sleep together at night, and a place to learn fighting, character building, etc), Thirdeng In (a house of the villager who made weapons, household instruments, anything that is dealing with metal), ordinary house etc.

And within the city Aizawl, a must visit is (i) Aizawl Theological College located in Durtlang, the place have great view of Aizawl City. (ii) Bazar pui - Chawhmeh bazar - a place where eatables, meat, vegetables etc. are sell, it can be interesting for westerners to see the vegetable market, so it´s my suggestion. (iii) Local churches - to visit any local churches on 'sunday' morning, any local churches will do, but im particular about Presbyterian church as it is the dominant denomination in Mizoram, just to see how the mass are being practice can be interesting. (iv) should try all the food, any food which the locals of Mizoram are taking, it can be interesting, including dog meat or cat meat(sorry, no offence to the vegetarian or PETA followers)

And of outside Aizawl, couple of places i would like other to see are -
1. Champhai - a town, second to Aizawl in terms of population density, Champhai is located in the eastern part of Mizoram, it is located near where Myanmar entry gate exist, so Champhai is the first town for the people who come from Myanmar side to Mizoram, its a trade transit point of Myanmar and Mizoram. Champhai have plains, paddy field and fish farms, this region is the only largest plains that can be found within Mizoram, as Mizoram is a hilly and mountaineous area.The plains of Champhai is very beautiful, winter in this region can be cold, could come down to pretty cold? celcius. A must vist to Champhai, it is one of the most beautiful and favourite place in my opinion, of all Mizoram. Along the plains of paddy fields are low slope valleys where grapes are grown extensively,(infact these grapes are now recently turned into wine, named Zawlaidi, a wine, a product of Mizoram, Zawlaidi means 'love potion' in Mizo language, alcohol is prohibited but wine is openly accepted on the streets after Zawlaidi is introduced, plus it is a good income for the farmers-grape growers)
The other places good to visit that are near Champhai are - (a)there is small village Zote,in this place, you may find Muraw Puk, this place have story that in olden days eagle/mu used to take children away, so children were hidden in this cave, these 2-3 caves are known as Muraw Puk. (a) Thasiama se no neihna - a well known historical place where a buffalo had a calf (c) Chhura Farep - another historical importance where Chiefs put an inscripted stones. (d) Rih Dil - a lake which have a story in MIzo folk tales, where this lake is believe to be a place where the death go, as the lake is dark and have some mystical appearance. (e) Zokhawthar - this is a village on the way to Rih Dil / lake, this is a place where papers are check from both Mizoram side and from Myanmar side, a transit area, pretty interesting place, there is a big river in between the village called Tiau.

There is a government run Tourist Lodge in Champhai, it is a good place to stay, i dont know about hotel though.

2. Phawpui Tlang - this is located towards the south part of Mizoram, it is the highest mountain in Mizoram, (dont know exactly how high the meters is,you may check on internet google) there is a high waterfalls as well. Beautiful nature place.

3. Tlawng Lui - this is a river not far from Aizawl, around 2 hrs drive,(this river connect Assam) this river is known for the first entry place of Welsh Missionary who came to Mizoram and preach the Gospel while the Mizo were still animist in 1894 and these 2 Welsh Missionary also made a script for the Mizo, a latin script is used for Mizo language,(considering the young only 100yrs of script known to the Mizo, Mizoram is 2nd to most literate state next to Kerala in India, kudos to al the Mizos)

4. Tlabung - this is a village in South of Mizoram, have a big wide river, that connects to the Bangladesh, this place may be of great interest for some adventure tourist.

Chapchar Kut is a famous traditional festival in Mizoram, Chapchar Kut is celebrated in the month of March, it is also good to visit and see how this festival is celebrated with traditional dance like Cheraw ( a dance with bamboo, also known as bamboo dance ), Sarlamkai, Chai, etc.along with those beautiful colourful traditional dress worn by both men and women, with their headgear for both men and women and also weapons for men.

People in Mizoram are quite liberal in comparison to 'mainland Indian', in term of dress/clothing, behaviour etc. and i would say also in general maintain cleanliness better. But the economy is such that majority of jobs are govt. job related, however people in general are educated and easy to be with.

Also, Mizoram is the only state in Northeast (7 sister states, now becoming 8 after inclusion of Sikkim) that sign Peace Agreement with Central Govt.of India in 1986, so it is free of insurgents unlike in Manipur, Assam, or Nagaland.

