The Mishing are Majuli's principal indigenous community, a Tibeto-Burmese people whose settlements of raised bamboo stilt houses line the river channels across the island. The stilt construction is practical — the houses sit above the annual flood level — and the villages have a particular visual character: red-and-white woven textiles hung to dry on bamboo frames, pigs and chickens in the space below the houses, small boats moored in the mud at the water's edge.
A bicycle ride through Mishing villages in the early morning, when women are weaving at back-strap looms and children are heading to school, gives a sense of the island's life beyond the satras. The Mishing maintain their own festivals and craft traditions separate from the Vaishnavite culture of the monasteries; their traditional festival of Ali-Ai-Ligang, celebrated in February, involves communal rice beer, traditional song, and dance. Several families around Kamalabari and Garamur offer simple homestay accommodation, which is the best way to spend more than a day on the island.