You may have noticed that this blog has a photo as the "blog photo" - a footpath with a garden. When I started on my trip, I chose this as the portrait for this blog. The photo is of Mawlynnong, which earned the title of the Cleanest Village in Asia from the Discover magazine in 2003.

Cleanliness is a virtue meticulously followed in many parts of the North East . We saw it especially in Nagaland, in Mizoram and now in Meghalaya. Mawlynnong took it to an altogether new level - they competed for the prize of the cleanest village, won, and have used it as a tourist draw. The village in East Khasi district, close to the Bangladesh border is a tiny one, just some 100 families. It is spotlessly clean, of course, but perhaps no cleaner than some of the Ao Naga villages we have been to. After all beyond a point, how much cleaner can you get. But what is astounding is the way this village has marketed itself.

Mawlynnong is some 70 kms away from Shillong, some 15 kms inside the highway, in the middle of nowhere. But they have built a fine road to their village, signposted it all the way from Shillong and have made it tourist friendly. There's a car park, there are places to eat and there are toilets. Everybody speaks English, which is after all the language of this state. They have now started homestays too. They charge an entry fee for everybody coming here and use this as the maintenance fund for the village . A wonderful entrepreneurial venture.

The village is postcard pretty. Dotted with colourful plants and flowers, it is charming to the core. All village pathways have been concreted, making this an easy place to come to even during the rains. They have bamboo dustbins everywhere and the rubbish is then composted and used as manure. They politely ask tourists to take all their plastics back with them. Nice simple eating joints complete the picture. Tourists can walk freely around the village. Which is all very fine, but the genuine interaction with villagers and understanding their culture is missing. They can't manage that with all those tourists coming. Its therefore a bit "plastic", but I am hugely appreciative of the way they have created a tourist option out of virtually nothing.

A neighbouring village has taken another advantage of the visiting tourist. Nearby is a living tree root bridge. This is a speciality of Meghalaya . In these parts there are many swift flowing streams. The Indian rubber tree perches itself on high boulders and sends its roots to the river bed to anchor, thus combating soil erosion. The Khasis noticing this, started to use this as a means of building bridges across streams. Using hollowed out betel nut tree trunks, and sometimes intertwining roots of two trees, they started directing the roots to the opposing bank. When it took root there, a natural root bridge was formed. With stones to fill in the gaps, they now had a perfect strong bridge. It is a living bridge, as it is the roots of the tree that is the bridge. It's a sight to see.

As this place is very close to the Bangladesh border, it is inevitable that I went there too. The village of Dawki is the last village on the Indian side. The road to Dawki is a lovely drive, for you drive with India on the left and Bangladesh on the right. Just past Dawki is the border crossing of Tamabil - a peaceful, quiet border crossing. Indians aren't allowed to cross, without passports and visas, but you can go up to the border stone and take as many photos as you want. Similar is the case with Bangladeshis. If you wish you can stand at the marking stone, the Bangladeshi can do likewise and you can shake hands !! If you have a Bangladeshi visa you can go across easily. But , alas, you cannot take your car. Knowing this I have kept my passport safely at home

Back to Mawlynnong. The way they have marketed themselves, created a tourist potential and wooed the tourist is extremely admirable. Mrs Chatterjee is drawn here and in appreciation they serve macher jol ! They have exploited an economic opportunity for themselves, through their own initiative. This is the perfect example for everybody in the North East to follow.