Kurseong

Everybody advised us against this. In fact we ourselves were not very sure. After all, “hills in rains” --- not a very good combination for travel. But when the travel bug stirs there’s no stopping. Thus we let go off our apprehensions and worries about rain, landslide and most importantly no Kanchenjunga views as they show in postcards! So after much speculation, research and about 15 days of googling everyday for any news of landslides or road blocks, we reached Kurseong.

“Kurson rip” in Lepcha, Kurseong is known to be the land of White Orchids. This tiny school town is often overlooked by tourists as a mere stopover on the way to Darjeeling, the more famous and preferred hill station in North Bengal. That was one of the reasons of us choosing Kurseong because we wanted to avoid the crowds and roam about on our own at our own pace. Kurseong has several schools and on the day of our arrival it was the last day before they closed for the summer (read monsoon) holidays. So this place was full too; with parents reaching to take their children home.

We chose Kurseong Tourist Lodge run by West Bengal Tourism to stay. The Lodge is a little away from the main town. It is on the main highway towards Darjeeling. Even though we had requested for a Deluxe room with a private balcony, as renovation work was going on we got a regular room. Not that we complained. The room was airy and clean. The windows offered superb mountain views. As it was monsoon, we missed the much coveted Kanchenjunga views. Otherwise from the windows of the room, the lobby and even the restaurant of the Tourist lodge, one gets lovely views of the Kanchenjunga on a clear day. Also the added bonus is that the restaurant at the Tourist Lodge serves excellent momos!

The star attraction of this little town is of course the Toy Train or the Darjeeling Himalayan Train which runs between Darjeeling town and Kurseong. The train leaves Darjeeling every morning at 10am. It reaches Kurseong by 2pm and again goes back to Darjeeling at 3pm. We didn’t have the chance to board the train because of time constraints. But then one cannot miss the railway tracks running alongside the roads through the small towns right from Siliguri till Darjeeling. The scenery must have been spectacular in some bygone era. But now it is marred by the concrete structures growing all over the hills and the ever growing vehicular crowd.

The town has some excellent walks around. The one quite popular is Eagle’s Crag which is approximately 3kms return. For those out of practice like us; this walk can be really tough at some point. At the highest point of Eagle’s crag there is a watch tower which offers fantastic views of the mountains around. When we reached the point, the clouds presented a spectacular “hide and seek show“ with the mountains.

Eagle's crag

This little town of Kurseong is surrounded by some very famous tea gardens. The legendary Makaibari Tea Estate is just 3 km from the town. Anyone visiting Kurseong should never miss an opportunity to visit the aromatic factory of this renowned tea estate. We met Mr. Chetri sitting in the outside retail counter for Makaibari Tea. He very warmly welcomed us and showed around the factory. But to our luck it was hardly 10 - 15mins and hoot went the bell for lunch! All the machines stopped, the ladies working inside the factory went out carrying their lunch boxes and water bottles. We came out and sat for sometime with Mr. Chetri at the retail counter outside. One can pick up small packets of famous Darjeeling tea straight from the retail outlet of the equally famous Makaibari Tea Estate. From “First Flush” to “Silver Tip” there are different varieties of tea available at the outlet.

Kurseong is the home for some vey famous schools. 2 of them are Victoria Boys and Dowhill Girls. Both the schools still retain some of the old glory of the British era in their buildings and surroundings.  There is a Deer park at the Dow Hill area; but it is very rare to catch a glimpse of the shy animal. Urban development and deforestation has taken a toll on this deer park. The forest department has prohibited to enter into the forest.

The Forest Near Dowhill School

Kurseong the small beautiful hamlet has now grown into a bigger town. We left Kurseong with one hope ;the growing traffic and concrete buildings must not destroy the essence of this place!

A quiet sojourn at Vasundhara Resort - Vayalar

I love Kerala and never get tired of going back again and again. As luck would have it, all my 3 trips to Kerala, I have only been to Cochin. Twice to Fort Cochin next to the sea and in my last and third visit, I stayed right at the backwaters but still away from the touristy hustle and bustle.I stayed at Vasundhara, Sarovar Premiere a beautiful resort at Vayalar in Alleppey district.

Located around 63 km away from the Cochin Airport, it takes about an hour and half to reach the resort. The resort also has the option for taking the guests by motor boat through the backwaters from a point. I would recommend this to anyone planning to stay at Vasundhara. The first glimpse of the resort from the motorboat is a sight to behold. Nestled amidst coconut grooves, the resort has managed a perfect blend between traditional Kerala homes with all modern amenities. What strike me most as a guest at the resort is the amount of waterbodies around. This sure gives a sense of serenity and calmness.

The lobby of the resort is designed like a Traditional Kerala temple. There are 2 big lamp stands outside and inside the lobby. The Lobby has rows of the headgear or Nettipattam worn by Elephants during any temple festival.The murals on the walls give the glimpse of the villagers waiting to greet the Tuskers in their full decor during a temple festival.

The main wing offers very spacious rooms with balconies overlooking the rest of the resort, including the swimming pool and the backwaters.

The Resort room my room in the Main Wing

They have a Heritage Wing which has rooms housed in a hundred year old Kovilakam ( Prince's Palace) and a Nalukettu ( traditional Kerala home). In this wing, though the rooms are much smaller in comparison to the main wing, one can enjoy the slice of history inside these quarters. One is welcomed to the Kovilakam by a Tulsi plant right in the outside courtyard / garden just like most traditional Hindu households of the country.

Apart from that, they have some floating cottages which offer the most luxurious experience in the resort. Each of the rooms in the floating cottage have private Jacuzzi overlooking the backwaters. For honeymooners, these rooms offer the finest experience with complete privacy in the resort.

There is a Chayakada which is a Tea Shop. Chayakada plays a very important role Kerala. This is the place to gather and discuss over cups and cups of Tea,various topics from politics to a news of the neighborhood.

Chayakada

The Chayakada at Vasundhara opens in the evening for 2 hours and resort guests can enjoy a cup of chai with snacks while the sun slowly sets across this part of the great Vambanad lake.

The Resort can organise a trip visit to a local Toddy Shop on a charge. This is a not to be missed experience in Kerala. Like Chaya Kadas, Toddy Shops are also an integral part of Kerala. Toddy is a mildly alcoholic drink produced from Date palms and Coconut palms. It is served with lot of local Kerala spicy dishes like crab fry, fish fry, Kadala curry etc. However the main dish which is served along with a glass of Toddy is tapioca with red fish curry. All foods are super spicy and very tasty. Well, if someone is not used to so much spices, he/she will surely find them hot!

Glasses of Toddy with the spicy dishes. 

The city centers of Cochin or Alleppey are slightly far off from the resort. One would need a vehicle to reach these places. But donot let that deter you from choosing to spend a night here. I suggest once you are done with your Kerala itinerary, on your way back home from Cochin, spend a day here. Get yourself pampered at the Spa, enjoy the cool breeze in the evening as the sun sets beyond the backwaters and the delicious spread the Chef Abhijeet and his team prepare every time. I am sure this will rejuvenate you to get back to your daily life again once you are back at your base till the time you plan your next trip!