Unveiling the Secrets of Reiek Tlang: India's Best Tourism Village
Reiek is one of Mizoram's most beautiful places Located about 2 hours drive from Aizawl, this place is not just famous for it's natural beauty but also for adventure sports And if that wasn't enough... In 2023, Reiek was the winner of Gold Award for Best Tourism Villages of India Good morning from a beautiful village of Mizoram It's a bit odd to call it a village as I'm sitting on top of a hill and village is down there somewhere The view from this peak in the morning is unbelievable We'll talk about that in a bit Let's start with the journey which started from Aizwal and then slowly got us here We are on our way to Reiek And on the way there's an interesting bridge over an intersting river with an interesting story This is Tlawng River and it's a source if water for Aizawl city also The story of this river is very interesting We are going to Reiek which has Reiek peak So the Tlawng River wanted to pass from the peak, but the peak refused The river was enraged and out of revenge declared that she'll take one body every year Since then every year at least one person dies in the river So angry river...and also a beautiful river here So mini-break on the way It looks like car's coolant is leaking This is what it looks like And so, we are gonna sort that out Coolant problem! Another thing that I really liked here is how helpful everyone is Since our car has broken down, so many people are stopping by and offering to help So that's quite nice! Alright so looks like we are sorted for now, we'll know later if there's another problem So next we are going for our first exploration These are beautiful waterfalls and we can also swim there - so taking my swimming trunks along The name is a little complicated - it's called Tuisen Falls And it means 'wet water' or something like that There's a little bit of hike - first downhill and then we need to climb back It's going to be fun! The water could be cold so let's see if I'm brave enough to swim! Let's see how that goes! To reach here first you need to leave your car or bike in the parking aead And then maybe it's about 30 minutes walk...
And then we'll reach the waterfall It looks very Instagrammable! The way down is really steep Actually it's completely downhill through the bamboo forest Going down is fine, it'll be fun to climb up! When travelling this is what happens - workout without a gym Moss makes it super slippery Another tip if you want to come here - don't come alone, come with a local guide The path isn't obvious - in many places we are skipping the river and going through the hill The river is too slippery even though monsoons got over a while back Come with a guide - that's my big tip Now we've reached the half-way mark and we still need to walk for 15 more minutes How are you feeling Steven? I'm sick of it (hiking) now! He's already sick! So there's a change of plan We aren't going all the way to the waterfalls The waterfall is about 1.25km away and if we go ahead, we'll be very late for the camp side It's almost 01:45pm and we are heading back now It's sad we aren't going to the main attraction here - the waterfalls But somethings don't work out and maybe I'll have to come back to Mizoram to see it Now it's time to head back, take a swim and walk back It's gonna be nice - 20,000 steps today I think! Alright finally we didn't go to the waterfall but we are here for a swim in the natural pool The water will be cold, so it's gonna be nice! It's cold! Christina almost drowned here and MSK saved her.. Swimming done and now we'll start the climb back in wet clothes It's gonna be a fun walk back as it's very steep I feel very refreshed after taking a dip in cold water! Next we are going for a small walk in the farm near the waterfall We'll see some local produce and then head off towards Reiek - What's your name? - Jacob It's nice! A very interesting Mizo meal is being cooked here - only men and no women are cooking! They are cooking pork head, which is a delicacy, and you are privileged if you are offered as a guest We were offered but unfortunately we can't eat (as I'm vegetarian) Then there's chicken which I can't eat again Then there's rice and amla (Indian gooseberry) - which I can eat! Hmmm...nice!
Alright so finally we have reached Reiek We are a little late and we are taking a small meal break, not a lunch break After this we'll start our trek There are many vegetarian options - we are eating veg polao, veg noodles and some coffee with it Looks very good! Sun is setting and there's a small change in plan We are a little late so not going to the Reiek Peak to see the sunset And We've come to a different sunset watching point in Reiek And it looks stunningly beautiful - I can see the sun right there And I can also see people hiking behind me up there The sunset was nice and now we are going to drink chai Some locals are here to travel like us and they've offered us tea Chai time next! - What tea is it? - Phan. It's called Phan. - Is it a local tea? - I think originally it is Burmese. Actually, tea is really good as the temperature is falling and the wind is increasing - perfect thing! When we reached Reiek, the place was in a festive mood Many youngsters were here to celebrate their Christmas vacation And enjoying life to the fullest! Finally starting our journey - it's around 6.30pm right now
We are starting our hike up to camp, to cook and make some merry Our original plan was to reach by sunset, and this plan is new and looks quite fun! Let's see how it goes - the journey ahead is 45 minutes long Its completely dark so can take much longer too Let me show you how much Mez (our guide) is carrying Both of these - just him! We are taking our first break and there's so much luggage to be carried We haven't even reached midway - we have a long way ahead still Completely dark and we are the only ones walking There are two options to stay up there - the peak itself where most people camp Or you can camp on the East side where only a few people go Our original plan was to camp on the East side but now we are going to the busy side Maybe it'll be really crowded but we'll still have fun We've reached on top after a lot of hard work But thankfully it's not as crowded as some down at the base warned us So far we've seen 4-5 clusters of other campers And now we are looking for a spot to set up our tents Then we'll start cooking etc So we found a spot and the next step is to set up our tents Alright so our tent is ready now The next step is to set up our sleeping bags And...that's it! This is all you need to sleep But before that more important thing is to eat some food Once both the tents are ready, we'll cook some food We then