Darjeeling

We have arrived in India, the official second part of our international travel. Today is Oct 10, Saturday (night). We thought we would be here a few days ago but, silly us, we missed our flight. We really missed it, by about 24 hours. Somehow we both had in it in our minds that our flight was on Oct 5, but that was the day that we were to arrive in India. We discovered this in route from Sienna to Milan, long after our scheduled flight had left. We spent several frantic hours fretting about the possible impacts, especially after the airline told us that a ticket for that day was e1850, or around 2700 USD, per person. STA Travel solved the problem for the relatively cheap cost of $437 for the two of us. Yea STA! The reroute was two days later and involved a 9hr layover in Dubai and an overnight stay in Delhi. Five days later, we here, and thrilled to be in India.
For me, it’s very exciting. I’ve probably been interested in seeing India since the early 90’s and being here is certainly meeting my expectations.
The big obvious first observation…in some ways things are a little crazy here, in a fun, new culture sort of way, especially things like driving and standing in lines. For instance, when we went through passport control at the New Delhi airport, people seem to add themselves to the side of any line and fill in any space that might appear as unoccupied. Those whose wait was made longer by this seemed unfazed. Similarly, little is orderly about driving. There seem to be just a few, flexible rules on the road, but otherwise one can be anywhere, in any the lane, and occupy any space. Whoever is in front has the right of way. Cars move around each other a lot and honk to request some else move out of the way or just to let someone know they are overtaking them. It seems pretty wild to me, and at times it appears that it is for the drivers as well. Several times I noticed two drivers breaking in to smiles after a particularly close encounter. I can’t imagine driving here. There will probably be lots of observations like this, but hey, that’s part of what travel is about, noticing what I notice.
Our drive up to Darjeeling was a four hour drive along a bumpy, partially washed out, single lane road, in a diesel jeep. Our driver, like most others, was quite skilled and navigated around endless people, cars, dogs, chickens, trains (!), and huge potholes for hours. I was exhausted just watching.
Darjeeling is at about 6500 feet, and the temp is brisk. It’s a relief from the humid plains that we left. At times it can be cold, especially when a cloud moves through the city. Both Dara and I have colds, so perhaps we’re sensitive to the cooler temperatures. The clouds are constantly unveiling and covering the views around us, but from what I can see, we’re on a ridge top, with stunning views in all directions. Tea plantations and forest spread out in all directions. We’re in the foothills of the Himalayas and apparently when it’s clear, one can see Everest from a nearby view point.
We arrived just after dark yesterday, found a quiet place called Andy’s Guesthouse with great views and a good vibe. We had a really fun dinner were Dara basically picked some random things off the menu. They were delicious and I think we are in for some great food, and a real education. I think we recognized about five words on the menu.
There was a music performance going on in the main square that people were excited about and lots of people were dancing.
We slept in today until noon, still fighting off colds, then spent a leisurely time watching the clouds at a small coffee house with tremendous views. While there we struck up a conversation with some other travelers who filled us in on using the trains, and gave us some advice on finding yoga and meditation in Rishikesh and lodging in Varanasi. One of the travelers gave us a small book on customs and etiquette in India, so we’ll share anything important that we learn.
We’re here for at least three more days and perhaps more, before moving north in to the state of Sikim. We are considering a short trek in the nearby mountains, so we may be here longer.

Pictures at http://picasaweb.google.com/MarkSNewell/DarjeelingTrek#