Even though a holiday was not on the cards, I was always fascinated by the North East and was glad of the opportunity to refresh my memories of verdant fields, lush forests, delicious pineapples and gorgeous wild rhododendrons.

Our driver Anil who had decided to take the long and scenic route to avoid the traffic did not account for the two Railway Crossings en route. I felt a jolt of familiarity as I spotted the long-forgotten road sign and my heart thundered along with the train as it sped past.

A large number of concrete buildings and several car dealerships lining the road leading to the city was a sure sign that the city was growing but what really impressed me were the amazing skywalks that were slick and extremely user friendly.

Sadly, I was misled by the wonder of the skywalk and was terribly disappointed with the hotel :The Gateway Grandeur was far from grand. It looked more like a grande dame who was tottering on her last legs. Predominantly red, with furnishing that had seen better days, I was glad that we were there for just the night .

Anil who was representing our tour operator Mr Rajkumar of Kaziranga Travels mumbled that we had to be ready by 5.30 so that we could catch the Brahmaputra river cruise organised on the Alfresco Grand. This was undoubtedly the redeeming feature of the day.

Would I return home as a dead body or a happy traveller?

At the Jahaz Ghat, we met the mysterious Mr Raj Kumar who welcomed us with the traditional Gamosa, a rectangular white cloth red woven borders on the side . As we sat on the deck of the boat, Raj Kumar and regaled us with stories of his clients: the story of how he shipped home the body of a dead tourist failed to bring a smile to our faces and which actually chilled me to the bone.

Though it was pitch dark and we couldn’t see any sights on the river banks we were entertained by a troupe of dancers who performed the Bihu dance.

We also watched a short presentation of the story of Lachit Borphukan, the brave Assamese warrior who stopped the mighty Mughal armies from claiming the North East as part of their empire.

And enjoying the slight breeze, listening to old Bollywood songs while we sailed along the Brahmaputra, we officially began our trip

Ciao