After leaving Kolkata we end up driving past endless rice fields. Someone told us that there is only one grain on each plant, and we want to check it out ourselves. During a break we pull out a rice plant to see if we can find a grain of rice, but it appears empty. In the evening we arrive in Baharampur. We decide to stop here because in Eastern India it’s not easy to find a place to sleep outside the larger cities. We spend the night in a really nice hotel this time, it was mainly the included breakfast and the parking space for motorbikes that persuaded us. For the first time in a long time, we are able to take a hot shower (in Delhi and Kolkata, we had to use a bucket of warm water, nice but not the same). In the morning we enjoy a delicious breakfast with Christmas music on the background. After breakfast we watch a movie in our room and we leave around noon. The road becomes more crowded and dusty again and we lose a lot of time due to a long line of trucks which are standing still on the highway. We don’t know why this is but we saw this a few times already in India.

This Idiot tried to overtake using a one Meter high Road Shoulder!

We stop for the night in Kishanganj, a town close to Bangladesh. Due to the proximity of the border, we have to fill out more paperwork than usual. Normally there would also be a police officer coming to check on us, but he never showed up. The next day we leave for Darjeeling, a hill station world famous for its tea.

The Famous Toy Train in Darjeeling

The road zigzagged up the mountain. We have never had such a nice view, because there are no trees or bushes along the side of the road. Here we have to pay toll for the bike for the first time since Turkey. It’s a small amount and the road is definitely worth it.

Stunning Views Along the Road

When we arrive in Darjeeling, we decide to drive on, as it turns out to be quiet a big city. We attempt to drive straight to Sikkim, which was once a separate country, but joined India in 1975. Now tourists still need a permit to enter Sikkim, although this is free of charge and they hand this permit out at the border. We decide to take a small road and according to local people, we can enter Sikkim via a bridge further down the road. When we arrive at the bridge, this one seems to be a worn, living footbridge and even the people we meet at the bridge advise us to not to try it with our heavy motorbike.

At least We Got a Nice Picture...

Then we turn back, up the mountain to Darjeeling. It starts to get dark now and the road is quite bumpy so we stop at a forester’s house. We ask if we can set up our tent, because we don’t want to drive in the dark. The foresters hesitate for a moment and they call their boss for permission. At that time we have a déjà-vu (remember Ooty). This time we are more Lucky though: we get a private house with our motorbike locked in a garage and we are invited for dinner with the forester’s family. Besides the fact that their dogs attacked Kevin (fortunately they only had bitten in his pants), we've had a very pleasant evening.

Our Own Forrester's House

When we wake up, we leave for Darjeeling, so we can take the main road to Sikkim, which starts here. Again we enjoy beautiful views and nice weather. However, when we arrive at the border of Sikkim, they tell us we need a permit in advance. Apparently, there are two border crossing where the permit is available but that’s far from here. Then again back to Darjeeling where we quickly find a cosy hotel and immediately book two nights. The next day, we go to get the permit for Sikkim. In the office of the permit we meet Ben, our English friend who is also joining the group through Myanmar. We have a quick chat and then he leaves for Sikkim. We go to a mechanic, because it’s time to change our brake pads.

Our Mechanic

Here we spend five hours because, incredibly, that’s how long it takes for an Indian mechanic. Finally everything is in order so we are ready to leave for Sikkim the next day.

The Area Around Darjeeling

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