creekside beaver creek 5 Eating Restaurant Kurry Klub INDIAN $$ (Hotel Welcome Palace, HGB Rd; mains 50-200; h10am-10pm) Ve

GARO HILLS The lush, green Garo Hills in the far west of Meghalaya are well off the beaten path. The towns are not visually distinctive, but most houses in small hamlets creekside beaver creek remain traditionally fashioned from bamboo-weave matting and neatly cropped palm thatch. The Garo Hills are easier to visit from Guwahati than from Shillong. Sprawling creekside beaver creek Tura is the western Garo Hills regional centre and an unhurried transport hub. The tourist office (%03651-242394; h10am-5pm Mon-Fri) is 4km away towards Nazing Bazaar. Friendly staffoffer creekside beaver creek brochures and sketchy maps, and arrange guides creekside beaver creek for anywhere in the Garo Hills, including a three-day hike to Nokrek Biosphere Reserve where it s possible to watch for Hoolock Gibbons from a traditional-style borang (Garo tree house). creekside beaver creek There are some cheap and not very cheerful places to stay near the market in Tura or, for something a little more comfortable, try the Rikman Continental (%03651-220744; Circular Rd; s/d from 900/1080; ai). Almost on the Bangladesh border, Baghmara is the southern Garo Hills district centre. From Baghmara you can visit the Balpakhram National Park, 45km away, but jeep and guide hire will have to be organised in Tura.

Tucked conveniently behind the Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) Bus Station (AT Rd), Solicitor Rd has half a dozen reasonable hotels. The Hotel Janata Paradise (%9435659461; Solicitor Rd; d 300) isn t quite as beautiful as the manager told us, but at this price you can t be too hard on the daffodil-yellow rooms. Its restaurant creekside beaver creek (h11am-4pm & 8-9pm) serves excellent-value 10-dish Assamese thalis (from 40).

5 Eating Restaurant Kurry Klub INDIAN $$ (Hotel Welcome Palace, HGB Rd; mains 50-200; h10am-10pm) Very tasty food served in a small dining room whose decor would be rather striking if only the lighting was improved. If you re staying in the hotel, room service is faster and beers can be acquired.

CROSSING INTO BANGLADESH AT AGARTALA Border creekside beaver creek Hours The border at Agartala is open from 7am to 6pm. Foreign Exchange There s no exchange creekside beaver creek booth and Agartala banks don t sell Bangladeshi taka, so changing money is hit and miss; ask local traders or border creekside beaver creek offi cials. Onward Transport From central Agartala the border is just 3km along Akhaura Rd ( 50 by rickshaw). On the Bangladesh side the nearest town is Akhaura, 5km beyond, creekside beaver creek reached by baby taxi (autorickshaw). From Akhaura creekside beaver creek trains head to Dhaka, Comilla and Sylhet. Coming eastbound, be sure to pay your Bangladeshi departure tax at a Sonali bank before heading for the border. creekside beaver creek Visas Unhelpful, but the northeast s only Bangladesh visa office (%2324807; Airport Rd, Kunjaban; creekside beaver creek happlication 9am-1pm Mon-Thu, 9am-noon Fri, collection same day 4pm) hides down a small lane in Agartala, about 2km north of the Ujjayanta Palace.