Pune FC arrived at the team-base in Shillong on Thursday afternoon ahead of the I-League clash against Royal Wahingdoh FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Sunday.
While the game is Pune FC’s fifth away game of the campaign, the journey was definitely the longest the club has taken this season.
With the route going through Kolkata and Guwahati, Pune FC began the day early leaving the team base in the wee hours of Thursday morning. The entire team arrived at the Pune International Airport and boarded a 5:55 AM Indigo flight to Kolkata.
After a two-and-a-half hour journey, Pune FC landed at the Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport in the City of Joy. With the connecting flight to Guwahati scheduled for two hours later, the players and the staff grabbed a bite while enjoying each other’s company in the waiting area.
Boarding the next flight to Guwahati at around 10.45 AM, Pune FC landed in the Assamese capital at noon. With the mercury soaring to 30 degrees Celsius, the 26-member team wasted no time in leaving the Lokopriya Bordoloi International Airport and hit the road for Shillong.
Getting into various cars in small groups, Pune FC headed towards the hilly roads connecting the north-eastern states at around half hour past noon for a three-hour road trip.
The players travelled from Guwahati to Shillong in cars
Midway through the topsy-turvy route around the hills, the team halted at the Woodland Hotel in Nongpoh district of Meghalaya to grab a quick bite. The predominantly Chinese recipe serving restaurant played perfect hosts to the players delivering orders quickly as the team hit the road once again.
The hills that surrounded the highway
Driving through the hills was a unique experience and the newly built roads definitely made the road trip better. Nonetheless, the most satisfying moment was going round the picturesque Umiam Lake before entering Shillong.
Newly-made roads made the trip easier
The Umiam Lake is a reservoir located in the hills 15 kms to the North of Shillong. Created by damming the Umiam River in the early 1960s, the principal catchment area of the lake and dam is spread over 220 square km and the vastness was evident by the fact that it took almost half an hour to completely go past it and enter Shillong.
The picturesque Umiam Lake
Once into the main city, the traffic started increasing and the speed of movement was reduced considerably. Nonetheless, the team checked into the hotel at 3.45 PM and had a quick session to freshen up after a long day of travelling.
