Thank the higher beings that this morning was the final day of our Japanese noise makers from above - I woke up first at 3:30 when they scampered around for about 20 minutes for no apparent reason and then went quiet again. And again at 5:30 after which I gave up sleep and started reading and subsequently played with the laptop. I heard and saw all the Japanese tourists taking off with their guide outside at around 8:30 and sighed a huge breath of relief.
Claire finally woke up at 9:00 and we sh owered after which we were offered breakfast. Our hosts then offered us to move upstairs for a couple of last quiet nights here, which we obviously gladly accepted - so we packed our stuff and moved it ups tairs while they prepared the new room and the room below.
Then we went off on our touristy business again - to the Botanical Gardens here. They were so-so but the houses scattered around the Gardens contained exotic flowers and plants and were actually very impressive and colourful.
Claire also found 3 new pals in the form of 3 girls around 10 who were very interested in talking to here - they had surprisingly good English so they must be learning that from very early age. After about 10 minutes with them hovering around us we said our goodbyes and headed back up to the Chowrasta Square where we had a couple of drinks in the form of an iced tea and a coffee in Cafe Coffee Day.
Afterwards we walked around in some of the stores in Chowrasta, including the Oxford bookshop, which was well worth a visit although we didn't buy anything. We also popped in to the Nathmulls tea shop for the second time while here and bought some more tea - for Claire's parents, as we have been quite impressed by the quality that we have sampled here.
Then we had another nice lunch in Dekevas and then visited some stalls - after which we returned back to our room at around 15:00. Claire had a snooze for about an hour while I relaxed on the couch with the laptop. Then around 17:30 we walked back into town and had another feast in Kunga.
We have eaten a lot lately while here in Darjeeling and it's starting to show ;-) The Tibetan and local food here is sooo nice - I really enjoy the soups and Momo's and Claire the Chillies, Curries and Momo's too.
On reflection we both think that as positively surprising Kolkata was Darjeeling is the exact opposite. It is noisy, suffers from air pollution from literally thousands of jeeps and other transport, it's cold (as in 12-15C) when the fog is really thick and the sun blocked out and generally very foggy. So the great & clear views we thought we were going to see have not been forthcoming - and we're quite frankly disappointed. That is, except for one area of the trip up here - the most excellent food and tea. It really is well worth sampling. But it doesn't quite make up for not being able to see the Himalayas mountain range and in particular Kanchenjunga - it's a bitch, as this was supposed to be one of my personal highlights on the trip. Never mind, there's bound to be disappointments on long trips like this and we just have to stay positive about the rest we have seen - and will come to see ;-) Well, actually - come to think of it, the accommodation was also very nice apart from the noise and lack of sound insulation as you would expect from a 175 year old building - and in fairness, the hosts did attend to us quite well and we ended up being upgraded to a room more than twice the price of what we paid - for free. That, and of course the fire places, which were fantastic and just added that extra personal "cabin" and luxury touch ;-)
So anyway, we returned back to our room just after 19:00 and I put the fire on, which quickly heated our living room. Claire planted herself in one seat and watched countless soccer games (Europe/UK) while I was playing with the laptop in the couch. Finally at 23:00 we went to bed.
Claire finally woke up at 9:00 and we sh owered after which we were offered breakfast. Our hosts then offered us to move upstairs for a couple of last quiet nights here, which we obviously gladly accepted - so we packed our stuff and moved it ups tairs while they prepared the new room and the room below.
Then we went off on our touristy business again - to the Botanical Gardens here. They were so-so but the houses scattered around the Gardens contained exotic flowers and plants and were actually very impressive and colourful.
Claire also found 3 new pals in the form of 3 girls around 10 who were very interested in talking to here - they had surprisingly good English so they must be learning that from very early age. After about 10 minutes with them hovering around us we said our goodbyes and headed back up to the Chowrasta Square where we had a couple of drinks in the form of an iced tea and a coffee in Cafe Coffee Day.
Afterwards we walked around in some of the stores in Chowrasta, including the Oxford bookshop, which was well worth a visit although we didn't buy anything. We also popped in to the Nathmulls tea shop for the second time while here and bought some more tea - for Claire's parents, as we have been quite impressed by the quality that we have sampled here.
Then we had another nice lunch in Dekevas and then visited some stalls - after which we returned back to our room at around 15:00. Claire had a snooze for about an hour while I relaxed on the couch with the laptop. Then around 17:30 we walked back into town and had another feast in Kunga.
We have eaten a lot lately while here in Darjeeling and it's starting to show ;-) The Tibetan and local food here is sooo nice - I really enjoy the soups and Momo's and Claire the Chillies, Curries and Momo's too.
On reflection we both think that as positively surprising Kolkata was Darjeeling is the exact opposite. It is noisy, suffers from air pollution from literally thousands of jeeps and other transport, it's cold (as in 12-15C) when the fog is really thick and the sun blocked out and generally very foggy. So the great & clear views we thought we were going to see have not been forthcoming - and we're quite frankly disappointed. That is, except for one area of the trip up here - the most excellent food and tea. It really is well worth sampling. But it doesn't quite make up for not being able to see the Himalayas mountain range and in particular Kanchenjunga - it's a bitch, as this was supposed to be one of my personal highlights on the trip. Never mind, there's bound to be disappointments on long trips like this and we just have to stay positive about the rest we have seen - and will come to see ;-) Well, actually - come to think of it, the accommodation was also very nice apart from the noise and lack of sound insulation as you would expect from a 175 year old building - and in fairness, the hosts did attend to us quite well and we ended up being upgraded to a room more than twice the price of what we paid - for free. That, and of course the fire places, which were fantastic and just added that extra personal "cabin" and luxury touch ;-)
So anyway, we returned back to our room just after 19:00 and I put the fire on, which quickly heated our living room. Claire planted herself in one seat and watched countless soccer games (Europe/UK) while I was playing with the laptop in the couch. Finally at 23:00 we went to bed.
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| The inside of a green house inside the Darjeeling Botanical Garden |
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