Have nice travel to Mizopram to all travelindiamike members

Z

Thanks for the advice in Aizawl right now probably do one trip down South to Phawpui and another over to Champhai area, then hope to exit to Tripura. I'll let you know how it goes.

Nice thread. zzz. Travelled to Mizoram in Feb this year. Most spectacular was Rih Dil.

Sbballer nice to know you are at Mizoram now. Enjoy.

Here is an abstract about the Mizos (people of Mizoram,also called Lushai/Lusei/Lhoosai) from the book Wild Races South Eastern India by TH Lewin (Mizos called him Thanglien, a British army-administrator posted in the Lushai Hills during the colonial times)


......
A young man, a Riang Tipperah, who lives in my house, was formerly a slave of Rutton Poi’s (a Lhoosai chief) [Rothangpuia], and I have heard from him many accounts of raids made by his master. He used to accompany the Chief as the bearer of his weapons.

His first raid was in 1860, made on the Bengallee inhabitants of Kundal in Tipperah. They fell upon the villagers at day-dawn, according to custom; and the Bengallee men, with one consent, ran away. The women, however, stood their ground, and abused their grim assailants vociferously for breaking into honest people’s houses.

The Lhoosai laughed at their shrill tongues at first, but later it was found troublesome, and one young woman had to be cut down pour encourager les autres. The Chief confided to my boy’s care two women, captives. All the prisoners were fastened together by a cord through the lobe of the ears, and the Lhoosais set out with their plunder on the return journey.

Now, one of the captive women was young, and not accustomed to walking; so after the first day’s march her feet swelled, and she was unable to go further. The Chief therefore ordered that she should be speared. “Well,” said the narrator, “I took the spear and went towards her, and Rutton Poia said, ‘Do it neatly, I will look on,’ for it was the first time I had ever speared any one.

When the girl saw me take the spear and come towards her, she fell a-weeping, and caught my garments and my hands, and all my heart thumped, and I could not hurt her. It was pitiful!

So the Chief began to laugh at me, and said, ‘O white-livered, and son of a female dog, when we return to the village, I will tell the young maidens of your courage;’ so I shut my eyes and speared her. My stroke was ill-directed, and she did not die; so the Chief finished the work, and he made me lick the spear. The blood of Bengallees is very salty. Since then I have not been afraid to spear any one.”

Among the Lhoosai it is customary for a young warrior to eat a piece of the liver of the first man he kills; this, it is said, strengthens the heart and gives courage.


Wild Races of South-eastern India - T.H Lewin

Just went down to Southern Mizoram here is some info:

Saiha is capital of the Mara Autonmous region and well connected to Aizawl by daily sumos ~12 hours and slower overnight bus which leaves at 3:00 pm and gets in around 8:00 am. Though not particularly that interesting in its self, it is good base to explore the area because of transportation connections and a tourist lodge (400 rupee doubles, one 250 rupee double). Palak Lake is the most famous “site” in the district it’s a day long journey on bad roads from Saiha and judging by the pictures I decided it wasn’t worth the effort, though Mizos all said it was great they don’t exactly have a lot of lakes to compare it too.

Pawngpui (blue mountain), the highest mountain in Mizoram at a lowly 2158 m sits near the Burmese border and is a national park. It’s a nice hike from Sangau (~3 to 4 hours by Sumo from Saiha) to Vonbuk via the peak. You must take permission the Forest Department at Sangau. The entry is only 10 rupees but it is also 100 rupees for a Camera, 500 rupees for video, in addition you must take a forest department guide with you 200 per day + 100 per overnight. The tourist lodge in Sangau can help you organize it by putting you in touch with the forest department. I hiked from Sangau to Vonbuk in a day but if you have time it would be worth spending a night at Farpak where there is a new forest resthouse currently under construction, to enjoy the sunset and early morning views from there. Hiking times taken from picture time stamps, granted I hike a bit on the fast side, Sangau to Farpak ~2.5 hours walking time, Farpak to the peak 1.5 hours walking time, peak to Vonbuk 1.75 hours walking time. I left at 7 am and reached Sangau at 3:00 pm total including resting time and time to hangout and enjoy the view. There are also two villages in route that are nice to poke around in. Vonbuk has a tourist Lodge and is also nice village to look around in and meet and great the Li people.

Lawngtlai (pronounced long-cly) is headquarters of the Lai autonomous region though it seems to be basically a mizo town you’ll find more people speaking Lai in Sangau and Vonbuk. It’s not particularly interesting but has a tourist lodge should you want to use it as a transportation hub.

