Sunday, July 1, 2012

June 25: Darjeeling

Vinod, our taxi driver had punctured tyres and hence reaches 45 minutes late. Siliguri weather was clear; we passed sukhna military base which made me nostalgic. Papa was posted in Siliguri during 78 and I'm sure I would have to these places as a kid.

We passed the first Tea estate, Samuel badi. The climb after that was very steep and rough. The road was narrow and I was amazed with the skill that. Imps drove the vehicle. I paased my favorite tea's home. Makaibadi in Kurseong and was tempted to stop by but it was raining. The road after that was really bad, and reminded me of the discussion the day before on unhealthy political situation in Darjeeling. It was apparent in form of Gorkhaland displays when we reached darjeeling. The place was filled with amazing charm.

We were famished and headed to the Mall to eat. After realizing that Dhriti may not be willing to compete with us in exploring, I put her on my shoulders. This would be the regular feature for next three days. Our meticulous planning had ignored alcohol and on top of that Mondays were close days for liquor shop.

We decided to return to hotel for dinner and retired to bed early. The uphill climb had left us weary.