Nepal-bound

It’s my last night in India! After six weeks of travel through this vast, ever-surprising country, I’m headed on to Nepal. I had a great last day in Darjeeling, taking a ride on the toy train (its tracks are only 2 ft. wide!) with my roommate, Jen. We got off about 7k from Darjeeling, walking back and visiting two monasteries on the way. Upon returning to Darjeeling, I did several last minute errands and picked up a few souvenirs and Christmas gifts.

I had a neat experience when I went to change rupees to U.S. dollars, which I need to buy my Nepali visa at the border. I went into a sari and pashmina shop that also exchanges currency.  The shopowner, Mr. Poddar, guessed that I needed it for the visa and went on to tell me that he’d lived in Nepal for 45 years and still has a business in Kathmandu. He then proceeded to give me detailed instructions on exactly how to get to the border and beyond, when to be where, at which hotel to stay once I’d crossed the border and gave me his card to show to the hotel owner (a friend of his) at the border town where I’ll spend the night before heading to Kathmandu. While providing these descrptions, he also drew detailed maps of my destinations and a timetable of how long the various parts of trip would take. He even gave me his cell phone number since he’s headed to Nepal as well and said to call him if I needed anything. Karma in action. The random kindness I continue to encounter is astounding.

Unfortunately, my memory card reader is acting up, so I can’t post pictures at the moment. I’ll do my best once I’m in Kathmandu. ‘Til then…

Thanks for reading!