A furry friend on road to Shillong

Day 58 of our tour yielded unusual but expectedly connected experiences. Each morning on a bicycle tour I am certain that the day will be enriched by a meeting, an experience or a sight that will remain etched in our minds forever. Today was no exception in our lives on the road as a couple over the last three months. First we met our first ever Indian touring cyclist, Thinlay from Gangtok who was returning home to Sikkim from Shillong. Then we witnessed the most gorgeous morning fog over the Umiam lake and came across a really good cafe on the way to Shillong, coffee that reminded me of the blend in Tawang Monastery cafe.

BUT what has stunned and left us filling sad and empty was our little companion who met us on the way and ran along with us for over ten kms! I named him Benji, and he would respond to it. Our hearts tugged wanting to take him along with us. For ten long kms our hearts would stop whenever the crazy traffic got too much and Benji would choose to sit in the middle of the road! I would then become the guardian literally stopping the traffic on a national highway. Some people smiled, some obliged, some asked is he your dog(?) and some scowled at us thinking we were not looking after our dog properly! It was indeed a strange and beautiful bond that existed for almost two hours. However at a small village the local dogs chased him back and that was the last we saw of him. We miss him and if I had had a vehicle would have certainly brought him back with us.

We reached Shillong at noon only to find all the shops shut and had to do with KFC for a meal! The homestay we are at is a heritage home and really quaint with a lovely garden. Shillong is the cleanest Indian hill station I have seen in my life. India has a lot to learn from the amazing people here.