Temple Tok

Hanuman Tok and Ganesh Tok are two temples in close proximity to the Himalayan Zoological Park. Although quite a few people, both locals and tourists, visit the temples, the atmosphere is serene and quiet – qualities that I find are becoming Sikkim’s trademark.

Ganesh Tok is smaller than Hanuman Tok but offers a good view of Gangtok set against the backdrop of Mt. K and the Himalayan range. As we ascended the steps to the temple, a signboard instructed us to remove our shoes. “Should we remove our socks also?” asked a genuinely confused visitor. May be the scarcity of oxygen at this altitude was doing strange things to his brain.

Hanuman Tok is a bigger temple with a pretty, colorful garden. Again, the now omnipresent Mt. K and his comrades paint a spectacular backdrop for the temple. It appeared that the two foreigners at the temple were equally bored with Mt. K’s constant presence – they were keener on photographing a bunch of Nepali women workers squatting in the temple premises, eating out of their steel tiffin boxes. Scoop!