Back from Trekkin, Hello Darjeeling!

Finally back in the city after a long week of trekking in the Himalayas (specifically on Kachanjunga, located in East Sikkim). This morning we said goodbye to Arthur, our contact in Sikkim who has been absolutely wonderful. He will be missed as we continue our journey.

It's great to be back in the city, taking bucket baths and sleeping in a real bed. ...Someone is doing our laundry as we speak! I think everyone is pretty excited to get some clean clothes on. We just arrived about an hour ago to our hostel, located just down the street. I noticed they had an amazing book selection from other travelers and I'm eager to check out the selection! other group members have been rummaging through local bookshops and finding some great reads as well. There are many westerners in Darjeeling (at least on this street). Darjeeling is much like Bangtok; steep roads packed with buildings, dogs running around on the streets, although it consists of a different, unique charm that we all have taken a liking to. We're close to Nepal and so many of the people are Asian in origin. many woman rep traditional Indian wear, whereas many of the men look more western in style. In Bangtok we went to a small place called Live and loud and listened to a cover band. We didn't stay long... We're half way around the world; who wants to hear the rock music we grew up on? Our drivers tend to play mostly western music from the early 2000's. It's weird to hear music from middle school when we're flying through Darjeeling back country.

So, a little review on our trek... The first day we walked 7 hours up steep terrain. We were exhausted by the time we got to camp, arriving just after the sun set. The second day was better, walking about 4 hours that day. There were many waterfalls and great views of the mountains around us, although they were difficult to see most of the time as it was pretty cloudy. A majority of the group came down with a cold, so on top of freezing nights, most of us could barely breathe and spent a good amount of time with tissue in hand. My fleece liner actually kept me pretty warm at night, but I heard from a few others that the sleeping bags could barely cut it. We're all finally recovering from out colds (discluding Amanda and Jeff, who just so happened to walk out healthy as ever.) Besides the sickness, being on the trek was awesome. The trails were mostly rocky and sometimes wood was laid out to keep us above mud. Our trip guides led pack animals up that carried most of the gear consisting of ponies and yaks. It was fun dodging animal poo all along the trail ;) For each meal, 3 meals a day with snacks, we had a cooking crew that whipped up some really delicious food. Typically we would be served our large meal and then a hot pot of milk tea (when we got sick they actually made us ginger tea).

Here in Darjeeling many of us went to the zoo/museum on mountain climbing, while others spent time taking in the charms of Darjeeling, sipping tea and taking in its many delights. Some of our group members also visited a local monastery.

We will be here for a few days and then head on to Calcutta (Kolkata). Hope everyone is well at home! I know a good majority of the group is starting to feel a little homesick, so know you are missed!

Much love!

-The group