Wayfarer, April: Bihu on the drums, Kumaon's quiet hill towns and Machu Picchu's new rules.
Editor's Dispatch
Every place we love has a river somewhere nearby, even if it is hidden under a road. This month we decided to follow the real ones, from a muddy ferry ghat in Assam to a rope bridge in the Andes, and to ask the people who work on them what the water asks of them.
April is also a month of new years. Bihu in Assam, Songkran in Thailand, Vishu in Kerala: communities mark the turn of the season with food, noise and a good deal of generosity. We have tried to write about these as invitations rather than spectacles, and to say plainly where dates and rules may change.
Lead story
The Brahmaputra, mile by mileA river that crosses a plateau, a mountain range and a valley before it meets the sea. How to travel on it, beside it and with the people who depend on it.
Also in this issue
- Rongali Bihu: Assam's new year, on the drumsMid-April brings seven days of music, food and gifts across Assam. Here is what to look for, how to join in, and how to go with respect.
- Kumaon's quiet hill towns: Kausani, Chaukori and BinsarThree places in Uttarakhand's Kumaon hills that suit slow walkers, tea drinkers and anyone who prefers a mountain view to a mall road.
- Songkran, and the slower north of ThailandThailand's new year is famous for water fights. Beneath the splashing there is a quieter ritual, and in the north it lasts longer.
- Keukenhof and the bulb fields, without trampling themA spring garden that opens for only seven weeks, and the working fields outside it that deserve even more care.
- The Changeable-Weather Packing ListApril weather in the Netherlands, the Kumaon hills and the Peruvian Andes has one thing in common: it changes by the hour.
Coming up
- Rongali (Bohag) BihuAssam · 14 April (Goru Bihu) and 15 April (Manuh Bihu) 2026; festivities continue for several days (approx. — verify)
- Shad Suk MynsiemWeiking Ground, Shillong, Meghalaya · 13 April 2026 (state holiday in East Khasi Hills) (approx. — verify)
- Thrissur PooramThrissur, Kerala · 26 April 2026 (main day), with rituals before and fireworks into the early hours of 27 April (approx. — verify)
- Moatsu FestivalAo Naga villages and Mokokchung, Nagaland · 1–3 May 2026 (approx. — verify)
One practical tip
If you are going to Keukenhof, book a fixed time slot as early as you can, and see the bulb fields from the cycle paths, not by stepping into them.
Your turn
Which river is yours? Reply and tell us — we may feature your answer.