Some people say that if you can drive in India, you can drive anywhere in the world. Others are more specific. They say that if you can drive in Calcutta, you can drive anywhere in the world. Some people are even more specific. They say that if you can drive in Calcutta and Darjeeling, you can drive anywhere in the world. I think the last set of people are right. You can drive anywhere in the world - even on a Formula 1 race track.Jeeps on the slopes around Darjeeling are convenient and cheap. If you have the time, the toy train is touristy and picturesque, but jeeps are more practical. The roads overlook the green valley that is so spectacular that it takes my breath away. Nothing can compare with hill-beauty - the firm green trees, the feeling of freshness, and the clouds caressing your face as you walk.The problem, though, is that your heart is in your mouth so often that you look … [Read more...]
No Television
I moved into a flat that looked as if it had been painted by the landlord himself. It had definitely been painted by someone who had never painted anything before. I loved the flat despite that, though, and I particularly liked my landlord and landlady. They were extremely curious about a girl who wanted to live all alone. More than that, they were curious about this girl who had come all the way from Pune to live in their beloved Calcutta and study there. And most of all, I was a rare specimen because I spoke little Bangla.As helpful neighbours, they came to talk to me even before I had moved in. They asked me what I did and my landlady suggested to me where I should put my bed and other things."I don't have a bed," I said apologetically."Oh, okay, okay." That was normal. "You can put your TV here.""I don't have a TV.""Oh!" That was not normal. "No TV?"I … [Read more...]
Cycle Rickshaw
When I went to Kolkata for my entrance exams, I stayed with a friend's family. The first day there, Uncle took me in a cycle rickshaw. He warned me, "Don't pay more than 8 rupees to these rickshaw-wallahs. They'll charge you anything. They know you don't come from Calcutta."I listened and nodded and cringed as the rickshaw-wallah bumped us over steep slopes and potholes. His lungi was torn. He was barefoot.Uncle dropped me at the university and went home.To get home myself, I diffidently approached a cycle rickshaw. If I knew my way home, I know I would simply have walked. "Golf Green?" I asked, hopefully.The man lowered his eyes. Realising I definitely did not speak Bangla, he said for me in Hindi, "Bees (20) rupaya."I nodded gratefully. I cringed and clenched my hands as he laboured all the way home.When I reached, Uncle asked how much I paid."Eight rupees," I said, … [Read more...]