I know I’m skipping a few days but Sunday was such a special day that I have to write about it first. It really begins with Friday, our ‘Darjeeling Day’ when we were all assigned a ‘guardian angel’… a SASAC student who would be our guide to Darjeeling. Our angel was Rakesh, a 13 year old, bright as a whip.

We had a good day in Darjeeling and the weather was clear. It took two hours of bouncing jeep ride to cover the 35 km up.

So on Sunday, we were to meet Rakesh’s family. First we drove about 45 minutes up the Darjeeling road (again!) to Sindona where Rakesh wanted us to see the large Tibetan Buddhist Monastery. After viewing all of the site and two separate Buddhist temples (one with a revered, mummified, enlightened one), and a cup of salty Tibetan tea, we headed down a side road to the small village where Rakesh lives. Down, down, down, with switchbacks every 20 m or so. A steep, rugged road lined houses, small shops, everyone out because it was a special day- a Tikka day in which children go home to be honoured by their parents! (a novelty… children’s day instead of Mother’s day). So the road got rougher and rougher but after about 30 minutes we arrived at a surprise, a grotto with a beautiful garden and statue of Christ in the garden. Then our driver after some discussion decided to take his jeep further (against local advice) and the road became a sort of cobbled track through an area that will become a tea garden when the plants mature in a few more years.

Then the jeep could go no further and Rakesh lead us down a rugged path to the house of his uncle. Everyone came out to greet us. Rakesh said that we were the first Canadians to visit his village. Lots of pictures in various configurations, tea, fruit and fried pork rind (a delicacy, prepared especially for us) an appreciation of a bible, carefully unwrapped and shown to us by one of his aunts, and more photos.

Jane admired Rakesh’s brother’s ‘green house’… they bonded over his plants and I had to tear Jane away to walk on to Rakesh’s home. The first home had been very simple but this one was simpler still. One small room, (many of you will have larger cupboards off your master bedroom), the room held the bed, the closed two shelf cupboard of plates (2), glasses(3) …. you get the idea. All proudly displayed. Rakesh’s 30-year old father is blinded by exposure to intense light reflected from the high mica content of the soil. He seems almost a child, bewildered by the tragedy that has befallen him. Rakesh’s mother is as thin as a rail (we suspect that she goes without, while her husband and children eat), she gets part time work as a tea picker but there are NO services of any kind to help them. (Save that they allow their bright young man to live and go to school at SASAC to help relieve their burden of family to feed and care for.) They are essentially squatters, so far out, that no one bothers to displace them.

We were honoured by Rakesh’s father placing a Tikka mark on our heads, to welcome us into their family. Then we (two) ate a meal of rice, thin dal, radish and lettuce with a side dish of one or two bits of chicken, while about 5 adults watched. After more talk about Canada, travels in India and more photos, it was time to begin to head home to Kurseong again. Rakesh’s mother scampered ahead of us, and took a quick route down to her relatives to tell the driver that we had cut across to the car track and our incredible journey down the mountain ended with Jane and Rakesh’s mother hugging and agreeing that her son was a lovely young man. She was so happy that she could have an extra day with him, our driver felt that he could find his way back out so we waved goodbye and started the long journey back up (one that Rakesh walks, in order to return to SASAC during the week).

This was easily the most emotional event of trip that has already had so many such moments. A picnic today with the SASAC family, then on Wednesday, we’ll move on to Sikkim and this part of our journey will have become memories. We’ve resolved to continue to remain in contact with Rakesh and through him with his (our) family. Pictures of Rakesh and family at http://www.kitandjane.ca/trip_pix/