DAY 19 : INDIA : Darjeeling

Weather : cool, sunny, hazy, 18o

 

Our destination today was Darjeeling. It is a town of about 140,000, at 2,500 metres and established in the 19th century by British ex-pats who wanted to spend the summer in cooler climes.

 

 

We were collected at the station by Dawa, our city and trekking guide. It was a 3 hour trip up the winding road to the hill stations.

 

 

Our first impression was of tea plantations.

 

 

The next was of colourful towns - influenced by Tibetan and Nepalese cultures.

 

 

Traffic up the mountain is steady and fraught with problems of landslides, roadworks and rain damage.

 

 

A few salutory messages about the results of dangerous driving.

 

 

Our comfortable hotel high above the town, The Cedar Inn

www.cedarinndarjeeling.com

 

 

As it is Sunday many of the businesses were closed but we found an open area called The Mall where many families had gathered. We wandered past some stalls but unlike so many other Indian cities, we were not hassled and indeed, just encouraged to have a browse.

 

 

From the characteristics of the locals Darjeeling is definitely the gateway to Nepal, Tibet and bordering areas.

 

 

Tomorrow we leave early for a 3 day trek to Singalia Ridge but we look forward to investigating Darjeeling further on our return on Thursday.

 

 

 

M&M

mm_smith@bigpond.net.au