The charms of Cherrapunjee are best savoured with a keen eye and sensible shoes. After all, it is not everyday that you visit a place that soaks you at first sight and leaves you with an urge to come back again and again; maybe even contemplate an idyllic retired life!

Anyway, I left Gawahati for Shillong at the mercy of a drunk driver and the hair-pin bends of the treacherous mountain roads. On reaching Shillong (safely!), I wasted no time in climbing to the roof of the Tata Sumo which was to take me and an assortment of locals and Americans to a place which is also known as Sohra.

Meghalaya was given its name by none other than Rabindranath Tagore and for a lot of reasons. Cloud seems to come out of the wand of an invisible conjurer at the flick of his wrist. It envelopes you and the car you are in and after some time, it simply vanishes. It pounces on you like a leopard on a prey and does things to your skin that even a dermatologist cannot explain. When you get to experience the temperamental clouds at increasing frequency, know Cherrapunjee is close.

It is always a good idea to plan a trip to Cherrapunjee well in advance, for if you have not stayed at the local circuit house, you have definitely missed out on something. As for me, I just begged the manager into giving me a room! Located on the edge of a cliff, it gives you an unbridled view of the famous Seven Sisters waterfall and the valley beyond. The other side is a rolling green meadow leading to the main town and the highway. The same highway will lead you further inward from Cherrapunjee to the Mawsamai Caves.

These are ancient limestone caves that have been hewn from solid rock by tectonic movement and flowing water. The entrance is narrow and that’s about the only thing you remember after entering the cavernous grotto. Senses are then numbed by the artistry of nature and the nurturing hands of the murmuring streams that trickles by your hiking boots. It feels like some giant with a cauldron of molten wax has spilled the contents on the walls of the caves. Rocks have been moulded into fantastic shapes and the rich mineral content had added strips of dazzling colours to it.

When I caught the Sumo back for Shillong (again perched on the roof with other people’s luggage) I sat facing backwards and kept looking at this wonderful place until it vanished round a bend. Land of clouds, I WILL be back.