Shooting from the lip
Gangtok’s a paradise for honeymooners, not to forget tourists. People just won’t bother you and their frankness could unsettle any man from the plains.
A colleague and his newly married wife on honeymoon there wanted a passer-by on the street to capture them in one frame with their camera. “Not possible,” said the Gangtok lad, even as his girlfriend stifled a giggle. Our couple were clueless as to what could be the reason. Maybe photography was forbidden there. But, in a Gangtok garden? In what is easily one of the most peaceful cities in the country? Encouraged by the smile on the Gangtok man’s face, our man asked him if photography was banned there. “No,” said the man, with an apologetic look, while his companion finally giggled. “The problem is I don’t know how to handle a camera,” he added.
Hand-not-in-glove
It’s so cold at Nathula, you can’t take your hand out of your glove. And for any reason if you do, the wind is sure to blow it away. It has its advantages, though. You can come back home and tell your friends, “This glove of mine had entered Chinese territory.” There’s more you can say. “A Chinese soldier fetched it for me. He stopped by across the fence for some small talk while taking a look at my Canon camera. ‘Good camera’ he told me”. That’s enough to make you take a second look at your camera, a more careful one, until you come across a marking you had not noticed earlier — Made in China.
Gangtok’s a paradise for honeymooners, not to forget tourists. People just won’t bother you and their frankness could unsettle any man from the plains.
A colleague and his newly married wife on honeymoon there wanted a passer-by on the street to capture them in one frame with their camera. “Not possible,” said the Gangtok lad, even as his girlfriend stifled a giggle. Our couple were clueless as to what could be the reason. Maybe photography was forbidden there. But, in a Gangtok garden? In what is easily one of the most peaceful cities in the country? Encouraged by the smile on the Gangtok man’s face, our man asked him if photography was banned there. “No,” said the man, with an apologetic look, while his companion finally giggled. “The problem is I don’t know how to handle a camera,” he added.
Hand-not-in-glove
It’s so cold at Nathula, you can’t take your hand out of your glove. And for any reason if you do, the wind is sure to blow it away. It has its advantages, though. You can come back home and tell your friends, “This glove of mine had entered Chinese territory.” There’s more you can say. “A Chinese soldier fetched it for me. He stopped by across the fence for some small talk while taking a look at my Canon camera. ‘Good camera’ he told me”. That’s enough to make you take a second look at your camera, a more careful one, until you come across a marking you had not noticed earlier — Made in China.
