Kurseong (pronounced 'cushion' with an 'r')

Visit Kurseong. That's all I have to say. Well, I have a lot more to say, but you know what I mean. Its a town worth visiting. Nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, its a quiet town filled with friendly people, history, and of course tea (like all the towns of Darjeeling), but especially friendly people. I began my trip to India in Kurseong and ended it in Kurseong. It was a lovely set of bookends.










December is a very cloudy time of year in Darjeeling. (Just in case your confused, there is the Darjeeling District in which Kurseong is a town. And there is also a Darjeeling Town in the Darjeeling District. Most of the pics in my last entry were of Darjeeling Town.) Its a jungle on the side of the mountain, and the clouds roll in and you can't see anything at times. Its a white out. It makes for some beautiful scenes, but it also makes for a depressed feeling after awhile.



On a clear day you could see miles and miles down the mountain and out to the plains from where I'm standing. On this day though, you could see nothing. Literally nothing.



The British also settled Kurseong and built schools like the ones below. Some of the buildings are just beautiful, but in desperate need of repair. (I couldn't help thinking of Harry Potter when I saw these schools. I think there was even a Quidditch pitch somewhere around...)





The British children would go to the schools above, but the native children would go to the school below. Sound familiar? 1950s?



The Scottish came in and built churches. This church was on the grounds of one of the schools and has now been transitioned into the gym. Its a shame. The stained-glass was imported from Italy. I couldn't get in the church, but I could see enough. It was beautiful.





This is the church I attended on the Sunday I was there. It was built around 150 years ago and is still obviously in use. It was a neat thing to be a part of.





The town even had a movie theater. One would think it closed down years and years ago, but no, only around 5 years ago. It had a post-apocalyptic feeling to it.



And of course, the people. When I first raised my camera to capture these kids they all three turned away simultaneously! But a smile says a lot, and they let me snap the picture.



These men are carrying milk on their backs. Their life (by our standards) is rough. They rise early in the morning to collect vegetation and then bring it back to feed their cows. Then they milk the cows and deliver the milk. They go to bed, get up and do the same thing the next day. And the roads aren't easy here. The only thing flat are the house floors.



There is a small Christian presence in Kurseong, but only around 2% are Christian. We went to a small village that was completely Catholic. They had built a grotto in 1958 replicated from one in Italy.



These trees were everywhere there wasn't tea. They are Cryptomeria japonica. You can find them in the States (click here), but they only grow around 15 feet. These were at least 60 feet. They were sweet!



I love pigs. Every time I see a pig I take a picture. I have pictures of pigs from Honduras, Guatemala, India, Nepal, and Thailand. No joke. These were the Christmas pigs. Poor guys. But I'm sure they will be tasty!



And here I am among the tea shrubs. Do the shrubs make me look fat? I really think they do!