Samdruptse Hill the 'wish fulfilling hill' is just 5 km away from Namchi, situated at an altitude of 2134 m (7000 ft). This epic hill is ornamented with a giant statue of the Guru Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche); the patron saint of Sikkim who has been showering its blessings since more than 1,200 years. It is a 45 m tall statue, overlooking the whole city, and is gilded with gold that glitters when the sunlight falls over it. The hill offers the vista of the magnificent Mt. Kangchenjunga amongst the richly forested hills under the blue painted sky. It is believed that the hill is a dormant volcano and only prayers can hold it from erupting, that is why the local monks offer their reverence and devotion to it. The repository within the premises of the statue, has a profound collection of historical photographs of sikkim also including the fading photos of Mahatma Gandhi, come as a delight for the history buffs. The statue is an incredible triumph of engineering, that took around seven years for its construction under the sponsorship of the Sikkim State Government. The foundation stone for the statue was laid by Dalai Lama in the year 199
