Das told me about the trek just a fortnight back. He and Ren had missed out on telling me when they were planning the trip. I always wanted to travel to the east and this one being a trek, I didnt have to waste any time thinking. I got my trekking bag from Wildcraft (Alpinist -55L) that evening and I booked my flight/train tickets on the same day.
Following was the plan:
October 30, 315: Howrah Duronto to Kolkata
Oct 31, 7 pm : Reach Kolkata,
Nov 1, 350pm: Meet rest of the group; Saraighat express to New Jalpaiguri (NJP)
Nov 2; 2AM reach NJP; Cab to Yuksom. Reach Yuksom in the morning. Start 4 day trek to DzongriView Larger Map
A - Pune, Maharashtra
B - Kolkata, West Bengal
C - New Jalpaiguri, West Bengal
D - Yuksom, Sikkim
"Bhaiyya...thoda jaldi chalaiye na!" I told the auto driver. I was late for the train!
Das and Muneeb with our ride
I met Das and Muneeb at the station. The three of us got our berths in adjacent coaches. It was a long ride to Kolkata. We were chatting about our college days and friends most of the time. The only time we went back to our places was to sleep or when the food was being served. We didn't have to order food. It was part of the ticket as this was a non stop train. The food was pretty good and had enough variety too.
We reached Howrah station at 650 pm the next day. We had some time in the night to explore Kolkata.As suggested by a friend on the train, we walked towards the Howrah bus station looking for a lodge for the night. Next to the bus station there were few decent lodges which didn't burn a hole in the pocket, where we could crash for the night. We left our baggage there and got out to explore the cultural capital of India.
We walked along the Howrah Bridge. The first thing I wanted to get my hand on there was Rasgulla. West Bengal and Orissa are known for good Rasgullas and I love them too. We got into the first bakery we found and had few Rasgullas and Rasmalais there. Muneeb wasn't a great admirer of sweets, but Das and I relished having them.
After having the sweets it was time to have dinner. All three of us were starving; we met an elderly couple on the street and asked them for their recommendation for a good Non-veg restaurant. He suggested we go to Park Street, where we could find a lot of joints. So we took a taxi to Park Street( recently renamed as Mother Teresa Sarani), but Park Street was a lane with many branded outlets, pubs and continental restaurants. But we were in the mood to have some good Indian Biryani. There we met a group of guys in their early 20s who strongly recommended we go to a restaurant called 'Arsalan'. As we had time and enough patience we hired another cab to Arsalan which was in Park Circus road, a couple of miles away.
People waiting outside Arsalan
When we reached Arsalan, we found a around 50-60 people waiting outside to get in for dinner. We were a little upset as we were hungry and had to wait; but at the same time the long queue meant we were in line for some good food. We waited for about 10 minutes and then when inquired, we were told that it would take around 20 more minutes. So we decided to check the street until then. Right then a tram stopped in front of us! We looked at each other, nodded and then hopped in! Kolkata is the only city in the country to have a tram network (maintained by the Calcutta Tramways Company). Started in 1902, it is also the oldest operating electric tram in the whole of Asia. We had a short ride in the tram and then got out at the next stop. We then walked back; checking a small fair on the way. We were at Arsalan right on time. We got in an ordered some Mutton Biryani and Chicken Tandoori for us. We weren't made to wait a lot; we were served soon. The Biryani was pretty good; but we had spent few years in Calicut, a place known for its good Biryanis. After dinner we went back to our lodge and slept.
The next day we again hung around Park Street, Camac Street and Chowringhee Road before it was time for us to set out for our next destination. On our way to the station, we saw the Victoria Memorial and the Eden Gardens stadium. As suggested by the the Cab driver we got down in Babu Ghat so that we could take the steamer to Howrah.
Howrah Bridge as seen from the steamer
This time I reached the station with some spare time to go :). We met Nirmal, George and Rashmi at the station. They had just flown in from Bangalore. We chatted at the station until the train arrived. The train (Saraighat express) left the station at 3.50pm. We played poker on the train for sometime, after I gave others a quick poker 101. We found people selling all sorts of things on the train; snacks, sweets, cold drinks, tea n coffee, bioled eggs, saris, stationaries, electronic items and many more things! After we had our dinner, Das, Nirmal and I sat there talking. Others went to sleep. We were expecting to touch New Jalpaiguri in a couple of hours. And a cab ride later we were scheduled to start our trek.
It was going to begin the next day; on Day 4!
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