Lunglei is the second biggest city in Mizoram it has nice views and more amenities. The tourist lodge is on the far northern edge of town a more central option is the Elite Hotel (double starting at 400) also with good views. There are other private hotels as well.

Tlabung (pronounced claboong) is an interesting place near the Bangladesh border on a large (by mizo standards) river. Try to visit on a Bazaar day Saturday and Tuesday are the best but there is a smaller one on Thursday, go early in the morning. Tibes people from Bangladesh and the surrounding Chakma villages come in to town (mostly by boat) to trade. Reachable by boat are a view Buddhist Chakma villages that are interesting to see. Since it is down in the valley it is very hot in the summer when I visited in May. Also Malaria is particularly bad there the locals I spoke to said many people get Malaria there so take precautions. It is also the location of the first British out post in Mizoram so is home to the first police station, first post office, and circuit house, all constructed in the late 19th century and standing in mostly original condition. You will also no doubt be told the local Cinderella story in which an American in the area on a short project fell in love with a local girl at first sight and eventually came back to marry her. Apparently they are still married with kids living in the states and come back to visit from time to time.

Chongte is the headquarter of the Chakma autonomous region, Kamalanagar is the name of the Chakma area of Chongte which is split between 3 districts. The large Bazaar day is on Saturday and starts near dawn winding down by 7:00 am so get up early. There may be others as well someone told me, Monday and Wednesday, but I was also there Monday morning and it didn’t look nearly as busy as Saturday. Also like Tlabung very hot in the Summer and very prone to Malaria. Interesting place to see Chakma culture there are two monasteries in Kamalanagar and a few villages in walking distance it may also be interesting to check out the villages over the small chain of hills on the Bangladesh border though transportation back the same day may be a problem as Sumos usually come in the morning and return in the afternoon.

Hey zzz and sbbaler, thanks for the information, it's a good thread, keep it coming.

Champhai –the government tourist lodge is about a 15-20 minute downhill to from the main market near the top of the ridge, there are also periodic city buses that go right past the tourist lodge. Rates (for 2011): 300 single occupancy double, 400 double, 500 for a cottage. There is also a hotel near the market but I heard it was 600 for a room. It’s a 15-20 minute walk down hill from the tourist lodge to the patty fields which are interesting to walk around when there is work going on there. It wasn’t the season yet when I was there but when green it must look nice. The near by village of Zote has nice views back toward Champhai and small not particularly impressive holes (Mizos call them caves) where allegedly children used to hide from a giant eagle. There is a winery in Tlangsam served by bus from Champhai that may be interesting to visit when it is in operation, when I was there it was closed for the season. Zokhawthar is about an hour by Sumo from Champhai (also a tourist lodge there should you want to stay the night). Sumos leave when full from the south end of the market in Champhai. If you are Indian you can cross the border to visit Ri Lake (the largest lake in Mizoram as Mizos will tell you but it happens to be few km inside Burma) if you are a foreigner there is no chance of the Burmese letting you across. The village of Zokhawthar is a mildly interesting place to wander around and you can see a golden Burmese stupa on the ridge in the direction of Ri lake no doubt built by the Burmese military given that the area is heavily Christian. Moreh in Manipur is a bit more of an interesting border town, if I had to compare the two. Over all Champhai is a nice enough place, and when the paddy is green I’m sure its more scenic but I think a more interesting area of the distinct is about 4-6 hours south of Champhai.

Farkawn- is a pretty village near the Burmese border (~6 hours from Champhai). They are constructing a new tourist lodge it was not yet operating when I was there but it is finished. I stayed in the PWD inspection bungalow. Lurh is a 1936 m mountain behind the village and can be hiked in a few hours from the village though I wasn’t able to go up due to bad weather. But it supposedly has great views towards the Chin Hills of Burma. The area is quite scenic with high mountains and deep valleys. Farkawn has a number of sites around it connected with Mizo folklore, and Mizo history. This area was one of the first regions settled by the Mizos when they migrated from Burma. Far Puk is a series of over hangs in the cliff side (locals call them caves) there is a small waterfall too, and the area is quite scenic it’s where the villages used to hide and fortify themselves from their enemies. Down from the hospital in Farkawn is a flat stone with a bunch of pre Christian carvings in it. There is also a cave I didn’t get two that used to have human bones in it but all that is left now is apparently one skull, the place is called Lamsial Puk.

