EP 5 Darjeeling to Kalimpong, Old Bungalows, Colonial history of Takdah, Local food, Nepali folk
All the expectations that I had in mind while planning my Darjeeling journey... ...like what we'll enjoy on this trip and which places we'll visit,... ...I can say all those expectations are being met, one by one. Overall, this journey has been wonderful! Today you are watching the fifth episode of this journey. We left Darjeeling this morning.
We are going to spend tonight in Takdah. After spending a night in Takdah, we'll go to Kalimpong. This Eco-Park is just few KM from Darjeeling.
We will visit this park and then carry on with our journey. The first thing I saw when I entered the Eco-Park is all these Japanese Pine trees. It is a dense Pine forest. From where I am standing right now... ...if I look down... ...I can see a sculpture made in the shape of a human body. I can clearly see its head, hands, legs.
The sculpture is shaped in a way that in the stomach area, there are some medicinal plants. The plants are suggestive of remedies in case of stomach ailments. These plants can be used as remedies for stomach issues. For knee pain, one can eat a particular plant. Respective plants are placed on corresponding body parts, to indicate local remedies. Now, we are going to walk through this Pine forest to reach the lake.
For that, we'll have to walk down some distance. You will find "Shortcuts not allowed" written at many places here. Shortcuts are not allowed because this is a jungle area. In fact, if you climb up this mountain, the other side of it is a Reserve Forest.
As for wild animals, this forest is home to Black Panther, and the WIld Pig, etc. Though they don't venture out during day time, but at night, these animals are active in this area. Finally, we've reached the lake.
It is not a large lake. There is this lovely trail next to the lake. You can cover some distance on it.
So, this is all that is of the lake. If we talk of its overall size, it must be around 100 m wide. This place also has these flags, on which mantras are written.
It feels good to look at these surroundings, it is a natural environment. I am pleased with this place! While coming up to this lake, I was sure that this is going to be a pleasant journey. Though I was feeling short of breath but as I said, the air is pure.
There is one thing here that I didn't find at the foot of the mountain. It is the silence! I feel that if you want to best enjoy this place... ...you should sit here peacefully for half an hour and feel the silence. Look at the reflection of the flags on the water surface. If you sit here, close your eyes and meditate, you'll have a better experience. I have no idea how time moves here, it is already 3.10 PM. We need to have lunch as well.
Whenever I am doing sightseeing and exploring food at a place,... ...I keep an eye on the local spices and nuts. To take this idea further, I've launched a website, spice2nuts.com We are bringing you genuine and authentic spices from their respective places of origin. We are selling these spices in packings of 100, 200 grams. If you haven't explored this website yet,... ...you must visit it. With these spices, I want to share with you the same authentic travel experience as I do.
We have reached the Yangdup Homestay. I have with me the owners, Mr. and Mrs. Narbu. From the Lamahata Eco-Park, we travelled about 5 KM to reach this homestay.
First, I thought the homestay would be on the main road, but as we progressed... ...we travelled quite far from the main road. Eventually, we travelled about 3 KM into the interiors to reach this homestay. So, you've been here since when? Our own home is down the mountain but we started this homestay in March last week this year (2024). Alright! Yes! Let's do one thing, let's visit the homestay first and see the accommodation. You can also tell me about the tariff here.
After that, we can have the lunch that you've prepared for us. We are already late even though we told you we'd be here by 2.30 PM. This is the accommodation. This is the washroom. Our tariff is on per head basis and it is Rs 1500 per head. Rs 1500 per head! Rs 3000 for two persons! Yes! Are meals included in the tariff? Yes Sir! Three meals a day? Yes Sir! Ever since I began my tour of North Bengal, I've seen that...
...the tariff is always per head and not per room. Yes Sir! But I've seen that in case of Rs 1500 per head tariff, if a single person stays.... Yes Sir! ...then you don't charge Rs 1500, you charge more than that. Yes Sir, we charge extra for room and food. We charge Rs 1800 for room and Rs 700 for food. Rs 2500. Yes Sir! Alright! But nice accommodation, no doubt! Yes Sir! Thank you! Fantastic! Ma'am, either of you two can tell us what we are having for lunch? This is a local tomato variety of this place. This is Tree Tomato.
Yes Sir! This is a Masyam Dal, a local variety of lentils. This is the Dal in its raw form? Yes! It is the same Dal. This is Ghee-Chhurpi (fermented cheese and ghee). It is Ghee and Chhurpi made together.
