500t AP Border and Homen 21-24/3/09
Wed - Kemin

- As I need a $100 permit to visit Arunachal I decided to visit 2 border areas to get some feeling for this mountain state.

- First I took a "magic" a kind of minibus the 36Km to Kemin on the way to Ziro

- in Kemin the border checkpoint is at the far side of town so I spent 2 hours wandering around . Saw Arunachal must be very tribal from the peoples faces many carried swords in sheaths and other had nose or ear plugs etc. Town was not so special so had a tea used the internet etc and then pushed onto Bandar Deua 50Km away at another border point.

Wed - Bandar Deua
- wandered upto a border gate - "you wait here !" the soldier with a big machine gun said, as he led me over to a hut where a man was asleep on a bed. I waited .. so I waited and waited 20 minutes for a policeman to integorrate me. But when I nipped out I saw the office sign said foreigner registration office. So I realised I wasn't under arrest so I told the mann I was going to lunch .. There was nothing to see so I got on a bus to Tezpur

- There were 6 friendly schoolkids coming back from a Hindu camp. One boy invited me to stay at his house saying it was among interesting tea gardens so of course I declined ...I can't just turn up at his house without him warning his parents. Later another told me his father was a silk farmer.

What a bad idea that was

- 60Km after they got down and the bus passed nice tea gardens. And I thought "hey ... maybe I should have visited this village instead of rushing on to Tezpur".... So I turned back ... 30Km later when the bus took another break I thought "why not go back to the village"

- What a bad idea that was - 30Km later it was dark and I couldn't find the place.

Wed - Kind people

- I was wandering up n down a completely dark road when a guy on a scooter came up. He took me to a friends shop where 20 friends to gathered round.

- they managed to fix me up with a room at the inspection bungalow.

- Rare day I spoke with 3 different women not just men. In Kemin, teacher on the bus the ones working at the IB

Thu- Looking for the right place
- First I went west - no that wasn't right, then east -no that wasn't right, so another bus further west- no that wasn't right, the place must have been further east near G, but now I was 60Km west.

bus to Tezpur
- Rather than waste more time looking I decided to get another bus to Tezpur - I could of got down at the National Park , but even though th acommodation is only 100Rp I wasn't sure what "foreigner price" I would end up paying for NP entrance and guide .and I am not very interested in Safari ..I think it's better done on TV when they can pick the best bits from 100 hours of filming ..instead of me waiting boring hours
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