Thursday 9 February 2012

Day 4-6 of 112: Mirik, West Bengal province, India

After taking 2 flights and a 42 km trek along a winding mountain road (during which I said more prayers than I care to remember) we arrived in Mirik. Well Mirik must have once been a beautiful village along a lake, but now its a bit of a shit hole, more like a shanty town. Nice people, good food, lovely tea and very cheap, but freezing cold and we were more than happy to leave the next day after a quick visit to the local monastery (during which the monks refused to acknowledge us and I noted the one was wearing pink crocs!)

We left Mirik in a private taxi, only to crash into another taxi 20 km further along the mountain. (picture a steep, narrow road 2000m high, with mist and rain, a long line of traffic blocked by us and 2 drivers and half the Nepalese village arguing with each other (we crashed very close to the Nepal border post). So after 2 hours of this (and a pee in the tea plantation cos there were no toilets at the border post), we returned to Mirik, had to explain to half the village that it was not our driver's fault, and then caught another taxi to Darjeeling.

So here we are....a bigger version of Mirik, with views of the Himalayas which we are still waiting to see because of the mist...but tomorrow we go trekking in the Sandakpu mountains (we are near Nepal and thus somewhere close to Everest) for 5 days....more cold, hours of walking, but worth it to see Wim happy...wish us luck....photos to follow)

S and W

3 comments:

  1. Good luck Sheron and Wim, Crocs are taking over the world eek, sheesh guys, look after yourselves and enjoy the beautiful landscapes!

    Enjoying the blog, it feels like I'm there with you guys. Maybe I should'nt be drinking too much tea hey. Sms you soon, have an amazing 5 days, keep warm and be safe.

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  2. Sounds like the making of the Hangover 3! Take care of each other:-) xx As & Kurt

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  3. Hey u crazy kids!! Glad to hear ur ok & having an amazing time ...croc-wearing monks?? Oi!!travel safe...hugs!!

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