Where India meets Tibet: Silk Route | Zuluk and Nathang Village | Sikkim | Northeast India

A place where India meets Tibet. From these beautiful mountains of the Great Himalayas, a path emerges that once connected India's Sikkim to Tibet's Lhasa. And on this path passing through the clouds, there are many beautiful places that used to be a part of a very famous route which is called the Silk Route. Where not only trade, but also thoughts, culture and nature used to meet in two separate countries. The example of which is given by these beautiful villages Many people are still unaware of these roads coming to Sikkim. Because this is another part of India which has fallen on one side from Tibet and on the other side from the beautiful mountains of Bhutan. But as soon as those who go to Tibet pass through this Silk Route, a village sits in the middle of the clouds whose name is Zuluk. At a height of 10,000 feet, surrounded by green mountains, Zuluk village is a settlement of a few small houses where these beautiful houses are often seen talking to the clouds. In fact, Zuluk is also called the gateway of the Silk Route because this was the first village from where the Silk Route tourism started. I can see a very good balance here. There is greenery here, beautiful clouds are dancing here, it is just as cold as it should be here. There are no very congested houses, there are houses in small gaps. And the clouds that are visible with this greenery are making a very beautiful combination. It is very quiet and it feels like you are very close to nature. I don't feel like looking at the camera in front of me. I feel like looking at the clouds behind me. Zuluk is situated in a valley like this because the altitude suddenly decreases. That's why you will see the whole valley dropping like this. And that valley view of Zuluk is very beautiful. In this village full of greenery, the greenery is not only limited to the outside, but beautiful flowers are also seen here in the houses. These people take care of them very lovingly. Are you fond of doing this? What is the reason for putting flowers like this? I am fond of it. It feels good to see flowers like this in the house. In the culture of this place, flowers like this are put in most of the houses in Sikkim. Five-colored flowers are said to be good and positive in the house. Okay, I agree. Five-colored flowers. Okay. So you have at least five-colored flowers. Five or more than five? More than five. This flower blooms in this season. In the second season, more flowers bloom. Oh, I see. Do you tie the child on the back? Yes. The child will not go down like this. The child will eat everything. That's why I tie the child on the back. The child will sleep here. The most interesting thing about Zuluk is this winding road. It is a beautiful zigzag road surrounded by clouds. It has about 32 hairpin bends. It looks like a snake. As the altitude increases while going up from Zuluk, zigzag roads have to be built here. The amazing thing is that this road also passes through the old Silk Road. That's why this road is also famous as Silk Road. The place where I am standing now is the famous zigzag road of Zuluk. The clouds have hidden this road. Sometimes the clouds disappear and the road is revealed. Sometimes the clouds reappear and the road is hidden again. This zigzag road is called Silk Road. Actually, this is not Silk Road. But there is a trail somewhere in the middle of this zigzag road. There are patches of stones where horses used to walk. That is the real Silk Road. This zigzag road was built by the army. In 1962, when the Chinese war broke out, the army had to transport all the ammunition and weapons. At that time, this zigzag road was built to transport heavy vehicles. But the original Silk Road was not a zigzag road. In fact, it was not a road until then. The Silk Road existed even before the Chinese war. The story of the Silk Road is such that many years ago, China started a trade route. In which China made a way to deliver silk, spices and many other things to the West. In which many people used to sell the goods on horses from one place to another. And because most of the trade in this was silk, that's why it was called the Silk Road. And one of the routes was that which connected Tibet's Lahasa to the East Sikkim's Nathang, Zuluk and West Bengal's Seaport. From where this road used to go to many countries from the seaport. And the people from Tibet used to use these Sikkim villages as a stop or transit point on the way. From which these villages also became an important part of this route. Now, all these villages are connected by a fixed road. But even today, these roads are considered part of that historical Silk Road. These roads here must have changed in so many years. But these views are still as beautiful. The clouds sitting on the mountains are making them even more beautiful. One thing is clear by looking at the weather here. That it rains a lot here. And to save yourself from that rain, here you can also see some local tricks in the roofs of houses. Can you tell me what you are doing? Is this a rain harvester? The water from the tin gets drained down like this. This is a very good trick. And where are we going next? It will go to the drain. Oh, so it doesn't fall straight here. It will go straight to the drain. I thought you collect water. No, I don't collect water. You have a lot of water here, right? Is this your house made of tin? Yes. Can I see it from inside? Yes, you can. So you make everything out of tin from the outside. Yes, we put plywood inside. What is the reason for putting tin outside? The plywood swells up when you put it outside. Oh, I see. This house is made of cement. Oh, I see. It's been many years. Old houses used to be made like this? This is my grandfather's house. Oh, I see. Let me make tea for you. No, no, it's okay. You drink it. No, no, it's okay. Now, how many times can anyone refuse tea? That's it. Thank you. So, after drinking a strong cup of tea, and saying goodbye from here, I went to another height of this silk route. But before going there, I have to tell you how you can go to the height of business. Most of us have a dream of starting our own online business. But how much can we follow it? Because we feel that everything is very difficult. But no, it's not like that. With the help of Odoo, which is a business management platform, you can start your e-commerce business very easily. That too in just a few minutes. Just go to Odoo and sign up. And Odoo's website configurator will ask you some simple questions. And on the basis of that, AI automatically designs the layout of the website. And select the layout that you like, put the product photos, name, and price. Just a few more simple