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A birthday gift can't be better than this according to me - a ride on the Nilgiri Mountain Railway miniature train munching homemade chocolates, with my soul mate. We took the ride from Udaghamandalam (Ooty) to Mettupalayam. The train runs on diesel engine from Ooty to Conoor and changes to steam engine at Conoor. Not only the ride but the scenery too gets fascinating Conoor onwards. The chugging and puffing of the steam engine takes us a few years back, with the hot white puff of steam giving a fairytale effect. The huge mountains, numerous tunnels and the breath-taking bridges - increases the level of excitement and the adrenalin rush. Little past Conoor, we were lucky to spot a wild elephant running ahead of us on the track bewildered by the screeching horn of the train. It was surprising to see the steam engine run so fast, when it reached the plains. The ride is something to be experienced and not possible to express merely in words. The concept of Mountain Railways is flabbergasting!
It is easier to get the tickets for the downward journey (Ooty-Metupalaiyam) than upward (Metupalaiyam-Ooty). As the train takes the same route uphill and downhill it is not disappointing travelling downhill. Second seating costs you Rs.25, starting at 2:15pm and reaching Mettupalayam before 6pm.
Apart from Nilgiri Mountain Railway and homemade chocolates the reason to go to Ooty was to visit Keystone Foundation (www.keystone-foundation.org) in Kotagiri. In Ooty, Raja Lodge (0423-2443512, #5, Mannuvel pillai st, main bazar, near bus stand, opp railway station) is a good option with double rooms ranging from Rs.300-600, former with shared bathroom and the latter with private bathroom and water heater. While in Ooty, we were obliged, faute de mieux, to stroll through the Botanical Garden - very popular amongst Bollywood as well as south Indian movies for romantic song sequences. Thanks to the rains and low number of tourists, for proving the following sentence from Lonely Planet about the garden wrong - "Look out for a fossilised tree trunk believed to be around 20 million years old, and on busy days, roughly 20 million Indian tourists".
Kotagiri:
Nilgiris comprise of three popular hill stations - Ooty, Conoor and Kotagiri. Kotagiri being the oldest of the three stands at an elevation of 1800m amidst tea estates. The road to Kotagiri passes through one of the highest points in the locality of 2400m. Keystone Foundation in Kotagiri is an NGO working for betterment of the indigenous communities. The unique talent of few indigenous communities is honey collection. The organisation mainly focuses on honey collection and related products. They encourage indigenous people to collect honey the traditional way and keep a watch on ecological balance through experienced environmentalists. They market all products made my indigenous people and sell through the marketing label Lastforest. They have Green Shops that sells the products like honey, soap made out of bee wax, locally grown organic spices etc. These shops are to be found in Kotagiri and Ooty. They also run a Bee Museum in Ooty, which apart from having interesting facts about bee also showcases informative and educational movies (not commercial movies). The ride to Kotagiri from Ooty itself is interesting which takes a little more than an hour. Unlike Ooty, you will not be disturbed by touts or guides here and you can wander on your own in this clean town.
The pleasant weather and the welcoming people of Kotagiri made us stay in Kotagiri for a day instead of Ooty. Kotagiri enjoys a climatic advantage over Ooty in that it is protected by the Doddabetta mountain range from the onslaught of the south-west monsoon. Restaurant next door dishes up delicious Tamil Nadu style meals, but no dinner. Interestingly Kotagiri has got a lot of schools ranging from Government to International Boarding Schools. The main income of the place is from tea and agriculture, tourism has not picked up in this hill station of Nilgiris. Next morning we set off to Ooty to board the long awaited Nilgiri Mountain Railway miniature train. Stay at
Ramesh Vihar Hotel, HRM Buildings, Kamaraj Square (Tel : 04266 271346, dbl Rs 825), better than a few cheapies on the same road.
AAPSU elections caused a shutdown
in Arunachal. For a peaceful Christmas heading back to Cherrapunjee was a
better option. Thanks to Sathyan, tickets to Shillong on an APST overnight bus
was a big favour during the high holiday season. Frost bitten roads saw carols
and we spent two days organising games and movie show for kids at Mawmluh
village. Getting back to Guwahati to go to Darjeeling was as impromptu as the
last minute ticket. Contact Mukesh at 98460 54505 -3G Tours &Travels, Didar
Market, Opp ASTC, Paltan Bazar for your last minute train tickets. They get the
tickets somehow circumventing the IRCTC servers. While staying at next door
Daffodil Lodge (Tel 9864851737, dbl Rs 600) with shoebox rooms, relishing a variety
of foods in and around the market area is a guilty pleasure.
