Having come as far as Gangtok from Delhi, it was only appropriate that we visit another beautiful city on our must visit list – Darjeeling. We were lucky enough to have got a reservation in one of the only 2 Attic Rooms (there are more now) at Hotel Viceroy, a nice hotel located conveniently at a walking distance from most of the tourist spots like Chowrasta and the Mall, and providing an excellent view of the Himalayas. The Hotel package that we had chosen was called the Spine Chilling Package, and it included a pickup from Gangtok, a sightseeing package which covered most of the sights that we might be interested in, a guaranteed reservation for the Heritage Joy Ride to Ghoom on the Toy Train, and a drop to Bagdogra at the end of our stay. Sounded good and it was.
On the appointed morning, our Innova arrived at Club Mahindra, Gangtok as scheduled and we were soon on our way. The drive to Darjeeling is about 100Kms – about 3 hours, and one can enjoy the beauty and serenity of the hills all around. A High Point of the drive is the Lovers Meet View Point from where one can get a breath-taking view of the Triveni – the confluence of the Rivers Teesta and Rangeet. The confluence in the valley below is completely surrounded by green mountains, while the road itself is surrounded by green trees on both sides – a refreshing change from the grey of the concrete jungles of Delhi-NCR.
More Pictures from Lovers Meet View Point are below : 
Our arrival at the Hotel was an event in itself. Perhaps they were expecting a honeymooning couple? A traditional welcome, the paperwork, KYC, and then we were escorted to our Attic Room (like a penthouse room) on the top floor of the hotel. Big room with a large viewing balcony providing an excellent view of the city below and of the Himalayas straight ahead.
Having settled in, we spent some time with the hotel concierge making preparations for the program for the rest of the stay, and most importantly to ensure that our reservations for the Toy Train were in place. And we were not disappointed. All taken care of. We were also informed that the driver who had picked us up from Gangtok (what a pity I cannot recall his name) would be with us throughout our stay in Darjeeling right till our drop to Bagdogra Airport. He was a good man, and we were happy.
Once all this was taken care of, we stepped out of the hotel to explore our environs. Walking slowly, taking in the sights, past the Mall Road, towards Chowrasta, arriving at the Ridge. At the Ridge, besides the horse rides and balloon sellers, there are shops right from the British days, photography studios like Das Studios still displaying B&W pictures of the Darjeeling of the British days or Oxford Book Stores, now selling the latest best sellers along with older historical books about Darjeeling. And then of course there are the Tea Shops, which is what Darjeeling is best known for. The most renowned of these is Nathmulls, one of the oldest in the city, established in 1931. Their Sunset Lounge, besides a great view, offers a variety of Teas and cakes, and free Wi-Fi too if that is what you need to bring you in. It’s definitely not the kind of place where you will get a glass of cutting chai, and the Tea Menu itself runs into a couple of pages. Each tea is described in considerable detail, explained how it is to be brewed and served. And just as you would never ask for a soda with your Single Malt, please do not ask for milk and sugar with your tea, the unadulterated taste and aroma of the tea is what you are supposed to relish. The prices start from about Rs. 50 for a cup and there are some exotic brews going for Rs. 1,500 per cup. I cannot recall what exactly it was that we had that evening but I do remember we spent quite a while reading up about teas, learning about them from their helpful staff and eventually picking up a couple of packets to bring back home. Just a little further up from Nathmulls is the Tibetan Market which is really no different from any of the other Tibetan Markets found all over the country. We got up as usual the next morning and had our morning tea on our balcony. A misty morning, but a good view of the city below and low hanging clouds straight ahead. Today was going to be spent driving through Darjeeling, walking where car access was not permitted. This was okay with us since we rather enjoy walking and do it whenever possible, often preferring it to driving through traffic and looking for parking. We visited the Himalaya Mountaineering Institute which was a good learning experience. Next was the Darjeeling Zoo, which has in its fold several endangered species like the Tibetan Wolf and the Red Panda, but left us saddened seeing the sorry plight of the magnificent caged animals. We visited the Peace Pagoda and the Japanese Temple and then took a break for lunch. Some pictures from our morning acclivities are below
Then we decided to go for a ride on the Cable Rope Way. The short ride over the tea plantation below was indeed exhilarating, but once down there, there was nothing to do except just walk around in the estate. The sad part was that the place all around was filthy, garbage and dilapidated cable car cabins scattered all over. We just hung around briefly and got a cable car back up. Surely we could find better things to do in that time. Some pictures below 
The next day promised to be really exciting. On schedule was an early morning visit to Tiger Hill in to catch the sunrise and then the Joy Ride in the Toy Train later that afternoon.
