"Everyday" Terrain in Sikkim/West Bengal?

tacita

not diabetic, but diabetic sweets will do the trick just the same. wonderful! THANKS!

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dzibead

Your Merrell slip-ons will be absolutely fine. In Sikkim, since it was already on the cool side when I was there (in October) I put away my sandals and wore shoes that were basically cheap knock-offs of Rockports. Hiking boot are utterly unnecessary unless you're actually trekking.

They're towns. They have normal paved streets. People wear ordinary clothing and ordinary shoes. Darjeeling and Gangtok are not the "back country."
Yes. You're not going to Prudhoe Bay! It's not that cold! It could be cold if you get up to some higher altitudes in North Sikkim, but I can't remember whether you're going up there. Just be prepared to wear layers. It's amazing how warm you can stay with a t-shirt under a regular shirt under a fleece jacket especially if you add a scarf and head covering - you can always pick up one (or more) of the ubiquitous wool (pashmina) and silk blend shawls to wrap around your head and neck if you start feeling cold. Obviously people differ in their sensitivity to cold, so if feel the cold easily you might want to make sure you have at least some kind of undershirt or vest to keep your "core" warm, plus something to wrap around your head and neck - at least that works for me, because if my neck is exposed, that's where I feel the cold.

You can absolutely manage. Forget the backpack. I took a backpack to India once and it was a total pain in the neck. Believe me, you never see Indian travelers with backpacks, and they often manage to carry enormous amounts of stuff with them on trains. Last time I went to India, I took a HUGE wheeled duffel (which I find preferable to a wheeled suitcase) and could always stuff it under train seats, no problem. And as for the street/roads in India supposedly being too rough for the wheeled bags, I've never found that to be the case at all. I wouldn't take one on a trek in Ladakh, obviously, but if I were doing that, I'd have a pack pony anyway! As for managing a large wheeled duffel on and off trains, just use a porter. That's the only way to go anyway. Show them your ticket and they know exactly where on the platform your car will stop, and they'll schlep the bag on and off the train for you, regardless of how staggeringly heavy the damn thing is, all for a pathetically few rupees. These guys know what they're doing and they need the work, so why not employ them?

And craigslist? Heh. It's everywhere - including India!

machadinha

OK. So what precisely is a wheeled duffel? I'm getting the feeling we're running into some language problems here.

I.e. when I mention a shoulder bag I don't mean the light thingy you take to the local supermarket, for instance (aka daypack when on the road). More like a sturdy and slightly bigger sports bag kind of affair.

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tacita

yes, same thing, but with a hard bottom and wheels on ONE end, handle on the other, and also a shoulder strap. precisely what you recommended, but with a the rolling option for those of us approaching a certain age - or of the "weaker" sex. i think it'll do the trick.

machadinha

Hm yes well a couple of wheels that you don't absolutely need to rely on but might come in handy when required and applicable -- sounds like an advancement right. Behold the space age "Beam me up Scotty"

tacita

um, actually, it's "behold middle age!"

dzibead

Bags like these in the attachment, assuming I've this right, which is a big assumption.

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machadinha

Seriously btw, I carried around 20 kgs. or so for a long time until my pack gave out. It was amazing what sudden resolve this gave as to everything you positively don't need.

tacita

yeah, like that, but longer, like the length of a regular military style duffel, and no pockets of things. very basic. from ll bean, dzibead. big enough to take half empty and haul stuff home.

dzibead

The bag I have looks a lot like the red one in the picture but bigger. Mine is about 32" x 16" x 14". It holds a lot, but with the wheels it was easy to deal with, and it did fit under train seats even when I had it completely stuffed.

On the trip out, about half of it was taken up with stuff my Tibetan friends asked me to take to their relatives in Sikkim and Dharamsala. Tibetans: a people whose notion of what's possible to carry is based on generations of traveling by yak. At least I had lots of room for my purchases as I began to get rid of the Doc Martin boots, full-length fake sheepskin coats, gigantic bottles of multi-vitamins, and Costco-size jars of Nescafe (yes, instant coffee ... I have yet to figure out what that was all about ...) I have since gotten my revenge on them by having them schlep stuff for me.

tacita

dzibead, i don't know why i didn't catch your reply post sooner - thanks. i think this duffel with wheels on one end and a shoulder strap will do. and if not, i try to hire myself a yak! (or a porter - i believe mach said he could be had for that purpose for a reasonable sum.)

Jorge Reverter

Janice,

I don't know about sweets, but about suitcases, I always travel with a wheeled suitcase, a medium size samsonite. Ihave never got any problem when traveling by train/bus etc..., and I'm normally moving in lost and hidden places.

Everything will be safer in your wheeled suitcase than in a backpack/rucksack.

Hve a look at my suitcase last November in Darjeeling, I'm sorry about the kid loading it but he was so boring...

All the best

Jorge

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tacita

thanks, dzibead! just PM'd you - your reply is enormously helpful, really clears up a few things.
some posts on IM had led me to wonder just what to expect from a "town." i realized it wasn't backcountry, but didn't know where along the "town" spectrum gangtok and darjeeling might fall - thanks for clearing that up.
alright, then, it's settled. employ them i shall. (sorry, mach.)

really appreciate your detailed reply.

tacita

thanks, jorge. great pic! gives me the flavor of a darjeeling street. (also answers the question of how readily available peelable fruits will be!) banana, anyone?

tacita

mach, i don't know which thread it was in, here or elsewhere, but you mentioned weight limits for flights. i never gave this much thought as i've never exceeded any weight limit. but now i have pause - are the weight limits on domestic indian flights generally less than on regular international or other domestic flights? is it just a matter of paying for the excess or is is barred entirely? and if it costs, how much?

i'd better do some site searching about this. (all those books, you know!)