GARDEN of FABLES

On the fringes of Darjeeling, Kurseong is home to India’s most expensive tea, the world’s first tea factory, and a mystical natural phenomenon.

- ADILA MATRA

THE FOG IS SO MILKY and dense that the valley and mountains disappear in front of my eyes. I am at the quaint Makaibari Bungalow, sited beside the world’s first tea factory and estate by the same name in Kurseong, an hour and a half from Darjeeling. The original bungalow, more than 100 years old, burned down in an electrical fire in 2017. The refurbished structure retains some of its old-world charm—there are hand-woven Obeetee carpets in every room, wooden floors that creak under your feet, and a fireplace to remind you that winters are chilly here.

I hear a clamour down the hall—the workers are shouting at each other. I set down my first cup of green tea of the weekend and walk towards the hallway. The chef, his assistant, and the cleaning lady are struggling to shut the wooden front door. My travel partner, Stuti Jalan, also pops her head around the door of her room. “They are trying to keep the fog out,” she smiles.

In Darjeeling and the surrounding area, the fog floats low and thick, blanketing regions in a flash and affecting visibility. Scientists call it advection fog. “It is a pity,” says Jalan. “I wanted to spot the Kanchenjunga. It is an other-worldly sight.” I, on the other hand, am preoccupied with the eerie fog phenomenon. It carries both ominous and romantic dispositions.