The hustle bustle at one of the busiest stations in India took us off in a flash. We had left Bhubaneswar the last night only to reach Howrah Junction (Kolkata’s main station) by 5 am and zip through to Sealdah (Another important station of Kolkata) for the train to Siliguri. After my blurry eyes got ready, lazily I peeped into my time machine and the next moment all 3 of us were out of the train running.

Some quick glares of the busiest city in East India and before we knew anything, we were onboard a yellow cab, off to Sealdah. We paid INR 100 for the brisk ride, which kind of hit my self- belief-“It’s my hometown dear and I know the rates”.

We boarded the 5657 Kanchenjunga Express, which departed Sealdah on time, at 0635 hrs. Mornings in these parts of India are quite comfortable and cool during October-November and for us it was no exception. After piling up some calories in the form of breakfast we started our chat sessions on the plan ahead. The scenic flat lands of rural Bengal were luring enough to take my cam out of the luggage. We reached Malda (Big Town of Central Bengal) at around 2pm and had our lunch courtesy Indian Railways Catering Service.

Paddy Fields..You see them all over Bengal

A river along the way..

Before we could see the first sunset of the trip, rain clouds have been hovering all over the place. We were approaching New Jalpaiguri (Siliguri’s main station) and before we could get down, it started pouring! The rains were a dampener, but nothing in front of our will to conquer the roads of Bhutan! With loads of excitement we reached the GATI (India’s frontline cargo service) Office of Siliguri, to unpack our bikes and hit the streets once again after 10 days. But boy – o-boy what do they have in store for us? Only 2 out of the 3 bikes have reached Siliguri and there was no trace of the 3rd one! Hell broke loose! This was only day zero and the situation was enough to jeopardize the whole plan. The plan was very tightly coupled with time and we cannot afford even a day’s delay! After listening to what the manager said, we had hands on our heads. He said the victim (YAMAHA R15) was still lying in the Kolkata godown and even the quickest of service won’t bring it here before 3 days!!

After a heated discussion with the in-charge at the Kolkata Office, we were promised that the bike would be dispatched tonight and reach Siliguri by the next day evening. We had no other alternative, but buy their words. Pinak, our fourth companion was scheduled to join us the next day from Jalpaiguri (45 kms from Siliguri). We went into brain storming mode and finally decided to move out of Siliguri the next day as planned, reach Phuntsholing (entry point to Bhutan), get our permits and wait there till the bike arrives! Deepak, aka Dipu (proud owner of the R15) looked totally dejected and lost at his darling’s absence. We moved to the previously booked hotel (Swarnadeep Lodge) at Sevoke Road in Siliguri, owned by Rahul (Pinak’s friend). The hotel was decent and we got a double bedded room for INR 400 and it had a narrow lane leading to the stairs to be used as a parking slot for our machines.

The deluge had taken Siliguri down and the shops of the famous Hongkong Market were all shut by 9! We loitered around the Bidhan Market area, bought some essential stuff and cosmetics before dropping in at a nearby joint for dinner. I had been to Siliguri on numerous occasions before and have cherished memories of the City. The walk past the narrow lanes of Hongkong Market made me nostalgic! After the plates of Chilly Chicken were made empty at periodic intervals to the waiter’s surprise, we literally sailed through the deserted streets and settled down under the blanket. The tension surmounted by the lousy cargo officials along with the downpour made me completely forget that I was finally in Siliguri and only 4-5 hrs away from the enchanting royal kingdom! Not knowing what lies ahead…I closed my eyes thinking only about ……

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