Prime Minister AB Vajpayee, at a news conference in Guwahati on Wednesday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Kohima, Oct 29: The autumn sojourn in the Naga Hills appears to have done the Prime Minister a world of good.

After spending three days at Dzuku House in the sylvan surroundings of Raj Bhavan, far from the political heat in the capital, Atal Bihari Vajpayee today flew back to Delhi a rejuvenated person.

“He was very happy, we noticed it even during the photo session before he left,” one of the secretaries at Raj Bhavan said.

Though the Prime Minister enjoyed his stay here — a glimpse of the misty hills is known to move even the most stoic person — the poet in him did not find any outlet.

“Rajneeti mein kavita bhool gaye (staying in politics, I have forgotten poetry),” he said on being asked whether Kohima had inspired him to jot down a few lines of verse.

An aide, however, said before the prime ministerial entourage left that Vajpayee was taking back a “lot of wonderful memories”, especially of the time he spent here with his foster daughter, son-in-law and 15-year-old granddaughter.

Raj Bhavan’s new bird enclosures were built just in time for the Prime Minister’s granddaughter’s arrival. The teenaged girl also enjoyed playing with children of the staff.

The Prime Minister had his breakfast with Governor Shyamal Datta, and soon after the news conference, left for Dimapur in a helicopter. Datta and chief minister Neiphiu Rio accompanied him to Dimapur.

Enough traditional gifts were presented to the Prime Minister for a Naga museum to be set up at 7 Race Course Road.