will you be in sikkim in february 2007?

tacita

it seems the sikkim forum has had a lot more traffic in the last week than it had prior to that (at least during my very brief tenure here). i'm curious who else, besides me, plans to be there the latter half of february and, if anyone, whether your plans include the chaams at rumtek monastery just before losar, the tibetan new year.

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adihere

we were planning sikkim in Feb,is it really a bad idea ?
friends say ,feb is too early for the flowering season,
the cold season still on, north sikkim esp
suddenly i was wondering if its worth the trip in feb

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brave_heart

try in touch with a visisikkim@yahoo.com
this guy is a travel agent there nice n well travelled

tacita

well, i obviously don't think it's a bad idea at all, given that that's when i plan to be there. however, i'm not going for the trekking or the flowers, which i understand start to appear just a bit later, in march. rather, i specifically wanted to be there for the pre-losar chaams performed by the lamas at rumtek monastery, and the tibetan new year.

different folks here have had different beliefs about what the weather will be. some say cloudy and, in the north or at higher altitudes (e.g., up to tsomgo lake, a popular destination), or trekking, snowy. others say cold but with bright sunshine and some snow, again, in the higher altitudes and north. my approach is "high hopes, low expectations." if i can get a few good mountain views, a good cultural experience, and some nice photos, i'll be a happy traveller.

i suggest reading some more threads here in this forum for more information, and maybe contacting a few of the better-known tour operators in gangtok with specific weather inquiries as well.

sirensongs

Amazing. I was just logging onto the Weather Underground site to try to discover this very thing, as I too hope to attend Losar Chaam dances at Rumtek. The Mahakala puja begins Feb. 7 and the main Chaam is on Feb. 16. Losar is Feb 18 and in case you still haven't had enough Chaam, other monasteries will do their dances on Losar itself.

I do wonder about the weather. Today I went to talk to some Sikkimese at the Sikkim guest house here and they said it will be *very cold indeed* (and this was a monk, who knows something about austerity). I don't expect to see much of anything but some monasteries and Chaam dances - maybe 1 week to 10 days is all I can stand of the cold.

Oh, here is the WU page for Gangtok:
The High is 50 F, low 14. (19 C - minus 7 C)

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tacita

sirensongs, i went through the same thing last month when i was frantically trying to nail down the dates and make my international and domestic flight reservations, all of which were dependent upon when the chaam dances would be. but it seemed every source said something different. ("for two days before" "two days prior" "five days before" and "on the day itself" - and then there was my initial erroneous reliance on the 2006 calendar by mistake, but that's another story)

i finally heard back from the rumtek monastery directly by email, saying that the dances would be held on both the 15th and the 16th, but that the best day for me to attend would be the 16th. i then planned the whole of my 15-day sikkim-darjeeling-jaldhapara-kolkata itinerary around that!

do let me know if you decide to go!

whatiyam

if you take videos of the dances, and upload on net (to youtube, for ex.) plz post link in thread at e-sangha entitled "youtube links" (even if it is not on youtube). will be greatly appreciated. here is link for that thread. also videos of hotel tibet or good restaurants in gangtok would be nice here.

http://www.lioncity.net/buddhism/ind...howtopic=33052

tacita

nice site - thanks for the link. if i take video, i'd be happy to add it to the others. i still haven't decided whether to bring my video camera - more stuff to carry - but i think i can do short video clips with my regular camera; i'll do the best i can either way.

btw, i watched a clip of one of the lama dances and it wasn't what i had envisioned (tho no less special than my imagined chaam). a friend who observed them in rumtek forewarned me that it was S-L-O-W. however, the lamas in one of the videos performed more like a stage-revue troupe who'd missed a few rehearsals! i imagine the speed/form of the dance is dictated by the nature of the celebration. no matter what form the pre-losar dances take, however, i know it will be a fascinating experience to which i very much look forward.

tacita

thanks for this direct link, which i've bookmarked to check periodically, especially as my trip approaches. but the stats suggest the weather there now is similar to a mildish new york winter, much as we're having now. with warm clothes, it's fine; lovely, in fact, especially with sunshine, for which we can only hope. and it'll likely be still warmer 4 weeks from now.

fsg

I was in Sikkim for Losar a few years back, No problem getting to tsangpo lake as the hotel organised the group. Well worth the visit, the lake was superb and photographed well........... there is absolutely no use in using a polarising lens for scenes at such altitudes as the atmosphere is so clear.
I took a down jacket with me as well as light silk t shirt, vest, and layered up, however I met a UK fellow travelling with what only I could describe as a school bag, his dress sense was terrible, but it transpired he bought his wardrobe from the second hand clothes stalls, and resold after. We did the same in Rannikhet, where my husband felt the col more than I, an ersatz 'thermal' jacket was 30 /-, , we washed it and it was recycled to Oxfam later.

Weather was misty, but no rain.

For the chaam dances do go right to the edge of the action, and dont stand on the upper walls, OK for a few background shots, but to get close ups of the costumes masks etc, get right in there

Enjoy your trip. I wont get to Sikkim till March by then from what I was told the roddies might be in bloom .

tacita

thanks, fsq, for your very helpful suggestions, especially about where to stand to watch the chaam dances. what can i expect in the way of "crowds"? are the dances very popular, relatively sparsely attended, or something in between? will getting to a good photo vantage point be difficult?

i hope your plan to get back to sikkim in march comes to fruition or...um...blossims, given your hope for rhoddies.

all best, and thanks again.

fsg

I composed a lovely long reply but it fell down the back of the computer.. disappeared. as it seems to happen to me sometimes

When I was there there were not too many people, lots of locals tho, good for face pix. It might be on the organised tourist route now, but such folk tend to keep together, and be SAFE.

Just push gently to the front and move around, from recall I think the dances take most of the day. just hope its not too bright sunshine, or the shadows will he harsh.

Get up early if you are anywhere with mountain views as the mists tend to roll in.

I got a splendid panoramic view of the mountains, an took a shot with my panoramic camera, which was subsequently used in an India .......incrredibble India ad, and paid hansomely.

Train tickets all booked

We leave on the Coromandel exp 18 Feb, spend a few days in Calcutta, thence to Malda, and after that bus and jeep onward to Sikkim.

My husband has not been to this part before, so should enjoy

Have A good trip

Bon Voyage

fsg

Janice

When I was composing my previous mail, the lost one, you had a Pic of a Sikkim boo, now it has changed....... what is happening?

tacita

i'm easily bored and change it frequently. here's the one you like; it's actually the cover of a wonderful book i ordered about sikkim. after reviewing it favorably here, got a note from one of the authors, the photog, in fact. the pix are incredible. you can find the book info in this forum under a thread titled "recommended book on sikkim."

Attached Images

 

tacita

thanks for this, fsq. good suggestions. i have a 10x optical zoom, so should do well, i think (i hope). would love to see your pix.
i'll narrowly miss you in both kolkata AND sikkim, it seems. DRAT! i'll be in sikkim 2/15 - 2/21, darjeeling 2/21-2/23, jaldhapra wildlife sanctuary 2/24, and kolkata 2/25-2/27. (we're having a kolkata IM meet-up 2/25, so if you're still there, let us know under that thread in the kolkata forum.)

wishing you a great trip.