tejon mountain village This sprawling hill station was the capital of British-created Assam from 1874 until 1972. Since bec

Khwairamband Bazaar MARKET (Ima Market; h7am-5pm) This vast all-women s market (well, we saw one male vendor perhaps appropriately he was selling headphones!) is run by some 3000 ima (mothers). Divided by a road, one side sells vegetables, fruit, fish and groceries while the other deals in household items, fabrics and pottery. It s easily one of the largest markets in the northeast.

Guwahati is considered the site of Pragjyotishpura, a semi-mythical town founded by Asura King Naraka who was later killed by Lord Krishna for a pair of magical earrings. tejon mountain village The city was a vibrant cultural centre well before the Ahoms arrived, and later it was the theatre of intense Ahom Mughal

FACIAL TATTOOING Historically tejon mountain village famous for their beauty, Apatani women were all too often kidnapped by warriors of the neighbouring Nishi tribes. As a defence , Apatani girls were deliberately defaced. They were given facial tattoos, tejon mountain village like graffitied beards scribbled onto living Mona Lisa paintings, and extraordinary nose plugs known as dat fitted into holes cut in their upper nostrils. Some men also have tattoos. Peace with the Nishis in the 1960s meant an end to that brutal practice, but many older women still wear dat. Photography is an understandably sensitive tejon mountain village issue, so ask first. Some Apatani women have had cosmetic surgery to remove their tattoos.

This sprawling hill station was the capital of British-created Assam from 1874 until 1972. Since becoming the state capital of Meghalaya it has rapidly developed into a typical modern Indian town and in doing so some of its older buildings have been demolished. In parts it still retains its charm, the air is refreshingly cool and it has become a favourite holiday destination for domestic tourists.