History called it the Garden of Indra, Lepcha people who are the original inhabitants of Sikkim call it Paradise, the Bhutias call it The Hidden Valley of Rice and the Limbu word for Sikkim translates to New Palace. These names together list out all that defines Sikkim and truly bring out the personality of the state.
Sikkim is the only brother state of the Seven Sisters that make up Northeast India. Attached securely to mainland India, it is also the only northeastern state that lies on the other side of the 22 km long Chicken’s Neck that connects the other seven states from mainland India. This state that houses a wide range of distinctive beauty characteristic of the Northeastern landscape, shares its borders with West Bengal in the south, Nepal in the west, China in the north and Bhutan in the east. It is a melting pot of cultures and religions which the state proudly showcases in its mural-filled walls and architectural design.
(Read, Nine Places to Visit in Northeast India in Summers)
With over 500 species of birds including some which are declared endangered, over 1400 species of butterflies and a large variety of mammals and reptiles such as Himalayan crestless porcupine, pangolin and the Burmese python, Sikkim supports a rich and unique ecosystem. The lower reaches of the state are thick with orchids, apple orchards, cardamom, ginger, orange groves and massive stretches of paddy fields. The upper reaches of the state are rich in countless colours of rhododendrons and a distinctive alpine terrain full with high mountain walls, dense forests and glacial lakes.