made a bonfire, cooked some delicious food, and slept off at about 1am Alright good morning It's about 5:15am and I'm awake to witness the sunrise I can hear a lot of music, a lot of people - laughing and singing Maybe the entire night was like this It's a nice vibe here This is the view where the sunrise will be Somewhere there is Alzawl And the sunrise will happen there I can say it with a lot of confidence and conviction that this was the most beautiful sunrise this year And it feels right nice up here - lots of people and they are all enjoying themselves So many of us camped here and generated a lot of waste And I was wondering how will this be cleaned? How much can we carry down? I just saw these two guys cleaning - like they are supposed to do it! They have garbage bags also to clean. This is a good system. I just spoke to them and they told me that they come twice every week to clean And today is one of those two days And they take all the trash down So if you come hiking here, even if you don't take the trash down, you must leave it in the dustbins here Someone will come and take care of it for you The best thing is to take it down yourself I couldn't show the camping area properly last night That's our tent and that's where we did the cooking The second tent for our guides is there The plan now is to make and drink some tea next - the vibe here is so good! And then...breakfast After that, there's a plan for an adventure sport which looks scary... Anyway, let's still do it since it's also safe We've come this far, let's make the most it If you plan to camp here, I have a few tips for you A friend had actually recommended camping here as the views are so nice But I had no idea how to do it Do I need to get my equipment from Bangalore? Or can I rent things here? I figured out that rental was possible But I couldn't figure out the next steps - how to come here, where to park? Are there camping spots? What about food? I had no clue! After a lot of investigation, I found a travel agency called The Camp They are based in Aizawl and do a lot of adventure activities I'm so thankful I met them because without them this trip wouldn't have been possible We made a two day plan and the highlight was to camp here and witness the sunrise And to enjoy the places to the fullest The Camp is run by Christina and I'll share the contact details in the description below You can contact her and they'll get you a car, a guide, a driver and everything They'll also get the food for you along with the camping and cooking equipment as well You have to just come with them and enjoy the place - that's all you need to do! This isn't sponsored - I paid them the full fee and I'll share the details in the description below YOu can discuss and negotiate with them - the fee will be based on what you want to to Speak to them and take the plan that works best for you It's 9.15am and we are back on the peak for the adventurous activity Everyone who was here has left already except folks in one tent there I'm not so good with heights so it's gonna be even more fun as this is all about heights We are doing rappelling next! It's a pretty good 70-80m fall! If you see it from the top, it already looks very scary But yeah...let's see how this goes
- So what all you need to do to set it up? - We need two ropes Looks like deceptively less stuff and the activity looks rather simple Alright, it's time now to go down! The first part is actually quite scary Looks like a sudden drop - you need to let go of your own fear and just fall back I don't know how I will do that! It got over too fast! Steven: Overcoming my fears! Overcoming my fear of heights - that's the painful task! It was pretty scary in the beginning when you have to let go on the edge You can't let go! Then we had breakfast on the peak and left for Reiek village Let's talk a little about options to stay here in Reiek I'm staying at a Govt Tourist Lodge which you can book online It's a decent place - a room costs Rs 800/ night and the cottage costs Rs 1000/ night Apart from that there are two more places just outside this lodge One of them is Green View and the second one is Greenland They also have similar rates there and they are both quite good The cottage here is nice and quite open but the disadvantage is food They have a kitchen here but it's kind of dysfunctional I asked for tea and water and they asked me to go out and get iot And that's where these other cottages are I would recommend Green View or Dreamland if you also want to eat decent food there itself Near the tourist lodge there's a Mizo village - a Mizo Heritage Village Next, we are going there to see some village life Of course, this is reconstructed village life so we'll see that And then we'll see what else... A very interesting village is built here like it used to be back in the days Right behind me in Lal In which was the house of the village chief And inside there's a very interesting column The concept was that if you murdered someone, you had to immediately come and hug the column It was meant as a way to show your repentance And you were forgiven for your sins There was a downside though - you had to become a slave to the chief Chief could get anything done from you The contraption I'm wearing right now was used for carrying water from river This is something men would wear These bamboo shoots were filled with water and many of them were kept together in the back Fill as many as you can! This is empty yet is decently heavy And then you have shoulder and head support And then you walk The good thing is that this product existed for both men and women (and not just women) Another interesting house is the one behind me for the common man - people like you and me Simple families which were not part of a ruling clan or otherwise lived here There are two distinct things here - no window and no back door There was always a hierarchy in the society - it existed, and it's there today also After resting for a while we left for our final destination Lesang Kurung, and it's on the way from Reiek to Aizawl You'll have to drive first and then leave your car in the parking And then there's a small hike Leisang Gurung is a canyon and reaching here isn't difficult at all Except for the last part which can be a little slippery I hope you enjoyed this video from Reiek today I really had a great time exploring it here If you liked the video, do like it here on YouTube as well If you have questions, leave them in the comments below And if you want to follow my travel journeys, do subscribe to the channel as well That really helps me and inspires me to travel even more It's time to go to the next destination - goodbye from here See you very soon!
2024-01-22 05:11
