Scenes from Darjeeling

Well, I thought it would be a nice change of pace getting out of the heat of Calcutta and southern India, and into the serene mountain towns. Freezing in the icy Darjeeling rain at an elevation of over 7000 feet wasn't exactly what I had in mind! I think I should have brought warmer clothing. I did buy some Adidas sweatpants knockoffs (for a steep price of $2.50), but the pockets are only as deep as my knuckles, and the inseam is cut waaaaay too high. Oh well, I just won't go out in public with them on, I look like an old man with the pants pulled too high if you get my drift. Anyways, here are some scenes from Darjeeling...

Darjeeling is a hilly mountain town that was once used as a base for climbing expeditions into the Himalayas, including Everest. It's now famous for it's tea plantations and a stop off point for further treks into Sikkim. It's also yet another one of the places that doesn't "feel" like India. Of course, I've been saying that for the past couple of weeks, so I suppose all the preconceived notions of how India is supposed to be don't always hold true. There are many Chinese, Tibetans, Nepalese, and Sherpa Indians around here, so that means I can finally eat some noodles!





Coolies carrying a load around town. At first, I couldn't figure out why all these workers had short ropes. I figured that there couldn't be that big of a demand to clean windows or repel down mountainsides, but they actually haul heavy loads all throughout town.


Newspaper clipping outside chicken seller stand.


Smiling chicken salesboy


Central market


Wheeling a shovel


This was actually one of the few shots that I took while in Calcutta. My camera battery died, so I don't have many photos from there.