Zuluk - A hamlet in the Northeast

At a distance of about 92 kms from the capital town of Gangtok, lies this small hamlet of Zuluk or Dzuluk as the locals call it, in East Sikkim located at a height of 9400ft. If you are traveling from Gangtok, you will see Tsomgo lake, Nathu la Pass, Baba mandir & the beautiful Gnathang valley on the way. If you are traveling from south Sikkim or West Bengal via Rangpo, the route is scenic and travels through quaint little towns of Rongli & Padamchen. On the south end of Padamchen sitting on a beautiful corner on the edge is the most picturesque cafe in East Sikkim - Sherpa fast food.

Padamchen

I have to warn you in advance, if you are looking for luxury stays and hoping to eat gourmet food, Zuluk is not the place for you. Do not go to Zuluk if you are not prepared to live outside of your comfort zone. But if you want a peek in the local Sikkimese culture and want to live like the locals for a day in your life, definitely visit Zuluk. Zuluk lies on the Old Silk route & sees travelers from around the world that come to witness this zic-zac beauty of a road. The history behind the silk route is that it was used as the main route to trade silk across India from China & Tibet back in the day. The loops amidst the mountains and houses lined up around the road in the valley is what makes Zuluk different from all the other places around Sikkim.

The village comprises of a mere 40-50 houses and most of these are homestays. There are no hotels or hostels in & around Zuluk. The nearest town with major facilities is Rongli which is about 30 kms south of Zuluk. During winters the fog settles down early in the afternoon and it starts getting dark by 4:30 pm.

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When we were traveling to Zuluk, we weren't prepared with any of the above information. We were greeted with a small village nestled in a valley surrounded by mountains. The place had limited facilities or stores & an even scarcer population. It had grown dark early in the evening and the village was already engulfed in thick fog. As we were traveling from Gangtok, once you are past Sherathang, the food options are scarce & very very limited as it is a border area and mostly military cantonments. We were starving and we had no network coverage in Zuluk. Only Jio sims have network coverage across Zuluk & Airtel in some selective areas. There was no way we could find our way to our homestay because it was already dark & we had no maps to guide us or no way to contact the owner. But just like the cons there is an upside to a village as small as that. Everybody knows everybody. We just asked around for the direction to our homestay to a local guy & he guided us correctly. Apparently our homestay was next to a volleyball ground. The fact that, the village doesn't have an hospital or a restaurant or a medical shop for that matter but has a volleyball court,

amazed me. The road leading to our homestay was rocky and as it had grown dark and foggy it was tricky because it ran downhill, parallel to the valley and there were no railings. While we were heading to the homestay we almost thought we didn't sign up for this. But soon as we got there - Hill Homestay - we were greeted by the warmest hosts - Urgen & Sukhmaya Tamang. They are an old couple who run this homestay all by themselves. Sukhmaya aunty made us home-made Sikkimese food and that warm serving of home made dal-chawal, roti, sabzi was just the thing that I was craving after a long day of traveling to this place & struggling to reach here. It had grown colder since sunset (temperature was about 8 degrees in November end). Sitting by the heater in the Tamangs' kitchen eating the food with the homemade touch was all the comfort I could possibly find in this place far away from dense civilization amidst the mountains in the middle of nowhere. It made me realize that no matter how much we are cut out for hustle in our lives, life in the mountains is really challenging & difficult and that I would never be able to pursue it if I had to.

View from Hill homestay at evening & morning

What 4pm in Zuluk looks like during Winters

At Hill homestay, the rooms were well-kept, hot water was available whenever needed & Urgen uncle was even kind enough to provide us extra blankets as the temperatures were dropping drastically. We were served a piping hot cup of tea with cabbage pakodas late evening & some more Sikkimese food for dinner.

The next morning as the fog lifted the view grew clearer and the homestay overlooked a vast expanse of mountains which was a refreshing sight. We saw the zic-zac road & visited the Thambi viewpoint that overlooks the silk route.

Thambi Viewpoint

Silk Route & Zic Zac Road

Zuluk was a subtle reminder for all the things we have & sometimes fail to appreciate. A perspective that people are happier & content with far lesser in life. Zuluk was a realization that luxury & privileges have different definitions for everyone. Zuluk was a new idea of what basics meant. Sometimes all you need for survival is food, love, warmth (quite literally), a sense of belonging in a small community & apparently a volleyball court! ;)

Watch video here: https://youtu.be/Mvn2GsTMxuI