Carpenters in Honduras: September 2011

We just returned from an amazing trip to Darjeeling with our friends Violeta and Ramunas. The flight up was very uneventful but the drive from the airport to Darjeeling was quite an adventure. I think it possibly was the worst road I have ever been on and we were on it for almost 4 hours. Once we arrived to Darjeeling and found our hotel we had to literally hike up to reception… mind you we are 7,000+ ft above sea level… no joke if you are carrying all of your luggage and a toddler.

Our room was simple and big; great for little Desmond to run around and expel his energy. It might be a good time to note that our room was a 112-stair hike from the ground!! I am not kidding. We walked 112 stairs each and every time we wanted to get to the room!

Darjeeling is beautiful and we really lucked out with decent weather. It would be raining in the morning but stop by the time we got ready to go out. We had 2 great mornings with clear skies in which we were able to see the Himalayas.

We did a fair amount of walking every day… to the point of exhaustion by everyone (a lot of hills). I think I exceeded my own expectations being 5.5 months pregnant and either carrying Desmond or a backpack. Of course Desmond was a huge hit and everyone wanted to see him. Tibetans only look and are extremely friendly people so we didn’t mind all the attention (I usually draw the line when people start touching him with dirty hands). We saw a lot of great sites but the two biggest highlights were the zoo and the toy train.

This is probably the nicest zoo I have seen, ever! The animals seemed happy and well cared for. Desmond absolutely LOVED the monkeys: they started to play in their cage, which made him laugh and encouraged them to play around more. This made him laugh harder! The show went on for about 5 minutes (I wish we had a video camera with us).

The toy train was pretty interesting as well, except that Des and I were covered in coal by the time we reached our destination. Desmond now has an obsession with trains!

Overall, we had a great time. The company was great and the food was tasty. I was able to satisfy my momo (steamed dumplings) cravings and enjoyed a lot of good tea. This is a place we can only hope to return to one day.