We hired a driver to take us from Darjeeling to the border of Nepal.  It was supposed to be a 5 ½ hour drive, but this guy had a lead foot so he got us there in under 4 hours.  We crossed the border in a rickshaw (like a horse buggy but with a bike instead of a horse) and got our visas on the Nepal side.  After much confusion from people all around us trying to lead us in different directions and sell us flight or bus tickets, we were finally able to get on a night bus to Kathmandu just at it was about to leave.  I climbed onto the roof and locked all of our bags to the bars on the roof with the long chain and lock I carry with me for train and bus rides.  

This bus was seriously the 15 hour bus ride from hell!  The seats were all broken and reclined back into our laps, so there was no leg space and the driver was flying down the bumpy road so fast that we had to hold on and brace ourselves and actually caught some air a few times.  We were so happy when we finally arrived in Kathmandu the next morning.  I had downloaded a travel guide application about Nepal on my iphone (it’s a lot easier to carry around than a heavy travel guide book) and one of the hotels it recommended was the Kathmandu Guest House.  Before it was turned into a hotel it was the Rana Palace.  The hotel is pretty famous and has won lots of awards…the Beatles have even stayed there.  It is located in the touristy area of Thamal.  We loved it!  We got a deluxe room overlooking the garden (which I negotiated for a lower price).  David still wasn’t feeling that well from getting food poisoning in Darjeeling and then the horrendous night bus, so we were glad to be staying in a nice hotel.  

During our short stay in Kathmandu, we visited Swayambhu, also known as the Monkey Temple.  The temple is perched high on top of a hill that overlooks all of Kathmandu and the surrounding mountains.  The long stairway leading to the top is lined with vendors, artists, beggars, Buddha statues, prayer flags and lots of monkeys scampering about.  It was a fun place to explore with lots of great picture opportunities.

Kathmandu is a beautiful city full of lots of culture with plenty of things to do and see.  It is the largest metropolitan city in Nepal and is inhabited by about 2 million people.  Since the 1960’s it has been popular with Western tourist as it was a key stop along the “hippie trail”.  The city stands at an elevation of approximately 1400m and is the jumping off location for trekking in the Himalayan region.

Ahhh…what a difference a train makes. After our last two train experiences Sherri and I were kind of dreading the overnight train trip to Darjeeling. Previously we’d traveled in 2^nd class, which was ok, but the 17 hour train trip back from Varanasi in sleeper class with no AC and sleeping in shifts was “an experience” to put it mildly. For the trip to Darjeeling we had tickets in 3^rd class and Sherri’s brother, David would be traveling us, so we at least felt it would be safer and hoped we could get some sleep on the long overnight train.

We boarded the train and were even shown to our seats by a professionally dressed train employee. As the train pulled away from the station relaxing music played from the speakers overhead…soon a train attendant appeared with a tray of candies, an then another attendant appeared with a tray of sodas, followed by a tray of savory snacks…all complementary, of course! Sherri’s brother David looked at us questioningly, “you guys are crazy, these Indian trains are awesome” he said, but he had no idea what we had been through. This was definitely the train experience we had hoped for…we were served a delicious Indian meal and we were seated with a nice Indian family on their way home to Sikkim. The three children were super sweet, sharing some of their candies with us and Sherri and I taught the father how to play gin rummy, in which he totally beat us in the first round…beginners luck! Even though 3^rd class meant there was a little less space (beds are stacked with 3 on each side versus only 2 on each side in 2^nd class) we were much more comfortable and happy on this train which we later realized was specially operated by a tour company, hence providing a much higher quality of service.

We arrived in Siliguri by mid-morning and were swarmed by taxi and jeep drivers all clamoring to take us on the three-hour drive up the mountain to Darjeeling. After much negotiation we found a driver with small car that would leave right away and not try to squeeze any additional people into the car.

Darjeeling was such a welcome relief from the hot sticky city. The air was crisp and clean and the views were magnificent! Even the people in Darjeeling were different…a mixed culture of Indian and Tibetan people, whom we found to be much friendlier and happier than the people in the city.

