This painting is a memory of a walk I took to Sangachoeling monastery when I was tour leader on an ACE study tour to Darjeeling and Sikkim in the Spring of 2002. It was quite a stiff climb and not all of us chose to do it. But those who did could see a vast panorama of valleys laid out below us and the snowy peaks of Mount Pandim and Kangchenjunga in the far distance. There were some labourers carrying loads of heavy stones to repair the track.
Whilst revisiting Sikkim I returned to Sangachoeling to find the path replaced by a sealed road, a grand flight of steps leading to a giant statue of Maitreya and a 'sky walk' for tourists. A cable car is due to open next year. It all goes to show that you can never go back.
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