This is Kofta (mince-soya balls) made of Nutrela. This is a pickle made with Tree Tomato. We make it ourselves at home. Fantastic! This is Rai Saag, also grown in our own garden.
This is Iskush (squash pumpkin) Sir! Rice is cooked with corn. We cook rice like this usually. What is corn rice? This is rice cooked with crushed corn and it is very good for health Sir. You mix it with rice? We mix it with rice Sir. Fantastic! What is this? We call it Gundruk Sir. I mean it is called Gundruk in Nepali language.
In our Tibetan language, it is called Lowchen. This is Aloo Chokha Sir. First, let me taste Rai Saag.
The Rai Saag that I ate earlier... ...3-4 times was very juicy as is this saag today and it is also ultra-fresh. This is the taste of home-cooked food. You may eat the same meal in a restaurant but the simplicity of a home-cooked meal is very unique. Oh God! Such delicious taste! I must have eaten Chhurpi at least 15-20 times before today.
But the taste of this Chhurpi is totally different. How do you generally like to eat Chhurpi? We eat it mixed with Ghee, like this, or as chutney or soup. Chhurpi soup is quite common. Yes Sir! How do I express it? This Dal is very simple, very tasty! The corn that you've mixed into the rice...
...has changed its taste completely. Yes Sir! Ma'am, does this Gundruk smell? Not too much Sir. But it will smell? Yes Sir! It has a smell. But not like Kiniwa. Yes Sir! Kiniwa smells a lot more. Yes Sir.
I feel that even if someone eats it for the first time, they would enjoy it. We can say that it has a different taste. I'd say that eating Rai Saag like we ate earlier & eating it like Gundruk are two different experiences. Yes Sir! The whole taste has changed. We are familiar with the taste of the tomatoes that we usually eat. This is Tree Tomato! Firstly, it isn't as soft as the common tomato.
One needs to chew it a lot on the outside, while it is softer on the inside. You eat is mostly in the form of a chutney? Yes Sir! Tomato pickle! Iskush curry! I am really enjoying the lunch that you've prepared for us today. For the past half hour, I've started seeing a view of Kanchenjunga from here...
...as the clouds cleared a bit, let me show it to you. You can see it on your screens! You guys live in a wonderful place! Thank you Sir! The tourists who visit this region, how do they reach you? They contact us through The Travel Monk Sir. Through what? The Travel Monk Travel Monk. Yes! Very nice! I will now join you again in a short while. After this, we will reach the place where we are going to stay tonight. After, approximately, one and a half hours later. The time is 7 in the evening.
It is now that we've reached Takdah. In Takdah, we are staying at Takdah Villa. This homestay is located on top of a mountain. It is dark outside, so cannot show you the surroundings. Let's see the room for now.
This is a double-bed accommodation. This room's tariff is Rs 2500, which doesn't include meals. Meal charges are extra. I find the weather of this place colder. Although we are at a lower elevation than Darjeeling but... ...it seems colder because everything is open here. Right! In this room, I've also noticed a chimney. When I reached here, hot tea was served to us within minutes.
I will have it while I show you around the room. Now, we will meet again in a short while. (Locals artists singing folk songs) (Applause) Very nice! It was really great to see your performance. I have to say, it was excellent! By the way, what do you for livelihood? We are still studying. Are you students? Yes Sir! Very nice! In college or school? College. In college.
Alright! Where do you go to college? We go to Darjeeling. Okay! Fantastic! Going forward, do you think you would want to perform outside the state or the country too? Yes Sir! We have a band, known as Manjushri Band! As part of the Manjushri band, do you go out to perform as well? Yes Sir! Wonderful! Alright then, let me clap for all of you! Good Morning! It is 6 AM right now. I got up an hour ago, at 5.00 or 5.05 AM. For a long time, I stayed inside.
This is our room, on the first floor, with a glass window. It was light outside since 5.10 AM, so I was enjoying this mountain-view through my window. Since the sun is higher in the sky, the view is not as clear anymore. But when I was looking at this view earlier this morning... ...I realized there was a very nice valley view down there. Not exactly down below, in fact, here you can see the Takdah village too.
There is a white-color building on my left-hand side. That is a part of Takdah. So this whole area is Takdah. In the centre of my view is the Teesta Valley, with all its tea gardens. If you look a little to this side, there is Mangpu and beyond that is Sittong. We already visited Mangpu and Sittong. In fact, the Sittong hills are visible from here.
