The hills are alive, with The Sound Of Music - Moulin Rouge! (2001)

Cheeky Monkeys

We're in Kolkata 6 weeks so far and as any volunteer knows, 6 weeks in Kolkata means one thing. Time for a break; so with it being Paticks birthday on the 29th, we've decided to head for the hills. Specifically - the Himalayas... It's all arranged; trains have been booked, accommodation found, bags backed. We are heading to Darjeeling.

So myself, Patrick, Gora, Jenny and Stephanie get on a 10 hour train, go the 600km up north to New Jalpaiguri, where we get a private jeep to Pelling in the Sikkim province. This is where the fun starts. The road to Pelling is notorious. A 4-5 hour drive, best done in the early morning because in the dark it's hard to tell which is the road and which is the sheer drop down hundreds of feet, into the hillside. But to be fair it's hard to distinguish that during the day too. It was a stunning drive, full of beautiful vistas, roadside restaurants, remote temples and rows of cheeky monkeys swinging tree to tree. But you'd want nerves of steel, or at least a hip-flask to keep you going. Our driver was great, really knew the road and drove at a steady pace but there have been plenty of accidents with packed jeeps going over the edge. Not even worth thinking about to be honest...

How much do you trust your driver?

But nonetheless we arrive in Pelling unscathed. Pelling is gorgeous, tranquil, laid back, with views of Kanchenjunga (the worlds 3rd highest mountain). You wouldn't even think you're in India, never mind the same state as Kolkata. And it is FREEZING. I mean we have clearly been spoiled in Kolkata with the 28 degree heat. It' about 10 degrees here and within 3 minutes we're all huddled around the stove in the hotel demanding soups and hot chocolate. One thing is clear - we are going to die from this cold...

Himalayan Foothills

Pelling at dusk

But I've jumped ahead. We stayed in the fantastic Hotel Kabur, ran by identical twin brothers Dipen and Dipesh. The hotel/hostel had the best views of the mountains, great atmosphere; the staff was extremely helpful and best of all? The food! Oh Good God it was amazing. We ate 3 meals there every day. Wouldn't even contemplate going anywhere else...

As I’ve already said the staff were extremely helpful and on day 2 Dipen took us on a tour of Pelling and the surrounding villages. We were cruising around mountains, overlooking rice fields and forrests to the sound of a Buddhist chanting CD. It was really relaxing. Or was until Gora demanded some Bob Marley and that changed the tempo of things considerably. We saw some impressive waterfalls, gorgeous views and at the end of our tour we went to one of Sikkims holiest sights. A Buddhist temple, on the grounds of which is Khecheopalri Lake - a lake whose origins come from Buddha’s footprint. Buddhist prayer flags fluttered in the wind and in the distance you could hear the monks singing. It was an awe inspiring place.

Elaine spinning a prayer wheel

By day 3 and we are hitting the road again, this time for Darjeeling. Gora is staying on in Pelling to chill out (he's been to Darjeeling over 40 times). Ideally Patrick and I would have stayed too but Darjeeling beckons, as does work on Tuesday. We drive down the mountain back to the main city of Gantok to get a shared jeep to Darjeeling. Except they've all left for the day, and we've left it very late, so we get a private one instead. The important part of the last sentence is that we've left it very late, remember what I’ve said above about driving in the dark???

The extra 2 hours we had in bed this morning so wasn't worth what we went through on the drive to Darjeeling.

To be continued...

Elaine (27th of November 2010)

The view from our room of Kanchenjunga