I was up at 5 Wednesday morning, unable to fall back asleep because I had gone to bed so early. I listened to music as the sun rose, and around 7 I started packing. It was our last day at the farm, and after breakfast we loaded up the vans once more for our new destination: the Makaibari Tea Estate. We all felt bad, as Teddy was too sick to come yet. The rest of us had more or less recovered (or so we thought).
After a few hours of driving, with stunning glimpses of Kanchenjunga, we submitted Tiger Hill just after noon. As we came around the corner, the Himalayas--in all their magnificent glory--stretched out before us. It was unbelievably beautiful. We even got to see Mount Everest!! (It was tucked behind some clouds, with only the peak poking out, but it was there nonetheless!)
The whole group ate a simple lunch of peanut butter and bread, with half a slice of Anu's banana bread, while we absorbed the scenery surrounding us. With our hungry eyes and hungry bellies satiated, we drove back down to Darjeeling, where we spent about an hour walking around the shops. It was definitely geared towards Westerners more than Kalimpong or Gangtok had been. There were a lot of neat souvenirs, and I was constantly drooling over all the beautiful saris and shalwars. I love Indian fashion so much, it pains me. We had stopped at a bakery (which I also adore) and bought some postcards, too. Walking back to the vans, sickness struck again. Nathan had so casually walked to the other side of the street--we all agreed it was one of the most poised pukes yet. Seeing vomit is now such a casual thing for the group, we were slightly shaken for a minute but hardly phased.
On the car ride to Makaibari, sickness struck yet again. Although ambiguous in origin (motion sickness being the most likely cause), Allison's sickness seemed sudden; it didn't last long, however, and we arrived around 6:30 pm to our new homestays.
When Sophie, Jocelyn, and I entered our room, we were a little shocked. It walks the line somewhere between hotel rooms and the rooms in our Poshyor homestay. The bathroom was coated in some liquid, with fungus festering in the corner, and spiders to top it off. We three were exhausted after so many hours in the car (and still not being fully recovered). Luckily, I had saved some chocolates and that heightened our spirits until dinner time. At dinner, I ate a fully 50% of my normal amount!! It's about twice as much as my recent average, and I was overly proud of my progress. We hit the hay immediately after eating, layering up and tucking in for a warm night's sleep.
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