However, in this cloudy weather, the hills are not clearly visible. Last night, the road that you see down there, brought us to Takdah. It was last night itself that I realized we were at a very high altitude. The view this morning is quite pleasant. The main attraction of Takdah, that I've understood since I've been here... ...is that you can feel the nature and experience the silence here. Let me inform the homestay owner that we're planning to leave by 8.00 or 8.30 AM.
Then, we'll do some sightseeing for the first half of the day that we are in Takdah. We'll also share with you all that there is to see here. Okay then, I will join you again soon. We are going to walk for about 400-500 meters from the homestay towards the Tibetan Medicine Centre. Here you can see a squash vine.
We eat this vegetable and it is called Iskush in Sikkim. People use its leaves as well to make food items. Its stems are also used for eating purpose.
In fact, people make dishes out of its roots as well. It's fun to walk uphill and... ...at the same time, I am feeling breathless too. Look at this steep incline. It looks difficult.
I've reached the Tibetan Medicine Centre. By 1959, the Chinese government had occupied TIbet completely. India was one of the countries that offered refuge to the Tibetans fleeing Chinese occupation. Around that time, there used to be one Chakpori Medicine Institute,.... ...where traditional medicines were practiced. The teachers and students of that institute started their practice in Dharamshala.
A few years later, maybe in the early 90's,... ...the Chakpori Institute was established here in Takdah, where I am standing right now. Ever since, this place is known for practicing traditional medicines. Students study here for a five-year program and then spend one more year doing practice. Thus, they receive education in traditional Tibetan medicine in this six-year-long course. Right! I wanted to see this place and find out some additional information about it. Now, we are going to walk back to our homestay.
There, we'll put our luggage in our car, and then meet you at the sightseeing point. In Takdah, we travelled for about a KM from our homestay. We've come to visit a heritage bungalow. I have with me Mr. Ravi.
Namaste Sir! Namaste Ji! Tell me one thing, how many Heritage Bungalows are there in Takdah, which, at one point in time,... ...used to be the living quarters of the officers in the British Army? How many bungalows are there approximately? There must be about 28-30 buildings here, including the bungalows and the barracks. It means there must be about 12 Officers' Bungalows.
And rest are single-men barracks. Rest are barracks. Around 18-20. 18-20! We've discussed with you that we'd love to have breakfast here, but we got late. Yes, of course, we were waiting for you to come for breakfast.
But we thought you were delayed. Before our breakfast, can we see the accommodation first? Yes, of course! You told me that at present, you are also running a stay facility here. Yes Sir! Right now, there are a couple of tourists here. Please show me one of your rooms. Sure Sir! You have a total of how many rooms here? We have a total of six rooms here. Out of the six, two rooms are like this.
In one corner, there is a beautiful seating space. This is a fireplace. Fireplace! This is the fireplace, this is living room and this is the bedroom. What do you charge for this accommodation? At present, the charges are Rs 3500 per room.
Rs. 3500 only for stay? Stay! My team members already had their breakfast at the homestay. Yes, Sir! However, since I had talked to you already, I thought I'll eat here. Thank you! No problem! You can have breakfast here.
Thanks! Okay! What is this pickle made of? It is made with tomatoes, onions, and green chillies. Very good! Thank You! There is one thing though. Yes! All my attention, right now, is focused on the clouds in the sky. Ohh! The clouds are moving. Usually, we see clouds moving like this in time-lapse.
But this view is without time-lapse. Yes! Clouds moving on top of the mountain make for such a nice move! Yes, it happens quite often during the rainy season. Weather change! Sun, rain, cloud move around in quick succession! But, it won't be as often now as the weather gets colder. Takdah seems to be picking up as a tourist destination. Yes, a lot! Is TInchuley part of Takda? No, Tinchuley is a separate hamlet. It is not part of the cantonment.
Takdah is a cantonment. They also have homestays but not like ours. The cantonment we are talking about, its reference point is that when Britishers came to India...
...in the beginning, only those associated with tea plantations got settled here. Then, it was the time of World War 1. And British soldiers started living here. You told me about the army officers.
Yes! Single barracks became home to Gurkha as well as British soldiers. I have also heard that the German POWs were also brought here and put to hard work. Sir, I don't know those details, but it could be possible. I've heard about it but I can't personally confirm that. Before leaving India, the Britishers sold these bungalows to affluent Bengali families.