The sunrise at Tiger Hill is supposed to be among the most spectacular sights in the world, like seeing the Taj Mahal in the light of the full moon. It was a fair distance from our hotel, which meant having to leave our hotel at about 4 am. Even so, the place had begun to get crowded by the time we reached, but since we had VIP passes, we were allowed access to the VIP Lounge, which was at least a lot warmer than the open viewing gallery just below. We took our positions near a vantage window, it was still dark outside, and we waited patiently for the sun to appear. The light soon started getting just a little brighter and we looked expectantly in the general easterly direction, waiting. But alas, a thick cloud cover and a mist soon enveloped the sunrise point, and there was nothing we or any of the others could do about it. We all waited hopefully for a while, knowing fully well that the sun had already risen behind the clouds, but the situation did not change. Eventually, everybody started heading back, very disappointed. As we left, we were greeted by dozens of hawkers selling DVDs and CDs of the Sunrise at Tiger Hill. What an irony. On a clear day, you can see the sun slowly casting its light and shadows on Mt. Everest and Kanchendzonga , and you can even see as far as Namchi in South Sikkim, where we had visited the Chardham. Unfortunately, it was not our morning. We still managed a few pictures though 
On the way back, we stopped at the Batasia Loop. This is a complete 360 degree loop where the narrow gauge Toy Train takes a full circle. It is created as a spiral to enable the train make the otherwise steep climb safely, at a lower gradient, one which is not dangerously steep. The area is done up as a beautiful garden with colorful blooming flowers and luxuriant trees. There is also a War Memorial in the premises in memory of the brave Gurkha soldiers who laid down their lives for the country. At 8:30 in the morning, there are no trains plying and the entire area, including the rail tracks, turns into a flea market with women selling all kinds of wares from woollen sweaters, caps and hats, ladies bags and other fancy items. At the entrance, there are several food hawkers frying fresh hot samosas, singharas, and other yummies. They look all the more mouth-watering and are just what you need after a 4am wake up and a tiring morning. Rounded off with a cup of hot tea (with milk and sugar) and you are ready to face the world once again. Here are the pictures taken on that beautiful misty morning 
We spent much of the day walking through the main bazaar on our own and then at around 4pm made our way to the Darjeeling Railway Station for our Toy Train Ride. Toy Train is the name affectionately given to the narrow gauge railway train operated by the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. It has now been declared as a Heritage Railway. The complete route itself is about 80Kms and runs from Darjeeling to New Jalapiguri via Siliguri and takes 8 hours for the trip. This train is now usually hauled by a narrow gauge diesel locomotive. The joy ride is a shorter journey from Darjeeling to Ghoom and back, via the Batasia Loop and takes about 2 hours in all. The bogies used are modern and comfortable, but the train is still hauled by a vintage Steam Locomotive. The train started right on schedule, and stopped just outside the Darjeeling Station to fill the boiler reservoirs with the water needed for steam generation. Then we were quickly on our way. The tracks run just next to the main road and they criss cross at several places while we are in the city limits. About 10 minutes later we arrive at the Batasia Loop, our scheduled halt. And what a change there is from what we saw earlier in the morning. No food hawkers to be seen and the tracks are clear and free. You would not believe that these very same tracks were used by dozens of vendors just a few hours ago, had you not seen them yourself. The train halts here for about 10 minutes, you can walk around the garden, visit the War Memorial, take pictures of the mountains ahead, and then the engineer starts tooting, beckoning all passengers to re-board so we can be on our way. We traverse the complete spiral of the Batasia Loop and head on to Ghoom. Here are the pictures of the joy trip 
There is a 30 minute halt at Ghoom, which you can use to visit the Rail Museum located within the station premises, or you can watch the engineer unhook the steam loco, drive it to the other end of the train and hook it again for the return journey. The return journey is uneventful and all too soon the Joy Ride is over. We are back at Darjeeling Station and on our way to the Hotel.
The next morning, we would head back to Bagdogra, and from there winging our way back to Delhi. Like every morning, we woke up and sleepily headed to the balcony for our morning tea. Every day, we would be able to get a good view of the city below, but we never could see what was straight ahead of us because it was always cloudy. But today, even as we were rubbing our eyes and still trying to wake up, we look ahead and what do we see? A totally clear sky and a breath taking view of Mt. Kanchendzonga, looming at us clear as crystal in the morning sunlight. Oh my God ! What a sight ! It’s only when you see it like this do you realise how magnificent and colossal it is. God had been really kind to us on our last day in Darjeeling.
