Jan. 24 : Darjeeling, India
Tuesday, January 24 :: Darjeeling, India :: 3km today / 2691km total
The train ride was happily uneventful and it was morning in Siliguri as we arrived. I found a very cheap hotel for my bicycle, rented a room for it for a few days, repacked, and left for Darjeeling. Soon enough I was in a share-jeep-taxi, heading into the hills.
The road twisted, turned, and switchbacked precariously as it climbed into the mountains. The surface was bad, very bad, and I was happy with my decision to leave my bike behind for this stint. Siliguri was a mix of "typical" Indians and Tibetan/Nepalese, but as the road pushed further into the mountains it was all Tibetans/Nepalese. Driving along, looking out the window, I saw some Tibetan girls playing cricket and I started to laugh. What a strange sight. Girls playing... any sport. I suddenly realized that, although I've seen many children playing sports all over India (mostly cricket), they were all... boys. This revelation was shocking to me, even though it was right there, in front of me. I watched closer, as we drove along... Tibetan women wearing eyeshadow, walking along alone or in groups... wearing a diverse range of clothing, and it wasn't all men along the road anymore, it was a close-to-even gender mix. What a massive difference. The women here were emancipated. The people were as poor as anywhere else in India. It was the same country, same government, same movies, same sports heroes. But Buddhist, and a different perspective on life. It was FANTASTIC.
Arriving in Darjeeling I immediately fell in love with the place. For one, there are no cows to shit and piss up the streets. Walking along the alpine streets I was not harrassed, "What is your name", "What is your country", "Come see my shop". EVEN in the MARKETS. It was unbelievable. The Tibetans left me alone. They didn't care. They didn't worship (mostly) or hate (rarely) foreigners, like many people in the rest of India seem to. Prices the same as elsewhere in India, living conditions the same. Again, in the streets of Darjeeling, a healthy mix of men and women. And of course the men weren't going apeshit every time a woman, even a Western woman, walked by. They ignored them too. I couldn't believe it. I've gotten used to the Indian-in-your-face-24/7 of the rest of India, but here... I was free. Anonymous.
These contrasts, the gender contrast and the harrassment contrast, were both a huge shock, a welcome one, but a shock nonetheless. I had come to India with an open mind, I think, and have been happy to give the Indians the benefit of the doubt when it comes to some aspects of their behaviour. But now... the Tibetans were showing something different, and it really made me think. It's still sinking in, but my opinion of the rest of India has certainly been tainted by my short time among the Tibetans.
I had plenty of time to think because I was sick. From what, I wasn't (and still am not) sure. The ride up was tumultuous and certainly the motion sickness contributed, but I can't pin it all on that. For the rest of the day I was bedridden, throwing up and making frequent trips to the bathroom. Darjeeling ranges from 6500-8000 feet, normally too low for altitude sickness, so I couldn't blame it on that... could I? I refrained from taking antibiotics (I was pretty sure it wasn't something I ate) but took plenty of Immodium, and was better the following morning.
The train ride was happily uneventful and it was morning in Siliguri as we arrived. I found a very cheap hotel for my bicycle, rented a room for it for a few days, repacked, and left for Darjeeling. Soon enough I was in a share-jeep-taxi, heading into the hills.
The road twisted, turned, and switchbacked precariously as it climbed into the mountains. The surface was bad, very bad, and I was happy with my decision to leave my bike behind for this stint. Siliguri was a mix of "typical" Indians and Tibetan/Nepalese, but as the road pushed further into the mountains it was all Tibetans/Nepalese. Driving along, looking out the window, I saw some Tibetan girls playing cricket and I started to laugh. What a strange sight. Girls playing... any sport. I suddenly realized that, although I've seen many children playing sports all over India (mostly cricket), they were all... boys. This revelation was shocking to me, even though it was right there, in front of me. I watched closer, as we drove along... Tibetan women wearing eyeshadow, walking along alone or in groups... wearing a diverse range of clothing, and it wasn't all men along the road anymore, it was a close-to-even gender mix. What a massive difference. The women here were emancipated. The people were as poor as anywhere else in India. It was the same country, same government, same movies, same sports heroes. But Buddhist, and a different perspective on life. It was FANTASTIC.
Arriving in Darjeeling I immediately fell in love with the place. For one, there are no cows to shit and piss up the streets. Walking along the alpine streets I was not harrassed, "What is your name", "What is your country", "Come see my shop". EVEN in the MARKETS. It was unbelievable. The Tibetans left me alone. They didn't care. They didn't worship (mostly) or hate (rarely) foreigners, like many people in the rest of India seem to. Prices the same as elsewhere in India, living conditions the same. Again, in the streets of Darjeeling, a healthy mix of men and women. And of course the men weren't going apeshit every time a woman, even a Western woman, walked by. They ignored them too. I couldn't believe it. I've gotten used to the Indian-in-your-face-24/7 of the rest of India, but here... I was free. Anonymous.
These contrasts, the gender contrast and the harrassment contrast, were both a huge shock, a welcome one, but a shock nonetheless. I had come to India with an open mind, I think, and have been happy to give the Indians the benefit of the doubt when it comes to some aspects of their behaviour. But now... the Tibetans were showing something different, and it really made me think. It's still sinking in, but my opinion of the rest of India has certainly been tainted by my short time among the Tibetans.
I had plenty of time to think because I was sick. From what, I wasn't (and still am not) sure. The ride up was tumultuous and certainly the motion sickness contributed, but I can't pin it all on that. For the rest of the day I was bedridden, throwing up and making frequent trips to the bathroom. Darjeeling ranges from 6500-8000 feet, normally too low for altitude sickness, so I couldn't blame it on that... could I? I refrained from taking antibiotics (I was pretty sure it wasn't something I ate) but took plenty of Immodium, and was better the following morning.
posted by Graham Durrant at 7:36 AM
5 Comments:
I'm thinking that you carry cases of Immodium on your bike...or that it is the one item, NEVER, to travel without?
immodium, ibuprofen, antibiotics. the BIG THREE that'll handle 95% of problems i can expect. plus my once-per-week malarial pills.
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