October 17, 2014

DELHI to DARJEELING (West Bengal State) by Go Air
 - Flight to Bagdogra, $177 each with excess baggage
 -  Drive 90 kms to Darjeeling ($30) prepaid taxi
Hotel Dekeling - $48 deluxe double, including buffet breakfast

11:20 AM Flight & Sikkim RAP

Today, we flew back to the India we love, still a far cry from a true sense of serenity but the scores of fascinating distractions numb us to much of the negatives.
 
 
We normally avoid flying because one misses so much of the scenery along the way. The last part of this flight was extremely scenic with views of the Himalayas poking above the clouds. Then, we got a birds-eye view of the green forests and tea plantations as we descended.

After a smooth 2-hour flight to Bagdogra, we were able to pick up our Restricted Area Permit, which foreigners need to enter Sikkim, the next state north, right at the airport. All we needed was one passport size picture (which we had) and a copy of our passport and India visa page which the Go-Airline office xeroxed for us right there. 
 

Tea Plantations and Elephants

We then prepaid for a taxi for the 90 km (3 hour) trip to Darjeeling. Our driver said the distance shown on google map was wrong and it was actually 120 kilometers. 
 
We drove through amazing lush mountainous landscape, passing tea plantations and bustling villages. Came across a herd of wild elephants, all so thrilling. Several Gompas and Tibetan style monasteries clung to the hillsides. 
 
  
Best View in Town

After Kurseong, the narrow track of the infamous 1880's Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Toy Train shared narrow Hill Cart road with us. We would have loved to stop at some of the bustling hill stations. 

We had pre-booked a view room at the highly rated Dekeling Hotel in the center of Darjeeling for a week. We arrived at 5 pm and, miraculously, 2 skinny guys appeared when we parked briefly in front, blocking traffic and sparking a cacophony of shrill protesting horns. The skinny guys were hotel staff who kindly whisked our heavy packs up the four steep flights of stairs to our room. Dekeling has chosen great staff who work tirelessly, and mostly with a wiggle and a smile, to please every whim of the guests. The clamber up is worth every bit of effort for one of the best views in town. 
 
 
Dwindling Daylight
 
After we got settled, we were anxious to see a bit of town in the last remaining daylight. Our polar tech jackets were needed. It definitively has a Tibetan feel, prayer flags flutter on several roofs. We followed a pedestrian-only road lined with small grocers and tourist shops to a plaza that affords great people watching. A stage was set up for a tourist festival and music was blaring from large speakers near the stage as people waited for the next act. We continued on through a gauntlet of stalls selling cheap souvenirs. 

 
We had dinner of momos and soup in the small Tibetan place on the ground floor below Dekeling hotel. 
 
On the floor below ours, is a lovely sitting room with stove heating and books galore. Picture windows line the entire north side and provide a panorama views to the Himalayas, forests and tea plantations, and the rooftops of Darjeeling. Breakfast is served there. We slept like babies under a thick quilt and woolen blanket.