The Vajra Parrot Squawks!

Before I came to India I had this vision of Darjeeling as being some quaint, gentrified, ex-colonial haven surrounded by terraces of tea being picked by armies of women with baskets on their heads. Well, the latter image may still be the case but as for quaint and gentrified ... dream on.

I'm sure the town was, once, in its prime, an impressive sight: British-style buildings nestled on the top of the mountains; a refuge from the burning heat of the administrative centres of Empire during the hot season. Now, alas, it just has that feeling peculiar to most of India: fading, crumbling, neglected, dirty ... yet curiously alive in an inexplicable way.

There's never a dull moment. The senses are assailed at every juncture: earthy himalayan and sweet, perfumed Indian Incense mixes strangely with the scent of shit, meat, fish, body odour and car exhaust fumes. It sounds disgusting. It is. Yet it's also ok in a way I can't describe. As if it were meant to be like this. It's all part of the package.

You wind your way through the markets, up the steep, dirty streets to where the more modern shops are. You weave through crowds of a myriad of different people speaking different languages, haggling over prices or drinking tea, or just watching the bewildered tourists pant as they navigate in the high altitude. And all the while you have to keep your eyes and ears open for the taxi jeeps which intend to knock you over. Colourful fabrics, fresh vegetables and himalayan Buddhist artefacts are interspersed with faded billboards and mobile phone adverts. It's a sensory chaos.

This weekend is devoted to rest, in preparation for the next couple of months, so I'm taking the opportunity to sample the local tea (delicious, with cardamom and not too much sugar) and some local savouries at a pleasant restaurant cum internet cafe cum cake shop called Glenarry's. Later I shall do some shopping and then return to my spiritual home: the momo restaurant I frequented a couple of days ago - if only I can find the damned place!