GHY-NJP Northeast train (7hrs, Rs
300 including commission for sleeper class) was pleasant, sans the eunuchs.
Classic Lodge run by Debashish is 10min from NJP station ( Tel 0353-2691673,
Mob: 98323-15933, dbl Rs 600) is good enough for a night. Take a share auto to
Siliguri Town station to find numerous sumos to Darjeeling. Avoid the agents
surrounding you, get a seat at the hidden counter next to Siliguri bus stand
gate for Rs 120, 2hr 30min ride. Kuttan at Madras Hotel was very glad to meet
us, he hails from Cherthala.
Toy Train
Siliguri-Darjeeling train is cancelled currently due to landslides
en route, the diesel train runs upto Kurseong from Darjeeling. The steam
powered Toy Train has two joy rides in a day upto Ghoom on its 2ft wide track.
You can book 120days in advance, Rs 270, 2hrs. The morning 8am joy ride was
powered by diesel engine at the time of this blog, check in advance if you
insist on steam. A cheaper option is to take the diesel version from Darjeeling
to Kurseong for Rs 27, 3hrs and you may take the return train.
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Every other building in Darjeeling is a hotel or restaurant. Tea
and Tourism Festival brought huge crowds during the holidays to this choking
city. The best value accommodation at Youth Hostel (www.yhaindia.org ) franchisee Hotel Broadway Annexe,
Dr. Zakir Husain Rd (Tel 09733022208, 0354 2253248, dbl Rs 440) was a steal.
Mystic Mountain restaurant on the same road dishes up delicious home cooked
meals -order in advance. They are planning to start a homestay in a tea
plantation including a pony ride.
Though the local to tourist ratio is very low, we were lucky to
meet a few during our stay. Most memorable was meeting P. Golay and his wife at
Hotel ShangriLa while sipping beer at the counter. He talked at length about
his treks to GocheLa and RocheLa while he was in college. He even gave us a
treat at the end of two hour conversation, which was a shocker!
Tiger Hills
Tiger Hills, 15km away is much
hyped sunrise viewpoint with 1000s of tourists and 100s of vehicles. Herds of
tourists flock this location from 4am in the biting cold, vendors and taxi
drivers making it more chaotic. If you have agoraphobia, get down from the
shared sumo (Rs 150) before the entry gate and on your left side there is a
peaceful viewpoint. Otherwise the heated lounge on top might be worth Rs 20. We
were not lucky to see the '250km range of Himalayas' but the moon setting down
was dazzling sight.
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Jalapahar
Yiga Choling gompa is a left turn
after Ghoom station, known as the highest altitude station in India. Taking a steep
concrete path towards right, we strolled up to Jalapahar cantonment- the first
British settlement in Darjeeling. Golay advised us on this 2hr lesuire walk
through army habitats at 8265ft gives, impressive Himalaya views. Road descends
to Jalapahar cantonment cutting through a pine forest, reaching Dr. Zakir
Husain Rd, close to Doordarshan building.
Darjeeling Zoo: Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological
Park
The zoo is 15min pleasant walk
from Chowrasta, located in a forest, housing rare Himalayan wildlife- snow
leopard, red panda, Tibetan wolf etc. Himalayan Mountaineering Institute boasts
a museum showcasing Everest expeditions. Mountaineering courses are offered,
get ready in advance by running 1hr everyday for a month to pass the physical
test of trekking 25km with 15kg backpack within stipulated time. Course fee is
subsidised, starting at Rs 4000.
Tea and Tourism Festival
Parikrama band from Delhi
enthralled the rock aficionados at the festival on Dec 29th. Bands from
Darjeeling and Nepal did well keeping a high tempo. Unlike Hornbill, this is a
festival for the masses with the absence of VIP pavillions. We relished the
local selroti and aloo dum at the food stalls, sipping various flavour and
flush of red, black, white tea in the price range of Rs 10 to 120.
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To view the majestic Kanchenjunga and neighbouring peaks without
leaving the hotel room, Darjeeling is ideal. Those who can trek for a closer
view, go to Mane Bhanjhang, 26km from Darjeeling, get a guide at the National
Park border for a multi day trek to Phalut- there are lodges and food
available. Tour companies offer 'deluxe' trek with all the creature comforts at
Rs 2000/day per person. Even better, for motorheads, there is a Land Rover ride
to Sandakphu! For a hasty one day trek, the best option is to stay at Rimbik
and trek to Sandakphu and return, provided you are really fit like Golay.
