My homestay owner, Yakob, instructed the taxi driver to take the scenic route through the villages from Kalimpong to Bagdogra. This turned out to be an excellent choice! There was no traffic. We had a smooth journey with plenty of stops to admire the scenery and take photos.
The route wound its way down to a river then up another mountain side. We could, therefore, see views from below and above. At one point, I saw what looked like deserts in the distance below. These, the driver explained, were dried out rivers! The monsoon, he added, would soon be replenishing them.
We stopped for lunch by the roadside. There were many food stalls. I picked one run by a friendly-looking young brother and sister. I ordered a veg momo, which I first had in Tsomgo Lake. When paying using UPI, I “accidentally” transferred more than they’d asked. Sometimes, it’s nice to give more than necessary just to see people’s reactions. The young woman exclaimed, “That’s too much!” and was going to transfer the excess back. I said it was fine.
Many years ago, I read a book on neuro-linguistic programming (NLP). This covers many things but I was particularly interested in the techniques of communication and establishing rapport with others. Salespeople used to do NLP courses.
One of the things I remember from the NLP book was the effect you can have on people just by what you say and do. This seems obvious. We are like gravity: we affect those in our orbit — for good or for bad. I’ve found, for example, that if you’re friendly to people (even if you can’t speak their language), they are friendly to you. The opposite applies too. That is one of the many possible reasons why two people can meet the same person, or go to the same place, and have different experiences.
A few times, people have mentioned how unfriendly London is. Having lived in London all my life, I find it is like other places. When walking around, if I make accidental eye contact with someone, I almost always nod my head or say “Hello”. And almost always the person does the same. I’ve ended up speaking to many strangers this way. When abroad, this is much easier because there’s a mutual curiosity already. You both want to learn about each other’s culture.
As I ate my momos, the young woman gave me some more since I’d overpaid. And as I was leaving, she gave me a small desert! I didn’t expect that!
The journey time to Siliguri was about four hours with plenty of stops. Steve (6½ hours) and Kevin/Sophie (5 hours) had taken much longer taking the more direct highway route.