'The Queen of hills' - Two days in the beautiful northeastern city of Darjeeling #northeast

In the soaring heat of the summer of 19, I decided to take a flight to the beautiful northeastern city of Darjeeling. Starting from a boiling 40 degrees in Ahmedabad I landed in Bagdogra and began my journey upwards. From the plain highways, the roads soon coiled around the mountains. A few feet later, as the woolens were out, it was finally soothing to peep my head out of the window and let the breeze tangle my hair. After going around plenty of hills, the city finally started to appear and within no time I was in the streets of this beautiful city known as 'The queen of hills'. I rushed to the room, just to slide the curtains away to take in the pleasure of facing a beautiful view in the mountains. That's when the gorgeous terrace garden caught my sight, I paved my way through the hotel lobby through a maze of places to finally arrive at the terrace. A beautiful sunset and an astounding view of the city welcomed me as I sipped my tea for till the sun had set.

The next day followed with a visit to the tiger hill early in the morning, from where on a clear day one can admire the views of the mighty Mt. Kangchenjunga. Avoid going to this place if you are traveling in monsoons.

Next was a visit to the beautiful Batasia Loop, which houses an iconic rail track and has been a stage to many Bollywood film scenes. Talking around to people and through a little research I got to know that the Batasia Loop was an engineering project taken up by the Britishers and was commissioned to counter a sharp descent that the toy train had to take. Also the place shelters a War Memorial opened as a tribute to the Gorkha soldiers of Darjeeling who sacrificed their lives. On a clear sunny day, one can enjoy the gorgeous views of the majestic mountains in the backdrop, but May isn't the right time for that. It was extremely foggy and way too early in the morning to be able to get the view but nevertheless, the pretty flowers were a treat to the eyes.

Ghoom Monastery was in the line next. A humble sanctuary housing a giant Buddha statue amidst the hymns of the holy prayer, the monastery was a peaceful place. It is usually crowded in the tourist season on usual hours, so its better to visit it early to avoid the crowd.

On the second day, I headed to the Peace Pagoda and the Japanese temple, where huge tall trees lay the way in. With the clouds in and no sign of sun, the place appeared no less than a mystic land. The upper level of the temple houses a prayer hall where one can sit back and tune along with the monks to chant the holy mantra 'Om Mani Padme Hum'. A walk through the beautiful garden leads one to the Peace Pagoda where is a stark white structure amidst tall haunting trees in the background.

The last destination on my trip was the beautiful tea estates of Darjeeling. Though the fog made it unclear to see the mountains, but it set a peaceful mood to the entire place. The tea sellers here smartly woo you into buying loads of teas. However, a hot cup of tea with the estates in the background marked a perfect end to my day in Darjeeling.