Darjeeling - Champagne of teas

Darjeeling and it’s early April. The cold weather has receded, at least for now, and Chowrasta, the town’s “square” which sits on top of the ridge is bathed in warm hazy sunshine. It is busy, there are many visitors, some foreign, but many travelling up from the oppressive increasing heat of the plains and together with the locals they occupy the benches which line the square. “Square” is something of a politeness as it is an irregular roughly rectangular space but it is much loved by the townspeople and a thoroughfare for many. It also has the singular benefit of being traffic free and the main noise is the hum of voices or the occasional clopping of horse hoofs as the ponies carry children and sometimes adults on pleasure rides around Observatory Hill.

Today the mountains are invisible and hidden by the mist, so attention is concentrated on events in the square: the children as they cross it on the way home from school, the chai wallah as he does his rounds, the changing of places on benches as the sitters tire and move on – and the small shops around part of the perimeter. These are mainly old buildings, remnants perhaps from Raj days, and they include within their number new additions: tea shops. Passing by, the signs are appearing in their windows – “First flush now in” – an open invitation to enter and taste.

It is still early season and to date there are only five teas. Three are high end whilst the rest are described as decent teas. We go for one of the high end ones from Barnesbeg, a lovely tea garden a few thousand feet below Darjeeling. First the tea must be smelt, cold and in the caddy or else a small amount of tea leaves warmed and swirled around in cupped hands. The ritual brewing takes place and the tea leaves then separated from the tea which comes in a clear pot, light and golden. The bouquet of the leaves is presented separately for a further experiencing by the nose. We are told the first sip of our tea is delicious, light and floral, but it induces a desire for the next sip and then the next and the experience changes as the tea cools. First flush Darjeeling is indeed the champagne of teas!

Marilyn Adams

Chairperson

Darjeeling Children’s Trust

Getting on with the building

Since our last report work has been progressing in Darjeeling. The weather has alternated between cold and cloudy with some sunnier days – but the main thing is that it has been mainly dry since January. This has been invaluable to the porters as they carry materials up and down the steep steps to the orphanage site and during excavations.

DCT Chairperson, Marilyn Adams, was in Darjeeling at the end of March for a couple of weeks and was able to see at first hand the progress which was being made. It was impressive despite the continuing difficulty of the ground conditions. Adjustments had had to be made to the details of the layout because of these problems but the lower part of the site which before had been empty rough ground was now occupied by significant works. Bamboo scaffolding was in place and the skeleton of the first of the buildings and first slab levels had been built. The labourers who were on site were mostly living in a small room at the rear of the orphanage and were on site all the time to ensure security of materials.

The concrete and stone chippings which are delivered to the site are stored near the men’s hut on one of the flatter parts of the site. They are delivered by lorry from Silguri, a journey of about three to four hours from the plains with most journeys being undertaken in the early hours of the morning to avoid the jeeps and other domestic vehicles which have to negotiate the steep and narrow roads. It is probably at least 50 metres from the road down to the orphanage site so extra porterage costs must be paid, all of which adds to the cost of the construction.

There was one main problem though. All the concrete was being mixed by hand. This was both laborious and could result in an inferior mix and quality of material, and it also resulted in slower progress than was desirable. This was a problem however which could be remedied with additional funds and so by using donations made to the project, Darjeeling Children’s Trust was able to provide monies for the purchase of a concrete mixer. This will continue to be available for all phases of the project and will be sold off at the end and any monies recouped will be recycled into the orphanage.

Pema Bhante, the monk in charge of the orphanages, has also now appointed an assistant to help him manage the project. He is now being helped by Ranjeeta who runs the architectural practice which is managing the construction, to fund raise in Darjeeling.