Darjeeling Limited

Hello all we have arrived in Thailand, and are we ever happy. Don't get us wrong, we loved India and most of the experiences that we had there. India is a really interesting country, and has a lot going on. It is however more work than a happy vacation. You really need to watch out as most people will try to take advantage of you and over charge you. Getting from one place to the next is always nerve wracking, as you have no idea where you are going. So needless to say when we got off the plane in Bangkok and into the taxi to our hotel we were doing a happy dance in our seats. Again we loved India but this felt like the first time we were truly able to relax in a long time. Our last 12 days were spent in Darjeeling. We relaxed for days and only set out to explore the town when we felt like it. Seeing tea plantations, a zoo, mountaineering institute, and sampling the food that had more of an Asian taste than Indian, all contributed to a laid back feel. Life in Darjeeling is slower. We even saw a movie and took a visit to the Hospital.

We'll start with that last word first. As we're sure you'll all just skip down to that paragraph anyways. Liza had been experiencing severe back pain for quite some time. After several weeks of her dealing with it, we decided that this may not just be some kind of muscle spasm or pinched nerve and went to the hospital. The doctor saw us almost immediately and after a quick exam concluded that it was probably a muscular type of pain. He ordered an X-ray and ultrasound just to be safe. The X-ray was performed immediately. When we walked into the room there was an old machine with an analog display that looked like it had not been used since WW2. Liza changed into a stained gown and the X-ray was taken. We returned the next day, for the ultrasound. Liza had about a litre of water in her bladder and was ready to blow. Since we had to wait it became very uncomfortable and she just wanted to leave. It was probably just muscle pain any ways. After some reassurance she finally got into the Ultrasound room and was told that she was having gallbladder attacks and would have to have her gall bladder removed. Apparently this is not that much of an emergency and is able to wait until we get home. Our doctor has been informed and asked to schedule the surgery for our return. We were not having the surgery there was for sure. Especially since the bathrooms were the worst we had seen in all of India. That is pretty bad, considering. So that takes care of that story, now on to Darjeeling. The beautiful hill station, that is a vacation from India.

The Happy Valley tea plantation is were Harrods (exclusively) gets their tea. For those of you that don't know Harrods is a very expensive British store. They may still have a store in the Toronto Pearson Airport. We sat in a tea room waiting for a tour guide and were treated to a lovely cup of Super Fine Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe #1 Tea (try and say that ten times fast). It is apparently the finest in the world especially since it was first flush (first pluck of the season). The pickers are given tea for home use, and we were sold some (under the table). The money we spent on it went directly to the workers and saved us a bundle on the stuff from the store. The tour took us through the factory and we saw the process from fresh leaves to separated fermented leaves ready for packaging. The bits are separated into 5 parts. From the whole tip (best), to the dust (lowest quality for tea bags). A quick tour but very educational.

The big thing to do in Darjeeling is walk. There are incredible views from every road. The views apparently get better at other times of the season. So good that you can see Kanchendzonga the worlds third highest mountain. The zoo is a great walk from our hotel. There are views of the valleys below at every turn. The zoo itself is probably one of the best in the world. The pens that the animals live in are very well maintained and are basically large walled in parts of forest. The zoo is responsible for some of the best captive breeding programs in the world, for rare Himalayan species such as the red panda and snow leopard. The tourists going through were quite irritating though. I saw an adult woman yelling at sleeping wolves to try and make them move. She was standing beside a sign written in English and Hindi saying: "Don't harass the animals" and "SHhhhhhhh". I guess some people never grow up. Attached to the zoo is the Himalayan mountaineering institute. There you can see a statue of Tenzing Norgay that was erected by Sir Edmund Hillary. Opposite this is the place where he was cremated. Tenzing Norgay was Hillary's Sherpa and the two were the first to ever summit Everest. I know not exactly the most exciting stuff, but it's probably the closest to Everest I'll ever get.

On another day we went to a place called Hayden Hall. It is a volunteer organization that helps to educate and gain employment for women from the villages. Aunt Joan volunteered here in 1979 as a nurse. We were able to meet with Noreen who was still there and remembered Joan fondly. She showed us photos of Joan (she looks the same) and we were taken on a tour. On the tour we bumped into a large group of children who were so interested in us. They all greeted us with Namastes and touched our hands, and our hearts too.

Two days after leaving Darjeeling we finally got to Kolkota. We meant to stay in a hotel but our taxi driver couldn't find it (Typical). So we spent the night in the airport. We are so looking forward to our three weeks here in Thailand. We already decided that we want to return. We are also really looking forward to returning home (except for that work thing)and seeing you all. This is probably our second last entry...

Until then take care.

Mark and Liza