Day 11 & 12: Rest and recuperation the agenda as Shillong hosts the Renault Kwids

Shillong

I think I have found my ideal location where I’ll build my retirement home – Shillong. The rest of the North East is just as stunning but for a petrolhead like me, the city offers just the perfect ingredients – sensible drivers, cheap fuel and oh so lovely twisties that go on for miles on end.

Picking up where we left off, the road back to Shillong involved going through the sorry state of Assamese roads again, right up until the town of Panchgram. Every single one of us was not dwelling on the previous night’s encounters but more so pumped up to the forthcoming drive. As we drove on, we witnessed how horrible those roads really were, something that our adrenaline fuelled, Red Bull pumped minds from last night chose to ignore. But alas, we could take solace in the fact that we had just Meghalaya left on our list of states of the North East.

A quick brunch in Panchgram was mandatory as there would be no stopping thereafter until we reached Shillong. Back on the road and within minutes we were back snaking up the same mountain that we had come to love so much on the previous day. Right from the up until our hotel in Shillong, the roads were simply stunning. It was perhaps the best day of our journey so far as we were zipping through the corners. But a word of caution for those who want to try out the road for themselves. The road has a high truck traffic density and with lots of blind corners, one must have the highest respect for fellow commuters as bad accidents can and did take place.

The 5000km mark

In the midst of our blissful drive, we drove past our next big milestone of 5000km as well. Wow. 5000km of the most extreme situations that India had to offer so far, conquered. From Delhi’s insane traffic to Punjab’s agricultural back roads. From UP and Bihar’s blistering heat to Arunachal’s chilly weather. To the whole of North East and it’s kaleidoscopic sceneries and harsh roads, it really has been a journey that one of the best ones we have been on so far.

The Renault Kwid has been a faithful partner all along. It hasn’t so much so coughed even once so far even though we have been through some really really tough times together. Since we were resting our spirits for a day, it was also fair that the cars get some TLC and thanks to the Renault officials in Shillong, we were able to carry out the basic service that the cars so deserved.

We will begin our journey back to Siliguri on Saturday as we now begin to conquer the East coast of India. Stay tuned to this space for more.

Click here to read the previous blogs on the 29 States 29 Days challenge.