Yes, there were Bengali as well as Nepali families. What I mean to say is that the Britishers got buyers to sell their bungalows. Yes! In Darjeeling, you'll see people don't generally ask for tea or black tea! The term they use is "liquor tea."
Yes! Am I right? Absolutely! It is liquor tea! He also showed us the tea leaves they use. One thing I've noticed in Darjeeling is the absence of CTC culture. It is absolutely minimal. I didn't see it anywhere. It is lesser. Very few people like tea with milk. What about you personally? We don't drink tea with milk.
You don't like milk in tea? No! We consume the liquor tea. We use CTC tea very rarely. As the habit is.
Yes! How is it Sir? It is good! Every day, when I have it, I wonder how the taste can be this diferent from the previous day's tea! Everyday the taste is different! You just need to develop a taste for this tea. It is also a little stronger in flavour. I was told that the best way to enjoy the Darjeeling tea is to slurp it.
Hmmm! Like this! You slurp to drink it. That is how you drink it. After tea, we'll visit a nearby orchid, which is at a 5-10 minutes' of walking distance from here.
Thank you that we got to spend a good 15-20 minutes with you here. Thank you to you as well for visiting us. Thanks a lot! Thank you so much! We've reached the Orchid Center. We've bought the entry ticket for Rs 20 per person.
Its timings are 9.00 AM to 4.00 PM. Thursday closed. Here, I found a list of names of Wild orchids inside a hall.
This list contains botanical names, flowering times, and locations where visible. None of these flowers' flowering time falls during November month. There is one flower with Oct-Nov. as flowering time. There is another one. Rest, all the flowers' flowering time has passed. This place is good if you want detailed knowledge about orchids.
Just like the other hall, this hall also has a list of Greek names, flowering time and visibility. As of now, I can see plants in pots, otherwise,... ....very less Orchids are available because the flowering season is over now. There are some flowers here. Some orchids are visible here as well.
This place has 3-4 such galleries here. Good! If you want to purchase a plant here, this is the section from where you can do so. Nice! For those who visit Takda, this is a tourist attraction.
Rest, we can see the tourists and get an idea as to how popular this destination really is. Now, let''s go and visit the Hanging Bridge, which is Then, we have more places to visit. We are near the Hanging Bridge. Did you know this bridge was more than 100 years old? It is made of wood.
At present, you cannot walk on this bridge because it has been many years since it was used. Basically, the bridge is weakened now, and broken down in several places. With the passage of time, this new bridge was built here. People use this bridge to cross here. The old bridge was used last till about 25-30 years ago.
It used to connect two villages. When the Britishers joined tea farming,... ...there used to be a tea factory in this direction. The mules or donkeys were used to transport tea leaves over this bridge.
That is how the tea reached the factory. Let's do one thing. Till now, we were watching the bridge from a distance. Let's go closer, up to the entry point of the bridge. Let's go there and see if we can find out more about when the bridge was built. Written here is the name of the company that built the bridge.
This bridge was built in 1916. It says here, "Load not to exceed 10 loaded ponies." It is interesting to look at this old bridge.
I really wish the bridge was still in use and we could walk across it. We will leave here now. Now, we're going to a viewpoint from where we'll have a panoramic view of the valley. Since this morning, when we set out for sightseeing in Takdah,...
...I have noticed the weather to be pleasant. It is moderate temperature, not as cold as Darjeeling or as warm as the plains. Second thing is that while travelling on the road, we see tea gardens on either side of it. Ever since we started seeing these views, we've been wanting to stop & finally we've taken a break.
When we look at these tea gardens from this height,... ...I want to enjoy this scenery by spending more time sitting here. Look at the clouds above. It feels wonderful to be in such an amazing place! Between 1860-1864, the Darjeeling Tea Company introduced tea cultivation to Takdah.
That gives you an idea about how long the tea cultivation has been going on in Takdah. Let's do one thing now. Let's first visit the Bungalow and then we'll move on. Since morning, I've visited 3-4 bungalows. I visited the first bungalow, a very old one, while on a walk outside the homestay.
Then we visited another bungalow. Another bungalow we saw when we were on our way here. It was built in 1911. Now I've walked up to visit the clubhouse here. I am standing outside the clubhouse, which, today, is the Forest Department Resthouse.
