The road to Darjeeling

I am here in the mountains of Darjeeling on a crisp, cold morning. We flew in yesterday afternoon and made arrangements for a jeep to take us up the mountains to this beautiful area. There are many monasteries and you can see the Himalayas from here. It was dark when we got in last night and this morning I woke up to the most gorgeous view from the windows of my simple, sweet (cold!) little room. There has been some political upset here and there have been road closures and strikes the last few days.

We shared our jeep with a nice German fellow named Jerry. We got to know him pretty well after the 4 hour ride, sharing our most embarrassing and interesting travel stories. Jerry is very funny and lives in Singapore and works as a banker. He came and had dinner with us last night at the restaurant here at our little hotel. After dinner we came upstairs to the sitting room where there is a fireplace and it's so cozy. There is a group of Norwegians here who are medical students doing an exchange here in India who are delightful. They played cards and we and drank rum with them until late into the night. It feels so good to be among other travelers and find out more about what's going on in the world. In Calcutta I was very focused on the girls at Soma Home and didn't have much experience beyond that. But the experience was rich and full and I so loved my time with the girls. It was very hard to leave. I bonded with many of them, especially the older ones and we cried when we had to say goodbye. For now. I'll see them again soon and feel very committed to doing what I can to help at New Light India and at Soma Home.

Today we will go and check out Darjeeling and see what's here. There is a Snow Leopard preserve, a zoo, some shops and lots of hiking to be done.

I met a woman in Calcutta named Christina who is very worldly and is a big supporter of New Light and many, many other causes. She is Greek and has lived in Hong Kong and India for many years. She is friends with Angelina Jolie and they do charity work together. She has connections all over the world and told me to call her from anywhere if I need anything at all. That is a nice comfort to have. She also got me in touch with her friend who lives here in Darjeeling and owns a tea plantation. His name is Raj and Raj has invited April and I to come and stay at his plantation for a few days and see what tea production looks like. I am very excited to go and check it out.

We will fly back to Calcutta on the 26th, then out again to the Andaman Islands on the 27th. Back to Calcutta on December 2 where I'll spend a few more days before going up to Varanasi.

This trip has been such an amazing experience so far. I love it. I feel very much alive and vibrant out here in the world, hearing so many languages, seeing so many different kinds of faces. Especially now that I'm not feeling so crappy. There are times when I wonder if this is all really happening, or if it's just a dream. I hope it's the real thing :)