i'll write one email for now because the reception at this internet is coming and going and takes about ten minutes to change pages. the power comes and goes here too so i'll make the most of it while i can!! but i'm not complaining! what can i expect up here in such a remote place in india? i'm happy there's internet at all!
so let me explain to you the beauty of the place where we find ourselves!! we are in darjeeling! yes, the very land of the famous tea and many other types of teas also, mostly exported to england, europe and all over the world.
we enjoyed a crazy day in calcutta despite the sweating heat and unbelievably muggy pollution. there was utter chaos on the streets! how can i describe the noise, the continual beeping of horns, the various vehicles that go at crazy speeds, the men hauling carts piled metres high with sacks of cement, the bicycle rickshaws, the running rickshaws( men simply running like a horse pulling a cart with someone in it, taking them to their various appointment), the crazy beeping minivan taxis, old yellow cabs, the people, cows and goats , eveything possible on the roads.
but then on the sidewalks the constant temptations of snacks( mostly fried), a quick stand up meal of chapati bread and a spicy curry, rice and dahl lentils, then the fruit, mangos, papaya, small oranges. and the ever present offer of chai, sweet milky tea served in the tiniest of cups, either plastic of clay which is then thrown on the ground and smashed ( to created the ever continual cycle of work).
but often the other smells of sewerage and garbage turned one off the idea of eating. the level of poverty and grime and filth in calcuttta is unbelievable to see. everything is black with soot, mold, filthy garbage and rivers of bad smelling water running through under one's feet. in fact despite the heat we preferred wearing covered shoes to keep ourselves a little distanced from the situation on the culcutta streets.
but every moment we were soaking up the craziness, the joy of being in new territory where all normal life in australia fades away and one is swept up in the small details of the bustling life of each individaul going about his daily life here, so far removed from the peaceful, ordered life as we know it. the streets are literally teeming with people, everywhere!! so many small scenes to focus ones attention on and openly people watch as one sits by the side of the raod drinking lassi or chai.
but after a day of calcutta with culinary and cultural experiences rich with the taste of the exotic.....we were already ready to head off to quieter places!
we booked a sleeper train that night for the big hill stations of darjeeling where the temperature is cool and misty, where life is smaller and slower and there is nature all around.
the night sleeper train was beautiful with the fans blowing full ball on us in the top bunks, the windows open and leaving the crazy heat of culcutta far behind. we were served countless chais and milky sweet coffees, bread omlette for breakfast and roasted peanuts. we slept well and enjoyed awaking to the rice fields of west begal stretching ahead of us, catching tiny glimpses of the village life that continued on peacefully here as it had forever. we saw that, despite the simple life style, lack of electricity and hard work here, life was much better quality for the poor than in the squalor of the big indian cities. people here had a community, a dignity in their simple existance that the beggar in calcutta lost when they they arrived in the city looking for an easier life.
we arrived at the station of new jalpaiguri which is where the train staops before taking a shared jeep up the zigzaging steeps toward darjeeling. the breath of fresh green filled air was a delight to our mountain loving senses. here life was slower we could see already( although they still love beeping their horns!!) we wound up the very steep hills passing incredible towns of miniature houses built in unique styles and against the steep slopes creating a look of how we imagined tibet to looklike, different coloured houses with deliate wooden entrances and many pot plants on the railings, each house a new combination of bright colours. the towns here were teeming with villagers out on their shopping missions, but the people here were different, more tibetan looking, with the wider flatter faces, so beautiful and serene.
we found a gorgeous guest house with a big room and a low ceiling, miniature wooden framed windows and quaint furniture. we love it. we've been here for two days now and although we can't see the incredible peaks of the himalaya of which the town boasts in the clearer days of september onwards, the atmosphere is communal and busy, people passing through the tiny narrow market filled streets as if it were a town created in medieval times. the laneways are steep and our days have been filled with exploring the town and sitting in the big piazza square where people sit and pass the afternoon, watching kids and dogs play, ponyrides, old peoples with their families drinking chai or eating roast chickpeas or peanuts. it's an old fashioned lifestyle here, where people spend time in communal activities. there's no hiding away in individaul houses here. everything seems to be lived out in the open, hairwashing, shaving, washing clothes in front of each house.
yesterday we took a lane down which took us further and further down the valley. the path was rocky and narrow and we passed many people on their normal daily route up to the town. houses are spotted down the path and small communities all know each other. each house has it's prized pot plants which they love here in darjeeling, which they proudly call queen of the hills. many people work in the tea gardens which cover the lower hills with thier distinctive shrublike plant. as we wandered furhter and further down and wondered how on eath we would have the energy to return up the extremely steep path ( our legs were wobbling like when you do the giant staircase walk in katoomaba!!) we came across a family who invited us into their tiny house for tea!! it was so beautiful sitting there in their simple guest room sitting on miniature loung chairs and talking with the whole family through the gorgeous teenage girl who spoke english. we sipped tea and looked out the wooden window at their daliy view of huge mountains and tea gardens far below. in their simple existance they were so joyous and generous. they gave us a bag of freshly picked black tea to send home to you mum! so lovely. the people here are the famous gorkhas who helped the australians in the war. they are strong and joyous and have a quiet strength. they are fighting for an independant state in india for they are a different race and speak nepali not hindi or urdu.
on our way back up, we took a more leveled road where we thought a taxi may pass but then were informed by the local women picking tea that being a strike today there were no vehicles at all passing and we would have to walk the eight km up hill alone! luckily as we walked we saw one lone jeep arriving so i hailed it down to see if we could get a lift to the top. little did i realise it was a the military!! but they said to hop in and they gave us a lift back to the high up town!! so funny and lucky!
well, i'll leave you all now. we are off to eat yummy vegetable momos( rice flour dumplings which are common the the area). hopefully the drizzle stops in the next little while and we can see some views of the third highest mountain in the world!!
we send all our love and want you to know that all is going splendidly for us and we hope also for you....
we can only get to the internet a few times a week so until soon
all our love and himalayan mist...
jess and giovanni
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