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Darjeeling |
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 Chowrasta
: What The Ridge is to Simla, The Chowrasta is
to Darjeeling. The Chowrasta is situated on the
ridge above the Darjeeling town and is lined with
shops and restaurants. It is an ideal place to take
a relaxed stroll under the watchful gaze of the
mighty Kanchendzonga range in the east and the
rolling hills of Sikkim in the north. Benches line
the Mall on the Chowrasta and if tired one can sit
on these and enjoy a few quiet moments. The
exquisitively designed wooden shops on the Mall were
constructed more than a century ago and still hark
back to the British era. A major attraction of the
Chowrasta are the Mule rides.. |
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 The
Observatory Hill : The hill feature above the
Chowrasta and a few minutes from it is called the
Observatory Hill, on which is nestled the Mahakal
temple. Mahakal is considered as the incarnation of
Lord Shiva. Adjacent to the Mahakal temple is also a
Buddhist shrine, manifesting the complete harmony
that exists between Hinduism and Buddhism. |
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 Himalayan
Mountaineering Institute : This is one of the
premier school of mountaineering in the world and
imparts mountain climbing training to enthusiasts.
Following the historical event of the conquest of
the Everest by Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary in
1953, the need was felt to establish a
mountaineering institute in India to promote this
sport. On 4th November 1954, the late Prime
Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru laid the foundation stone
of the Himalayan Institute of Mountaineering. The
museum of the institute portrays range of
mountaineering equipement that was used by various
expeditions as well as photographs concering them.
The Institute is situated on Birch hill park and
about half an hours walk from Chowrasta. It is open
from 8:30 am to 4:30 p.m. with a one hour lunch
break from 1 pm to 2pm It is closed on Thursdays. |
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 Darjeeling-Rangit
Valley Passenger Ropeway : The terminal station
of this ropeway, which has been thoroughly renovated
in 1998, is at North Point about 3 kilometers from
Chowrasta and near the Himalayn Mountaineering
Institute. Covering a distance of 2 kilometers, the
Ropeway drops steeply into the Rangit Valley to
Takavar Tea Estate. Floating high above the lush
green valley carpeted with tea gardens, the cable
car which is supported on a monocable, takes about
30 minutes to reach the tea estate and the ride is
certainly not meant for the weakhearted. |
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Step Aside : Located just
below the Chowrasta, this beautiful cottage was
where the famous Indian patriot and freedom fighter
Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das lived and died in June
1925. The first floor of the cottage has been
retained as it was during the life of Deshbandhu. |
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 Tibetan
Self-Help Centre :
About a fifteen minutes walk from Chowrasta towards
Lebong, this handicraft centre produces
woodcarvings, carpets and woolens which can be
purchased at the sale counter. Visitors are
permitted to visit the workshops and see how various
handicraft items are manufactured. |
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 Natural
History Museum : A few minutes from Chowrasta is
the Natural History Museum which has a wide range
collection of preserved reptiles, birds, butterflies
and other insects. A visit to the museum is a must
for scholars of natural sciences. It is open from 10
am to 4 pm and is closed on Thursday and half on
Wednesdays. |
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 Darjeeling
Peace Pagoda:
This monumental Pagoda is a recent addition to the
landscape of Darjeeling and is situated about two
kilometer from Chowrasta. The sparkling white Pagoda
rises 28.5 meters from the ground level and has a
diameter of 23 meters. Embedded in the wall of the
Pagoda are four statues of Buddha in gold polish and
eight carvings on standstone depicting different
stages of Buddha’s life.The Pagoda was established
by the Japanese Buddhist Order Nipponzan Myohoji.
Just adjacent to this Pagoda is the monastery
belonging to the same sect. The monastery was built
in 1972 in which year the foundation stone of the
Pagoda was also laid but it was not until 1989 that
work on the Pagoda began. It was inaugurated in
1992. It is an ideal spot to spend a few quiet
moments with the sound of the mystic peace mantra
“NA MU MYO REN GE KYO” from the monastery now and
then breaking the stillness of the
surroundings.Similar Peace Pagodas have also been
constructed at Rajgir, Leh, Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta,
Vaishali and the battlefield of Kalinga in
Bhubaneshwar. |
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 Dhirdham
Temple : This Hindu Temple which resembles the
famous Pashupatinath temple of Kathmandu, is
situated just below the railway station and was
built in 1939. |
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 Lloyd
Botanical Garden :
About ten minutes walk from the Chowrasta and just
below the motor stand is the forty arce Lloyd
botanical garden which consists of a wide range of
flora like chestnut, ash, birch, mognolia and maple
trees. Different species of orchids azaleas and many
other plants are also displayed here. A huge
green-house in the garden accommodates some of the
species that are vulnerable to the weather. Infact
this botanical garden is a true representation of
all the types of flora that is found in the
Himalayan region. The garden is open from 6 a.m. to
5 p.m. The botanical garden is more thatn 100 years
old and was donated by a British banker residing in
Darjeeling during the last century. The name of the
garden has no connection with Lt. General Lloyd.,
the discoverer of Darjeeling who sadly is unusing in
the town with not even a street of building named
after him. |
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 Bhutia
Busty Monastery : This monastery is situated
about ten minutes walk from the Chowrasta on the
path that passes besides the Step Aside Cottage.