Darjeeling, also known as “Queen of the Hills” is a hillside town located at an elevation of nearly 7,000 feet. Darjeeling is well known for its tea and we definitely drank a lot of it! At home Sherri and I are big tea drinkers, so it was really cool visiting a well-known region where it is grown. We visited the Happy Valley Tea Estate where we got to observe them plucking the leaves by hand. We also got a tour of the processing plant to see how the tea is dried, separated and made ready to package and sell. After learning all about tea we went to the Elgin Hotel for a proper afternoon tea, complete with fresh scones, preserves, sandwiches and all sorts of yummy pastries.

One morning we got up before dawn to watch the sunrise over Tiger Hill. It was awe-inspiring watching as the sun slowly rose. Lighting up the clouds, its rays reached the snow-capped peaks of Mt. Kanchandzonga and the surrounding Himalayan mountains. We spent the morning walking back to Darjeeling stopping to explore the various monasteries along the way. The Santen Choling Monastery was by far my favorite! We stopped there to have chai in the courtyard and you could hear the monks chanting from within the temple. We were invited to go inside, sit and observe as a young group of monks (probably around the ages of 7-10) chanted their scriptures. It was a very cool experience!

Darjeeling is a great place to visit for anyone that is in the West Bengal region. It is especially a great place to escape the heat if you happen to be visiting India during their scorching hot summers. We stayed at the Lunar Hotel, which is centrally located, has very nice rooms with great views and the Lunar restaurant inside the hotel is known as the best vegetarian restaurant in Darjeeling. We loved the food! It was the best hot and sour soup I’ve ever had! The room rates they first quoted us were a bit high, but they are willing to negotiate cheaper rates if you ask!

Sherri and I had heard so much about train travel in India…how it is a wonderful way to get around the country, how relatively cheap it is to travel and that some trains are quite luxurious. Loving to travel by rail we were excited for our 1st Indian train experience. We had hoped for 1AC (first class with air conditioning) but it was unavailable so we booked 2AC (second class with air conditioning) which was supposed to still be quite nice. Train travel in India is really affordable, our 2nd class tickets were only 1200 rupees ($25 USD) for an overnight train trip.

Sherri in her 2nd class bunk

Arriving at the train station was pure maddness…our taxi driver zigged and zagged like a madman in and out of traffic, nearly running over multiple pedestrians in the process. The station was packed with people…it was crazy. We boarded the train and found our seats/beds. Much to our dismay it was not what we were expecting. While all sleeper trains we have been on in the past throughout Europe and even in Vietnam consisted of a cabin with either 4 bunks (2 on each side) or 6 bunks (3 on each side) this configuration was much different. There was no cabin…just the 4 bunks separated from the aisle with only a curtain…and then in the aisle were two more bunks running alongside the aisle with only a curtain. There was no privacy or security. Luckily we had bought chains and locks to secure our luggage…but sleeping on the train was a bit sketchy as Sherri and I were separated…her sleeping across the aisle in one bunk and me sleeping on the other side of the aisle behind the curtain in the 4 bunk configuration with a grumpy Indian man who snored very loudly all night. Normally I sleep really well on trains but this was not the most restful night.

We were very happy to arrive in Varanasi, but little did we realize we still had quite a journey ahead. We were swarmed by drivers upon exiting the train station. After much negotiation, where we even got in and out of a few means of transportation we finally settled with a tuk-tuk…it was quite a ride (see video clip below)! The tuk-tuk was unable to take us all the way to the hotel (supposedly motorized vehicles were not allowed to drive any farther down the road…first rule of the road we’ve ever seen followed in India) so he dropped us off in the middle of the busy dusty street. Still far from our hotel, unsure which way to go and sweating profusely, we next got into a bicycle powered carriage who promised to take us to the door of the hotel, but he didn’t so we ended up walking down many skinny twisting alleyways while dripping sweat and narrowly avoiding the cow poop that littered the streets. The guesthouse was located right on the ghats (steps) of the Ganges River and our room had a nice view…the room was a bit dirty, but it was cleaner then the one in Kolkata!

