Darjeeling

If you do make a trip to Sikkim, it can be easily paired up with a trip to Darjeeling as well.

Until the 19th century, Darjeeling was a part of the Kingdom of Sikkim. However, it was lost to the Gorkhas since, and is now part of the state of West Bengal.

The British introduced tea Plantations in and around Darjeeling in India in 1841. A British civil surgeon experimented with stolen seeds from China, and ever since, Darjeeling tea has taken off in a big way. As any avid tea drinker will tell you, Darjeeling tea is considered some of the finest in the world. Though categorized as Black tea, Darjeeling tea is not completely oxidized, making them closer to Oolong tea. Light-flavored, and golden colored, they have a unique musky spiciness (known as muscatel) to them.

Darjeeling tea is patented and like Champagne, Bordeaux, Cognac, and other region specific food and drink, enjoys a protected designation. In other words, Tea grown exclusively in this region under conditions specified by the Tea Board of India can be labeled as such. The region only produces 10,000 tons annually, however, globally more than 40,000 tons are sold. Go figure! Look for the Tea Board of India’s Darjeeling certification mark when you buy yours. I brought home some really good Oaks Muscatel 2nd flush and it was fantastic!

On our drive to Darjeeling

The red panda is endemic to the temperate forests of the Himalayas, and ranges from most of Sikkim (India), South East Tibet, Assam (India), Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar (Burma). They are supposed to be nocturnal, but the ones we saw were very active in the day.

Here’s a bear after my own heart. An Asian black bear, also known as the white chested bear that calls most of the Himalayas home, the joker looked up just once, and almost with disdain at the throngs gathered at the Himalayan zoo in Darjeeling, and promptly went back to sleep, totally oblivious to the rest of the world! Sweet dreams my friend…

None of the National Geographic documentaries prepare you for how majestic and graceful the big cats look!! This leopard stared back straight at my lens for a magical few moments. My brother and I waited patiently for a good picture of a Royal Bengal tiger – the national animal of India, but gave up eventually. It takes a lot of patience for photographing wildlife, and that too in a zoo; I can only imagine how difficult it must be for wildlife photographers to photograph them in their natural habitat.

Mt. Khangchendzonga lords over Darjeeling

Monastery in Darjeeling