goodelf06: 1 December From Gangtok to Kalimpong

Before leaving today I remembered we hadn't recorded the fact that Millie was in Gangtok so here is the evidence.

Famous Sikkim beer (so I'm told)

Steve and I went for a walk up the road beside our hotel trying to get a photo depicting the view of the kaliedoscope buildings from the top to the bottom of the mountains without much success.

Kalimpong is a Bhutanese word meaning, “home of King Minister”. It is a hub of trade between Tibet and India. It seems Sikkim was a weak country which was often invaded. First the Bhutanese took Kalimpong and then along came the British who took it and gave it to Bengal.

The Lepcha people are the original inhabitants. Kalimpong for the Lepchas was an amphitheatre for sport at the top of the hill. Apparently they excel at archery.

A Lepcha man. Not a very common sight.

The journey took us beside the Teesta River again to the border check point at Rangpo and then to the turn off to Kalimpong. We saw three massive dams built for hydro power. We arrived at about midday and checked into an old hotel; I'm guessing mid 19^th century. The name of the hotel is the Kalimpong Park Hotel and once again it was on what looked like the highest point above the town. The front verandah had very old cane furniture and I could just picture the English ladies in their finery taking tea and tiffins on the verandah.

After checking in we went to see a Cactus Garden. I thought ho hum..... but once there I couldn't believe it. There were many sheds with beds of cacti and the plants were being grafted with different varieties. Kalimpong is a place of flowers anyway, but now the people are becoming very interested in cactus.

At this cactus nursery, new varieties are being produced using grafting techniques.

Next, we were driven into town to see the open-air market which only happens on a Wednesday and Saturday. This is the market hub between Tibet and India. We saw: beer making yeast from rice, pots for drinking the beer, tobacco which we were told is for chewing, spices, lentils, aluminium chests full of tea, all sorts of fruit and vegetables, home-made butter being cut and wrapped in leaves, fish fresh and dried, lots of shoes and clothing, etc. It is an amazing place.


Wrapping butter in a leaf for sale.

Fresh fish from lakes and rivers.

Yeast for beer making and the terracotta mugs they drink it from.

A games section at the market. A game similar to pool but played by flicking.

Tobacco, seeds and spices

During our time up the mountains I couldn't help but notice some very small people who came up to about my chest. The women all had elaborate gold rings in their noses. Kiran said these are Nepalese people but neither Steve nor I could remember seeing such small people when we were trekking in Nepal in 1981.

People all over the mountain do much of their living outside their houses which actually means on the street. So when they are cold, they light a fire and all sit around it. The traffic just has to take second place. They also clean their teeth, and wash outside beside their houses. I saw small children sitting on low stools, wet all over and then being soaped up before the sploosh of water to rinse.

We also went to see another monastery. This one we were allowed to take photos in. I learnt the meaning of: “Om mane padme hum” which is “Oh, jewel in the lotus”, so a call to Buddha to hear the prayer. Many of the monasteries have a library. Shelves to the left of the central shrine contain teachings of the Buddha and those to the right contain teachings from masters since Buddha.