Damp Darjeeling

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It was an interesting trip from Kolkata to Radhikapur (North Dinajpur District near Raiganj) by train where 11 of us made so much noise that the TTE ( Train Ticket Examiner) remarked to another passenger that this 'lot' must be travelling in train for the first time. It just happened that the 'other passenger' happened to be one of us!



We reached Radhikapur station in the morning mist of things which is really not the nice cold mist but that of pollution. We were warmly received by the extended family followed by all the pets (parrot, dog). Time flew as I learned to play football in the open field. We also played various board games. The occasion was to attend the festival at Swaminath temple. There were over 50,000 visitors on the occasion of Buddha Purnima (Full moon night). The temple was beautifully decorated. All young people (35 years and below) volunteered in the temple activities. I must admit the village fair was very crowded in the evenings and the strong fumes of the generators made breathing next to impossible and dangerous.



Next we planned to visit Darjeeling (land of thunderbolts). We anticipated the coolness of the mountains from the foothills of Siliguri and our patience almost ran out till we touched Kurseong (4860 ft). Then finally Ghoom (7407 Ft) where there were real clouds which teased us by escaping through our fingers when we tried to catch them! We took immense pleasure in drinking the rich flavoured Darjeeling tea and walking up and down the Mall Road. The Darjeeling zoo is spacious, clean and well organised. The Himalayan Institute of Mountaineering was worth a visit since it displayed how people climbed the Mount Everest. We enjoyed some excellent cultural programmes at Chowrasta (Town square). The book stalls, antique shops, bakeries and so on were very interesting.



One morning, we walked down to the Bhutiya busty monastery and were well received by a group of school lads who offered to guide us to Lebong tea estate. The walk amidst greenery was too good. The boys were fun and we engaged in friendly chatter. On the final morning of our stay, we prepared hot Maggie noodles for breakfast and completed our last minute shopping, heading back to the plain plains.



Mountains have a magic of their own. They stand solid despite so many changes in their being- change of climate/flora/fauna. Guess, in the journey of life, we stand firm in our ideals but submit to change which are beyond our control and like the clouds escape through our fingers!

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