Things to do in Assam

Things to do in Assam

1. Explore the Brahmaputra
A Gateway to the Northeast, this Guwahati city hardly features prominently on the map despite it being undeniable as to how much it has on offer.  Huge river courses wildly along the city of Guwahati as ancient hills look on verdantly from the sides. It is a remote town, well connected yet largely unexplored. Occult practices in age-old temples, undulating tea estates, meeting tribals upclose, and of course the one-horned rhino from Kaziranga.

2. Kaziranga Game Sanctuary
With the help of 'Elephant Safari' and 'Jeep Safari', one can see a variety of wildlife and thousands of local and migratory birds flocking in wetlands along with the scenic beauty of Karbi Anglong Hills.
Kaziranga, covering an area of 430 km, is home to the nearly extinct one-horned rhino. Kaziranga has highest density of tigers' prey including the large prey biomass of tiger found in the country. It is also home to 25 globally threatened and 21 near threatened species of birds.

3. Poa-Mecca
Poa-Mecca is a mosque built by Pir Giasuddin Aulia and is held that it has one-fourth sanctity of Mecca. It is believed that by offering prayer, a faithful gains, a one-fourth spiritual enlightenment of what could be gained at Mecca and so is known as Poa-Mecca.

4. Kamakhya Temple
Kamakhya Temple is located on the top of Nilachal Hill. It is an ancient temple dedicated to the Mother Goddess. Devotees from all over India converge on this holy place during Ambubashi and Manasha Puja.
Legend has it that when Lord Shiva carried the charred corpse of his wife, Sati after she jumped into the sacrificial fire raised by her father, her genitalia fell here. King Nara Narayana of Cooch Behar built the present structure in 1665.

5. Agnigarh
Agnigarh is perhaps the most beautiful tourist spots in Tezpur. It preserves the sweet memory of young lovers. According to legend, Princess Usha, the only daughter of King Bana, was kept inside the palace which was surrounded by rampart of fire. The present Agnigarh, now only a hillock facing the awesome Brahmaputra, provides the tourist a panoramic view of both the river and Tezpur town.

6. Dibru-Saikhowa National Park
A National Park as well as a Biosphere Reserve, Dibru-Saikhowa National Park, having an area of 340 sq. kms is located in the Tinsukia district.  Identified s an Important Bird Area (IBA) this park has more than 382 species of birds.The migratory birds are a major attraction here.
This Dibru-Saikhowa habitat has undergone radical transformation after the great earthquake of 1950. 36 species of mammals have so far been recorded. The Park is renowned for natural regeneration of Salix trees.

7. Nameri National Park
In all, two hundred square kms area of the Nameri National Park, is located in the Sonitpur district, bordering Arunachal Pradesh and it is also the core area of Nameri Tiger Reserve. One can enjoy rafting in the Jia Bhoroli river in the south-western boundary.
White Winged Wood duck, Palla's fish-eagle, Lesser Adjutant Stork, Greater spotted Eagle, White ramped vulture, Long billed vulture, Black bellied Tern, Rufous-necked Hornbill, Wreathed Hornbill, Great Pied Hornbill are some special species of birds found nesting here.

8. Nabagraha Temple
Nabagraha Temple is the temple of nine planets situated on Chitra Chal Hill in Guwahati and is just 3 km away from the Railway Station. Since ancient times, it has been a great centre of study of astronomy and astrology. This is also one of the reasons why Guwahati is referred to as Pragjyotishpur or the city of eastern Astrology.

9. Da-Parbatia Doors
The ruins of the door frame of Da-Parbatia Temple a few kms is perhaps the finest and oldest specimen of sculptural or iconoclastic art in Assam. The door-jambs has two goddesses, Ganga and Yamuna, standing below with garlands in their hands in artistic pose and elegance are decorated with beautiful ornamental foliage. It's carving reflect the style of early Gupta School of sculpture.

10. Umananda Temple
On the auspicious occasion of Shiv Ratri, this great Shiva temple situated on the Peacock island in the middle of the Brahmaputra in Guwahati attracts devotees from all over the country. A holy belief says that - on the north bank of the Brahmaputra, opposite Guwahati, where the third Pandava Arjun is believed to have watered his horse while undertaking journey during Ashwamedh Yajna. Temple can be visited by crossing the river by country boat plying from Kachari ghat.

11. Basisthashram
On the Sandhyachal hill, situated in the southern-most rim of Guwahati city, is a well known holy cum picnic spot, called Basisthashram, after the great vedic Sage Bashistha, who is said to have lived here. Three rivulets named Sandhya, Lalita and Kanta meet here and flow perenially adding scenic grandeur to the place. It is spread over an area of few kilometres and little far from the Guwahati Railway Station.

12. Srimant Shankardev Kala Shetre
The Srimant Shankardev Kala Shetre displays the artistic excellence of Asam and the rest of north eastern states. It is named after the greatest Vaishnava saint and the greatest integrator of the Assamese society Srimanta Sankardeva, the Kalakshetra is a multi-Arts complex. A beautifuly maintainted garden with artistic sculptures showing soical customs and costumes, musical instruments, life of peasants, tea collectoer, replica of tradition house -provide information and educate the visitors to this place.

13. Satra
Satras are monasteries that propogate neo Vaishnavism. They also became centres for education and dissemination of the art of harmonius living. Sankardeva, the father of Assamese culture, founded the The Institution of Satra. It is a unique feature of Vaishnavism in Assam.
In 15th century, the first Satra was founded in Majuli. However, at present there are only twenty two Satras in Majuli. The others had to be shifted to safer places due to the devastation of flood and erosion. Dakhinpat Satra, Garamurh Satra, Auniati Satra, Kamalabari Satra, Bengenaati Satra, Shamaguri Satra, Batadrawa Satra and Barpeta Satra and Kirtanghar are the main existing Satras.

14. Ride the Engines
Many adventure tourism firms, have pioneered motorcycle tours in Assam. They cover the popular places along with rural parts of the region. One can get a rented bike from Guwahati to visit Tezpur.

15. Dine and Laugh
Assamese food is deliciously mild and finely pH-balanced using a unique banana-alkaline extract called khar. Delicacy restaurant offers a wide selection of northeastern cuisine styles. Paradise is a well known place for Assamese cuisine covering two floors. Naga Kitchen is a popular restaurant serving Naga cuisine in traditional wooden Naga utensils. For the Assamese thali that comprises of rice, fish (sometimes shrimps) and vegetable curry try any of the small restaurants in the Paltan Bazaar area.

16. Shopping
Artfed, Silk Shops, Konyak and River People are fabulous outlets to shop. Muga, pat and endi silks; bamboo and cane decorative items are things you could shop for. The main shopping areas are Paltan Bazaar, GNB Road and Fancy Bazaar.

- By Sunil R Yadav

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