Peaks of the trip
After spending a few days in Kolkata we continued the journey north; to the Himalayan village Darjeeling. In order to get there we had to take a train from Kolkata in the middle of the night and spend 12 hours on the train; not amazing but it was ok since we now knew what we could expect from Indian trains. In the morning we had to change for another train that would take us to Darjeeling.
And that train was so adorable. It is called 'the toy train' and is the last train running by the Himalayan Railway. It consists of three tiny cars (not more than two meters wide and two meters to the sealing) with tiny seats. It is clear blue and definately does look like a toy train; no wonder it's on the list of UNESCO's World Herritage. And the journey was a beautiful, slow ride through the Himalayas.
Ok very slow. Afterbuying a ticket in a rush and running with our heavy backpacks so that we wouldn't miss it, we realised it would take us 9 hours to get to Darjeeling. But that was fine... Until the train stopped in the middle of nowere at some field on a hilltop since the train had slided off the rail... So in the end we arrived in Darjeeling late that evening, after having spent 12 hours balancing on those tiny seats so that we wouldn't fall off; absolutely exhausted after having gone by train the night before too.
But that journey was definately worth it. This is the lovelies Indian town I have been to so far. The colourful little houses (they all look like dolls' houses) are climbing along the steep mountain side; creating an amazing view from wherever you are in the town. The people are very beautiful and look more... asian than the people in the rest of india, they really do look like dolls (so they fit right in the dolls' houses), and they are very friendly. The streets are very narrow and windy, and very steep.
It is cold here, not reaching over 14 maybe in the middle of the day, so we spent the first morning trying to find some warm clothes. We tried the local cuisine (me and Caroline are mad about Tibetian bread) and then went for a stroll down the mountain side. We managed to find a beautiful Gompa (a buddhist, tibetian styled monastery) in the pagoda-shape (the roof looks like three chinese hats on top of each other). We also found the Tibetian Refugee Center that provides schooling for the children and work for the adults. Ludwig played basketball with two small boys while me and Caroline shopped in the handicraft store - i found the warmest jumper ever, so even I wont be cold here!
This morning we got up quarter to four (!!!) in order to see the sun rise over the worlds largest peaks at Tiger Hill. We were lucky; Indiast tallest mountain - and the world's third tallest - showed beautifully, and we managed to see the shape of Mount everest behind the clouds.
So now we are all quite sleepy, which is good since I need to go to bed early for another early morning tomorrow. I will spend four days wondering the Himalayas on my own (Caroline and Ludwig wouldn't let me persuade them), which is a bit scary (we'll see how long my feet last) and quite amazing.
Sleepy love
Jenny
And that train was so adorable. It is called 'the toy train' and is the last train running by the Himalayan Railway. It consists of three tiny cars (not more than two meters wide and two meters to the sealing) with tiny seats. It is clear blue and definately does look like a toy train; no wonder it's on the list of UNESCO's World Herritage. And the journey was a beautiful, slow ride through the Himalayas.
Ok very slow. Afterbuying a ticket in a rush and running with our heavy backpacks so that we wouldn't miss it, we realised it would take us 9 hours to get to Darjeeling. But that was fine... Until the train stopped in the middle of nowere at some field on a hilltop since the train had slided off the rail... So in the end we arrived in Darjeeling late that evening, after having spent 12 hours balancing on those tiny seats so that we wouldn't fall off; absolutely exhausted after having gone by train the night before too.
But that journey was definately worth it. This is the lovelies Indian town I have been to so far. The colourful little houses (they all look like dolls' houses) are climbing along the steep mountain side; creating an amazing view from wherever you are in the town. The people are very beautiful and look more... asian than the people in the rest of india, they really do look like dolls (so they fit right in the dolls' houses), and they are very friendly. The streets are very narrow and windy, and very steep.
It is cold here, not reaching over 14 maybe in the middle of the day, so we spent the first morning trying to find some warm clothes. We tried the local cuisine (me and Caroline are mad about Tibetian bread) and then went for a stroll down the mountain side. We managed to find a beautiful Gompa (a buddhist, tibetian styled monastery) in the pagoda-shape (the roof looks like three chinese hats on top of each other). We also found the Tibetian Refugee Center that provides schooling for the children and work for the adults. Ludwig played basketball with two small boys while me and Caroline shopped in the handicraft store - i found the warmest jumper ever, so even I wont be cold here!
This morning we got up quarter to four (!!!) in order to see the sun rise over the worlds largest peaks at Tiger Hill. We were lucky; Indiast tallest mountain - and the world's third tallest - showed beautifully, and we managed to see the shape of Mount everest behind the clouds.
So now we are all quite sleepy, which is good since I need to go to bed early for another early morning tomorrow. I will spend four days wondering the Himalayas on my own (Caroline and Ludwig wouldn't let me persuade them), which is a bit scary (we'll see how long my feet last) and quite amazing.
Sleepy love
Jenny
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