steps, and your e-commerce business is ready. There is no need for any kind of coding. And the best thing is that Odoo gives all this free of cost. Because one of their many business apps is lifetime free. So do try Odoo from the link in the description. So that your dream of starting a business is not just a dream. Across these winding roads of Zuluk, one of the highest villages of Sikkim comes, whose name is Nathang. Nathang is situated at an altitude of 13,500 feet. Where in the middle of a valley, you can see houses made of tin, Looking at this valley, it doesn't look like a village. Looking at this area, it doesn't look like a village. It looks like army camps or bunkers. But these are not army camps. This is a village. This is Nathang village. And it is also one of the highest villages of Sikkim. At an altitude of 13,500 feet. At an altitude of 13,500 feet, this is a village. Because it happens that when we climb at this height, we go down. We don't stay at this height. Because this is a very high height. But at an altitude of 13,500 feet, one of the highest villages of Sikkim, you can see right in front of you. This is Nathang valley. At an altitude of 13,500 feet, Nathang is also a very old village. On the Silk Route, for the people coming from Tibet, this used to be India's first camp. Because it is very close to Tibet and Bhutan. Tibet is so close to Bhutan, that even if you are coming from the road, you will get a signal on your mobile. The tower will be of Tibet or Bhutan. And the time will be updated on your mobile. Because of the height of Nathang, some people come here to do yagya. That's why in these beautiful green fields, yagya is often seen. And these fields and meadows, to promote Silk Route tourism, have been given the name of an eco-tourist park. In fact, in memory of the history of the Silk Route, another amazing thing has been made here. From a distance, it looks like a monastery. This is a replica of the Potala Palace in Tibet. From a distance, it looks like a big monastery. But when you come close to it, you realize that it is just a miniature structure of a monastery. There is nothing here, no windows or doors. Everything is made of boards and stones. I can reach the first, second and third floors. It's a very cute monastery. But Nathang also has its own monastery. Where there is a beautiful Buddha statue, which keeps an eye on the entire Nathang valley from above. Although the entire Nathang valley is quiet, but when you come here, you feel peace. But the most unique thing I saw in Nathang, was the houses here. Because in Zuluk, I saw a few houses made of tin, but here all the houses were made of tin. You must have seen a lot of places with tin roofs, but the whole house is made of tin. I am seeing this for the first time. So when I talked to the locals, I found out why the houses are made of tin. Actually, this is a very high place, and you can still see the clouds behind me. The wind blows very fast here. So that the wind does not enter the house, the entire house is made of tin. And the second reason is that all the people who live in the village, all of them work in BRO. By the way, I found out that they made this house themselves, the army did not provide it. But I feel that all the raw materials that reach here, all those materials will be the same that are used to make army camps. That is also a very big reason, that there are such houses here, which look like army shelters or army camps. And now I have fallen in the clouds. Very fast clouds are coming. A little far from Nathang, there is also a unique temple of the army. It is unique because it is not for any God, but made for a soldier. This is Harbhajan Baba Temple. But why did they make a temple for a soldier? Because Harbhajan Baba is such a soldier, who is doing his duty even after being martyred. Actually, in 1968, Harbhajan Baba was martyred in an accident while doing his duty. But after that accident, no one found his body even after a lot of searching. But after a few days, he comes in the dream of one of his companions and tells where he will find his body and rifle. It seems a little difficult to believe, but the surprising thing is that after a lot of searching, his body and rifle were found at the same place. And in the same way, coming in the dream of a soldier, giving him information about the operations from the enemy side, or sometimes feeling a slap while sleeping on duty. Keeping many such things in mind, the army built this beautiful memorial temple For him, every morning, his uniform is kept here, and his bed is prepared. And this temple is the proof of a true patriotism. His life is gone, but his patriotism is still alive. Near Nathang, on the way to this silk route, there are some lakes, which are known for their unique shapes. Like this Kupup Lake, which is also called Elephant Lake, because its shape looks like an elephant. You can see this lake from a distance. We can't go near the lake because all this settlement belongs to the army. So we can't fly a drone here, or do anything, nor can we go near the lake. But a little far from here, there is the most famous and the most beautiful lake here, which is called Changu Lake. At an altitude of 12,300 feet, Changu Lake is a glacial lake, which is made of the melting snow of its surrounding mountains. And the best part is that there is also a rock here, which is India's highest cable car miss, which from an altitude of 13,000 feet to an altitude of 14,500 feet reaches the highest point here. So it is a must to sit in this. This is shaking a lot. But it's not because of this, but because of the beautiful view of this lake. And just after a while, I reached the top of this lake Even at this height, the clouds didn't stop following me. Even while playing hide-and-seek, these clouds were sometimes giving me some beautiful views. While waiting for a while, I saw this beautiful place The stories of the old houses and the roads connected to the Silk Road takes me back to the past. Where the city is only concerned about the future, this village and its slow-paced life are still taking care of its past. And this mountain has been a part of every story that happened here. These views always make us cry in this moment. They don't let us go to the future, nor to the past. On one hand, we try to keep the past alive in these places. On the other hand, we try to see the future in the cities. But this mountain, the weather here, and these valleys, even after knowing everything, they just want to stay in the present. And even while changing with time, they don't go back or forward in time. Maybe they know that this moment right now is very important. Because in a while, this will be the past. And a while ago, this was the future.