Vaphai- is a village near Farkawn about 30-40 minutes toward Champhai by road. The principal attraction here is Tan mountain. 1927 m Tan mountain is regarded as the principal home of the lasis (like the drink), which are pre-Christian fairies or spirits believed in by the Mizos. There are two approaches to the peak a very steep one from the Vaphai side and a more gradual and safer one from the Farkawn side. Though the views are a bit obstructed by trees from the true peak there are plenty of very good views along the ridge. One of the best is on the Vaphai side of the mountain just before the trail starts a precarious decent down the cliff side, if its wet its best to go up and down from the Farkawn side. Between Vaphai and Farkawn is a cliff or outcropping of rocks associated a story about a cow and a Lasi (Mizo fairy) that kept the cow safe there. There are good views from the steep outcropping called Tasiama se no neihna thang.

Dungtlang is another village about 2-3 hours from Farkawn toward Champhai. It is the site of the Mizo equivalent of Romeo and Juliet. There is a cliff above the town known as Lianchhiari’s Cliff (Lunglen Kham). It was here where the daughter of a chief sat and composed poems about her commoner lover who was forced to move to a village across the valley, since they were forbidden to marry by her father the chief. So from this view point she would look down at him in his new village. While the village is no longer there the views are nice from this perch high above the valley. The nearest lodging is the tourist lodge at Khawsung, about 30 minutes drive away.

Reiek is definitely worth a trip Sumos from Aizawl leave at 10am 12pm 1pm 2pm 3pm from Khatla Church it takes about 1 hour. The tourist lodge is a nice convenient place to stay doubles 400 singles 250. From the lodge to the peak is 2 km about a half hour for a fast walker. Its worth staying at Reiek to climb the peak at sunrise, and or sunset the most scenic times, plus you can wander around the village.

Views of Aizawl:

Actually the best views I found of Aizawl were both from Hospitals, the Presbyterian Hospital has a great view of Aizawl from next to the outdoor bathrooms, so the atmosphere is not so great. Near the parking lot there is a good view as well. There is a bus that goes to the hospital from the city center.

The other and probably best view of Aizawl was from near the TB Hospital in Zemabawk. See pic: http://www.micahimages.com/blog/?p=828 If going by public transportation you can take the city bus to Zemabawk, then either walk or take taxi from there.

The view along the road just before the bus station below the helipad is very good as well reachable by city bus, after the bus station is good too but there is a mesh fence along the road there.

Actually I found the view from Aizawl Theological College (ACT) was not so great. It could have been good but there are large High Voltage power lines right in front of the view of Aizawl spoiling the view, making the Presbyterian Hospital better for a similar view and even a slightly better angle.

Markets:

The Satruday Morning markets are interesting to browse, when street venders from neighboring villages are allowed to set up along the roads. The biggest one is in Mission Veng.

Places to stay:

Full disclosure I know the owner and helped her with her website, but the Riak Maw Inn is a newly renovated hotel in central Zarkawt it has clean rooms and free wifi, the owner has a large collection of Mizo hand-looms that she uses to decorate so it has more of a local feel to it. She also is knowledgeable about Mizoram and has a lot of contacts around the state.

Foreigner Registration

Foreigner registration is required and they take it very seriously even stamping your passport the office is on the outskirts of town so you'll need some help from where ever you are staying to get there. But once done as they told me you can stay the rest of the year if you like, though your Indian visa may be a limiting factor.

zzz & Sbballer, thanks for all the info. on Mizoram. Would refer back to the thread some time in future when I plan up a trip to the state.

Ronak.

Wonderful details on Mizoram. Thanks to zzz and sballer33.

Very useful thread for me ... I plan to visit Mizoram in December-2011.
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Are you going to Mizoram in December this year ???

Well, I am planning to attend the Hornbill Festival in Kohima, 1-6 Dec 2011 and thereafter roam around a bit in the region for another 2 weeks. Where exactly roaming? ... will depend on conditions (security & transport) existing on the ground then.
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That seems interesting. I missed Hornbill last year. But i did went to Champai, Tamdil lake and Blue Mountain in Mizoram. Tamdil lake is worth a visit. Though roller-coster ride is tough but damn enjoyable. And with two weeks in hand, you can go upside down Sir.
Climate generally fluctuates in those areas.
And, I have heard, no Inner Line Permit (ILP) is required now for those states!

Thanks, Trivedi. Will checkout these places online first; and may come back to ask some questions later.
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Sure Sir.