We only had 2 days/1 night in Varanasi but we definitely made the most of it. It was fun exploring the tiny twisting alleys, that sometimes lead to a dead end…we just wandered around taking tons of pictures. Varanasi is known as the cultural capital of India, famous for its religious and spiritual lifestyle. It is one of the most important pilgrimage spots for Jains, Buddhists and especially Hindus. It is situated on the banks of Holy Ganges River, which plays an important role in day-to-day lives of the people of Varanasi. We took a sunset cruise along the Ganges where we got to see the burning ghats where you can actually see them burning the bodies and tons of people bathing in the river. We even went across the river and got out on the sandy bank along the opposite shore to walk around amongst the cows and people. The Indian culture is very, very different. The women wear traditional clothing such as saris or salwar kameez and even when bathing in the river the women remain covered, while the men bathe in the river wearing practically nothing.

After sunset we strolled along the ghats and watched part of a religious ceremony. We had planned to go out somewhere for dinner but the electricity went out (which it often does in India) so we decided to eat by candlelight at the guesthouse rooftop restaurant. They had a generator that worked some of the time and powered the lights and the fan (but not the AC) in our room…we called it an early night.

We got up to watch the sunrise and go on another boat ride along the river…it was really cool to see people along the ghats performing their morning rituals and prayers. We spent the rest of the morning wandering the street exploring, taking photos and just taking it all in…there is so much color and culture in India, especially in Varanasi. While roaming around we noticed that a young teenage boy (he was probably 12 or 13) seemed to be following us. He kept appearing either in front or behind us as we zigged and zagged down the narrow alleyways. At one point he tried starting up a conversation but we told him we didn’t want to talk and to please leave us alone. He continued to magically appear wherever we were…he then came up & asked each of us for a hug which we both of course declined. Repeatedly we kept telling him to go away. We tried ignoring him but then he walked up to Sherri, started unzipping his pants and asked for sex! She ran past me as she was running away from him and he ran between her and I, blocking my path with his dick out. I lost it…I yelled & screamed at him and then he quickly ran away. Good thing too, because a knee to the groin was the next step. Some nerve! Being a female in India is not easy…we had been forewarned by fellow female travelers and the guidebook that women traveling in India need to be especially careful. Unfortunately it is quite common for some Indian men to try groping women (especially western women) in public. We even purchased traditional Indian salwar kameez outfits, which hide the shape of your body, to try and discourage any attention, but with our light skin and my blonde hair we still stand out.

Me, trying to get some sleep while people hover nearby

For the night train back to Kolkata we were in sleeper class…we had thought 2nd class was a bit rough around the edges, but we had no idea! The bunk configuration in sleeper class was similar to 2nd class, however in sleeper class the bunks were stacked 3 high, there were no curtains, no privacy, no sheets or pillows, no AC and it was sticky hot! To top it off no one seemed to be checking tickets and there were way more people than there were seats…people were sitting everywhere and the aisles were packed! Sherri and I had the upper and lower bunk that ran lengthwise along the aisle. We both sat together on the lower bunk and didn’t slide the upper bunk down so that we had space to sit up. Several times we had people come by and try to unhatch the bunk above our heads. We had to explain over and over that we had paid for both bunks and just because we weren’t currently occupying one did not mean we were giving it up…we got a lot of blank stares but we stood our ground. Due to the openness of the bunks, our location right on the aisle, our experience with the teenage boy earlier that day and the constant flow of people getting on and off the train we decided it wasn’t safe to sleep as we could easily be groped or robbed. But we were too tired to stay up all night so we decided to sleep in shifts…I went to sleep first but woke up when a fight broke out right next to us…one guy totally beat two guys up! He was slamming one guys head into the bathroom wall and shouting…it was crazy. Eventually things settled back down and I tried to get some sleep.

Around 3am Sherri woke me up…it was my turn to stand guard so she could try to get some sleep. I wrote in my journal and stared out the window as dawn began to break. The chai vendors would jump on the train at each stop, stepping over people in the aisle calling out “chai, chai, chai”. For only 5 rupees (about 12 cents) you get a little plastic shot glass of chai. It tastes sooo good and helped me to stay awake. The train was supposed to arrive in Kolkata around 8am, however we didn’t arrive until 11:30am! It was so hot by that time and the journey ended up being over 17 hours! We were soooooooo happy to get off that train! Sleeper class should be renamed, as one actually gets very little sleep on it.