This monastery was originally built as a branch of
the Phodong Monastery of Sikkim and was financed by
the Chogyal of Sikkim to build. |
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 Ava
Art Gallery : The art gallery is about 2
kilometers from Chowrasta on the way to Ghoom.
Displayed in the gallery are the fine art and
embroidery works of Mrs. Ava Devi. It is open for
the public from 8 am to 6 pm. |
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 Ghoom
Yiga Choling Monastery :
About 7 kilometers away from Darjeeling town and
just below Ghoom amidst fluttering prayer flags is
the Yiga Choling Monastery. This monastery belonging
to the Gelugpa sect was built in 1875 by the lama
Sherpa Gyantso and contains a 5 meters high statue
of Maitrey Buddha which was unveiled and consecrated
in 1918. The lower portion of the image of clay
contains sixteen volumes of the sacred commandments
of Buddha printed in Tibet using the xylograph
method. The interior of the statue contains precious
stones which are also studded on the surface of the
image. |
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Dali Monastery : This
monastery which belongs to the Gelugpa Sect towers
over the road and is situated just about two
kilometers before the Darjeeling town. |
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 Batasia
Loop and War Memorial : 5 kilometers away from
Darjeeling towards Ghoom the narrow gauge railway
line takes the form of a 8 figure loop. All
passenger trains halt here form some time to enable
the passenger to enjoy the scenic beauty. One cannot
help marvel the engineering feat, Batasia Loop is.
It was constructed with the purpose of allowing the
trains to take the sharp drop in altitude between
Ghoom and Darjeeling with ease. From Darjeeling
station, joy rides in the Toy trains can be availed
of to Batasia Loop and back. Batasia is a local word
which means “The Windy Place”. A war memorial was
constructed in the space within the loop in 1994. It
consists of a raised platform with a 3 meters high
bronze statue of the Gorkha soldier in mouring arms
reversed stance. There is also a 10 meters high
triangular cenotaph with the Roll of Honour engraved
on it. It is quite an interesting experience of
watch the toy train negotiate the loop through the
well manicured gardens of flowers with the
Kanchendzonga and the Darjeeling town in the
background. |
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 Senchel
Lake : Slightly ahead of Ghoom town and at the
base of the hill feature of Tiger Hill is the scenic
Senchal Lake which also forms the main water supply
system to Darjeeling. It is a popular picnic spot
and has a tourist lodge near by. |
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 Tiger
Hill : Situated about 11 kilometers away from
Darjeeling and at an altitude of about 2250 meters
(8500 ft), Tiger Hill offers one of the most
magnificient views of the Kanchendzonga, Talung,
Kabru, Pandim and Siniolchu which are all located in
Sikkim. In the North-east, the beautiful peak of
Chomolhari in Bhutan peeps over the Chola Nathula
range. On a clear day even the tips of Mount Everest
and Makalu can be seen far away. The plains of
Siliguri can be seen rolling below as far as the eye
can see. The view of the sunrise from Tiger Hill is
breathtaking. It looks as though a ball of fire is
emerging from the bosom of the earth and as it does
so the snowy range transform from a cold white to a
fiery crimson. As the sun rises, the mountain-tops
are lighted one by one then slowy the probing
sunlight enters the valleys revealing foests and
rivers. One should reach the Tiger Hill before 5 am
to be in time to enjoy the sunrise and for this
taxis are easily available from Darjeeling town
early in the morning charging Rs. 100 per passenger
both ways. On the way back to Darjeeling town, the
taxis halt at the Ghoom monastery and the Batasia
loop. A word of caution however: there is no point
going to Tiger Hill if the sky is overcast. |
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 Rock
Garden : This is a new addition to the places to
be visited at Darjeeling. From near Dali monastery a
steep side road downhill takes you to this
picturesque garden set within cascading waterfall.
It is a nice spot for a picnic. |
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