Mr Gugu was the bearer of bad news this morning. He had been to the bus station to enquire about bus tickets to Imphal. There he got wind of a 48h road blockage by Manipuri insurgents. That would be a real problem for me as I had a hotel booked in Imphal and also my flight back to Kolkata, connecting to Kuala Lumpur and then Melbourne.
I racked my brains with options and with the Israeli Mum and Mr Gugu, we thought I should do just the morning at the Hornbill Festival and come back, so I have the option of heading to Imphal in the afternoon. I’d have to wait on the highway for a spare seat on one of the buses originating in Dimapur bound for Imphal.
On the way to the festival, I called by the bus station so that I’d know the way for tomorrow. I tried asking about the possibility of a road blockage but couldn’t make myself understood.
I continued further to try catch a taxi to the festival. The roads were chocka with the weekday traffic (unlike yesterday being Sunday) and the fare was a bit steep. So I continued walking for about half hour uphill to BOC where the shared taxis to the festival departed from. I kept pace with the slow-moving traffic so it wasn’t such a silly idea to walk.
It was a small mini-sized taxi to the festival. I was seated in front. A traffic cop climbed in through the driver’s door at the last minute and straddled the handbrake and gear, before the driver hopped in. And we set off for the festival with a full complement.
Today’s politician arrived on time and gave a brief speech. The host referred to the politician’s wife as “his lady wife” … not sure what other kind there would be!
Unlike yesterday, today’s performances were all from Nagaland. This started around 1015 and carried through to around 1140 when they broke for an early lunch. With transport issues on my mind, I wasn’t too focused on the performances at times. I also connected to the internet to check for updates from Mr Gugu on the road-block situation but there were none.
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- Chicken delivery in the city streets.
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- Today’s Hornbill Festival consisted of Nagaland performances.
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- Today’s Hornbill Festival consisted of Nagaland performances.
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- Moving a log drum. They jump in a coordinated fashion to pull the log.
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- The haircuts are rather Iban (Borneo native).
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- This dance is also found in Borneo and the Philippines. Dancing through the bamboo poles clashing rhythmically together and trying not to get caught.
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- Today’s Hornbill Festival consisted of Nagaland performances.
I left the festival around 1230 as decided in the morning. The shared taxi would take a while to fill so I shared a ride with a young Israeli to town for INR150 pp. It would have cost me that in a shared taxi to BOC plus a private taxi continuing to town.
With gridlock traffic on the windy roads, the driver took the back roads. At the station, I got a couple of Naga women to check on the possibility of a road-block. They asked but were told that they have no information and we’d just have to turn up. They were off for a wedding in Imphal, the day I’m due to fly out. So we’re all in the same boat.
I walked back uphill to the homestay. At 1430, the sun was lovely but I knew it wouldn’t last for long. Around 1600, Mr Gugu returned and had an update that there wasn’t any suggestion that it would be a serious blockage. He’s confident I’d be in Imphal tomorrow evening.
I had dinner in-house again before a bucket-bath and another early night.