They have rooms of different categories. The tariff begins at Rs 2200, for a standard room. Then there are other categories of rooms as well. I requested them to show us a room and they've opened this Premium category room for us. You can book this room online on the Forest Department website.
The tariff of this top-category room is Rs 4400. Standard room is the basic category. Size-wise, this room is adequate. Good! One benefit of staying in a clubhouse is that it is a heritage property. Second benefit is this lovely garden outside, and some swings for children to play at.
There is no view as such from here because a road passes along its boundary. But yes, this place is surrounded by trees and lot of greenery all around it. Let's move on now. Right now, we've come to the Gumbadara Viewpoint. Yesterday, when we were travelling from Darjeeling to Takdah... ...we passed through here at night. So, obviously we couldn't see anything since it was dark. But now that we are here...
But now that we are here, it feels better. There are two viewpoints here, one is at a height where we are standing. The other one is there, which we'll visit later. First, let's go to this viewpoint. From 15th October to 15th December, there aren't too many clouds in the sky.
But I don't see weather like that right now. When there are no clouds, these hills make for a beautiful view! I was told that if you want high visibility, Nov to 15th Dec is the best time to visit here. As for watching clouds, you can come here anytime. Beautiful! Come, let's walk up to that point.
I can see the Rangeet river in the distance. It isn't visible clearly, but it is beyond the mountain in front of us. Beyond the river is Sikkim. It means the mountains in front of me belong to Sikkim, while I am in West Bengal right now.
Let's have a cup of tea. There is an eatery next to us. After tea, we will go to the second viewpoint. I have had to walk for about 100 meters to reach the second viewpoint. As for the view, it was better from the first viewpoint. That is our car parked there.
The additional advantage of this viewpoint is that it has tea gardens next to it. You can click photographs standing next to the tea garden. Rest, this place has 2-3 eateries too.
You can eat snacks here or have tea or coffee. Here you can park up to 5-6 cars, there is no such space available at the other viewpoint. This could be another reason why tourists prefer to stop at this viewpoint. Here, you can also don the local costume and get yourself clicked. It becomes a reminder of your travels.
It felt good to be here and let me share one important information before we leave. Apart from these viewpoints, the best way to enjoy this place is to go on a long walk. You can walk like this, right on the curb. You can choose to sit wherever you want.
Good! There is a paid toilet on this side. Now, let us leave here, we are already very late. We had planned to leave Takdah by 11.00 AM. But it is 3.00 PM and we are still in Takdah. I always enjoy watching the Sangam (confluence) of two or more rivers. Ever since I learned that Teesta and Rangeet rivers meet here, I was planning to come here.
Its good that we reached during daylight, otherwise I would've been disappointed if it was dark. Outside this Sangam point, this board read "Lovers' Meet Viewpoint." Lovers because it is believed that Rangeet is the masculine river while Teesta is the feminine river. That is why it is called the Lovers' Meet Viewpoint. I enjoyed watching the two rivers meet from this viewpoint. Rangeet river is flowing in from the left-hand side.
Teesta is coming in from the front direction. Since the colour of the water of both the rivers is different, we can clearly see the rivers meeting. It actually feels like watching a Sangam.
The river that leaves here is called Teesta, which is joined by a couple of more rivers and... ...finally, Teesta will join the Brahmaputra. The good thing is that we reached here in time. If we'd been late even by 10-15 minutes, we wouldn't have been able to see this confluence. Okay great! Let us spend 5-7 more minutes here. Then, we'll go straight to our homestay.
As for spending time in the Kalimpong market, that we'll decide once we reach Kalimpong. The time is 7.00 PM and now we've reached Kalimpong. We. in fact, reached here half an hour ago. I was looking at the Kalimpong market as our car passed through the marketplace. Our accommodation is located on the outskirts of Kalimpong. There is a place called Delo, some 7-8 KM from Kalimpong.
In the next episode, you'll see us doing sightseeing in Delo and Kalimpong. Our accommodation is booked at the Yuru Retreat. The tariff of their premium room goes up to Rs 4500-5000 plus taxes. I've booked my room in the lower category, Deluxe, which costs Rs 3540, including taxes. We are going to end today's episode here. I've told you tomorrow, we'll travel through Kalimpong and then spend the night at Rishop.
The day after, we'll go to Siliguri via Lava. That is the visibility of our next two days. It is bye-bye for now. Thanks for your time!
2025-01-09 05:35
