notes from darjeeling

here i am waiting for a hot cuppa tea and sandwich and its almost time to go.. my holiday is coming to an end and it has been an eventful one... i spy this internet parlor in The Mall and cannot wait to note down a few words as I wait for my coffee... we have arrived at a not so opportune time .. its cloudy most of the time... and its raining but its wonderful all the same... this time it was a short trip... i promise myself to come here again... here and there saw the much renowned toy train and also unfortunately we heard in the news that the same train collided with an oncoming train... thus injuring some workers... Sukna, Rong Tong, Chunbhatti, Mahanadi, Ghoom, Sonada, Kurseong, etc we passed them all along with the clouds which made the drive fraught with danger... yet the people here seem to think its a daily routine... ahhh had some wonderful momos .... did lunch, dinner with momos... And today being Rakhi purnima, Darjeeling is looking very colourful... The ladies here were surprised to see that we ate everything... vegetarian tourists seem to be the flavour of the town and its rare to find a non veg tourist... haha !! haggled with a beautiful shawl seller in nepali, she was surprised to give me a good rate.... my learning Nepali language in Shillong came into use after all... it was good to hear the sweet tones of this language after a long time... bought some absolutely rare CDs from a small shop here... now I have a full collection of Janis Joplin, some more Al di Meola, etc.... the view when the clouds clear is spectacular.. though I think we have to contend with driving through the clouds again... RAMRO JAGA CHO this darjeeling .... If you are visiting this place... Rainy season has its own charm if you like the season... Make your bookings carefully... do not be intimidated with crowd of people who want to give you a cheaper deal.. be firm.. Food is great in small places... It is possible to walk around and see the places in Darj... You might be conned into taking some tours which cost a bomb... be alert... Make sure you stay in Mall road... I spied the Shangrila Hotel which seems to be a very old place and a nice place to stay... Again it seems... so...and there is also a quaint pub cum coffee shop where you can chill out... N0tes from Assam, Cooch Behar, coming soon..... also the snaps will be up as soon as I reach home... till then... have a nice day.....