18th October - Darjeeling

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Darjeeling is really beautiful and relaxed. It's so different to Kolkata, which I kind of got used to, and even liked in it's hectic way by the end.

The weather is actually really like London in early September. Sunny at times followed by rain. There is little of the heat, crush, humidity of Kolkata here. It's very hilly too. The streets are like Edinburgh or Durham with their steep climbs which leave you breathless half way up.

I arrived at the Tower View hotel and asked for a room is the dormitory, it costs 70Rs per night which is about a pound. There was almost no light, random planks of wood in the corner, only one plug socket, and spiders everywhere. It was really bleak and the toilet was blocked (traditional Indian toilets are an ordeal at the best of times - no reading a book in there, I can tell you) but I decided to tough it out for a night and then moved to a single room for 150 Rs a night the next morning.

The Tower View Hotel is actually really nice. It's friendly, there are lots of other travelers to talk to, there is Sky TV on a HD Screen to watch the football, they have bookshelves, and guitars - all neatly crammed into what's a pretty small room. The food is really nice and cheap, as is the beer. At the far end you can walk through a set of double balcony doors and come out onto a balcony to one of the most amazing views I've ever seen in my life, across and above the clouds to the Himalayas.

If you are willing or able to get up at 3am, you can go watch the sun rise at Tiger Hill where Everest is just about visible on a clear day. A lot of people do this but I haven't been able to unfortunately as it's been raining and cloudy the last few days, but never mind.

It's really easy to get talking to people, this is no time to be shy and read a book in the corner. If you do people generally leave you be, but if you just sit down and strike up a conversation, people are more than happy to talk. I was invited to accompany some nice people I'd just met - Ed, his sister Charlotte, Michele, and Marc- to Sikkim today, but unfortunately you need a permit to go to the state and they already had one. This essentially means going to the District Magistrates Office, signing a form saying you will say out of certain areas and not cross the border into Nepal or Tibet. You then have the form endorsed at the Foreigners Registration Office, and take it back across town to the Magistrates Office again, where they issue you with a permit. I went today with a couple of guys from the hotel so I should hopefully be able to follow the others up tomorrow in a jeep.

I've met a lot of interesting people. Some people from Britain think I'm brave for doing this on my own, but some of the other travelers have done so much more, whether it's permanently nomadically traveling the word and philosophising about life, or buying a motorcycle and riding it across Asia - and when it broke down, having to be taking in by a Nepalese family in Bihar, which is one of the most scary, corrupt, and lawless states in India. It's great to hear other people's stories about traveling through India. Varanasi sound half enchanting, half terrifying. I'm sure it will be an experience! For now though, more relaxed times.

Apologies for the lack of photos on Facebook but the internet connections are too slow, so I'll have a lot of work to do in January!

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Photos

Kangchenjunga
Kangchenjunga - the third highest mountain in the world.

The Dorm
This was my first room, where I stayed for a night in the hotel. Those are planks of wood in the corner.

My New Improved Room
A bargain at two pounds a night!