Kurseong – Singell Homestay

KURSEONG

In the year 1896, Mark Twain visited Kurseong, during his visit he was so spellbound that he once said ‘It is the most joyful day I have spent on earth’. Kurseong is a small town nestled in the Darjeeling hills of West Bengal. Kurseong mainly comprises of white cotton like clouds that flows throughout the day and centered on the brown coloured Kurseong railway station, just near the station there is Zed Black colour board on which written ‘World Heritage Site’ with golden colour, and the crisscrossed small rail tracks, sometimes gets covered with thick clouds. Earlier Kurseong was known by the name Kharsang. Kurseong sometimes looks like a county glimpse of British weather. Sometimes clouds, sometimes rain and sometimes sunlight. The contributions of the British in this small town are seen on the zigzag routes and loops of these small rail tracks. At Kurseong one will get to see the glow of Heritage jewel along with natural wonders. Kurseong is also known as the land of white orchid and through which goes the small rail tracks that intersects upto Hill Cart road, sometimes to the right and sometimes on the left that goes crisscrossed on the bridle path. As the toy train enters Kurseong station, its sound is heard from a far distance. As the toy train gets disappeared in the dense greenery of Maple, Birch, Chestnut and Cormorant, it leaves behind a sense of nostalgia. At Kurseong one will get nostalgic on the bridle path of hilly terrains, fresh and sweet oranges, green Broccolis, the simple lifestyle of the locals and least but not the last a sweet smile on red coloured cheeks of the local children. Kurseong is situated at the foothills of the Himalayas. One can enjoy their leisure time at Kurseong with the momos from the nearest make shift stalls, Cookies, Bread, Bun and confectionery from Abdul Bakery along with the taste of strong coffee. In the past Kurseong was under the rule of King of Sikkim. In the year 1835 the King of Sikkim handed over this small town to the British Government as a means of dowry or gift. In the early days as Kurseong was known as Kharsang, which means in Nepali language as ‘Early morning’s immovable starts’. Kurseong is situated at an elevation of about 4864 feet guarded by the numerous Pine, Birch, and Fir all over. In the year 1880 the first toy train reaches Kuseong and this small town got popular to rest of the world. “Kurson Rip’ is a type of white orchid, which is very common in Kuseong. Many people believe that the name Kurseong derived from the name of this Orchid which literary means ‘Land of White Orchid’. Due to the cool weather and absolute silence, Kurseong was one of the favourite destinations of British, for which they built ‘Old Military road’ on the top of Dowhill that connects Kurseong and Darjeeling, along with several schools and churches, to name few those are St. Pauls Church located on the Hill Cart road and Goathale Memorial school which is known worldwide. The school was built in the memory of ‘Jewish Arch Bishop Paul Gothale’ in the year 1907. Also several other schools those attracts tourists are Glen Hill, Sunshine, Godwin and St. Augustine. Apart from these schools one will get to see few places which were built in the memory of Rabindranath Tagore, Sister Nivedita and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. To the far flung at Kuseong there is a house of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and a museum in his memory. From Kurseong on a clear day Mt. Kanchenjunga is clearly visible. Nearby to Kurseong are Makaibari Tea Estate, Singell Tea Estate and the forest of Dowhill.

Nearest Places to Visit: From Kurseong one can go around for local sightseeing like Blue Pine Jungles of Dowhill, Giddah Pahar Sita Ram Mandir, Giddha Pahar Durga Mata Mandir, Eagle’s Craig, widely distributed English schools and obviously the long stretches of green tea gardens.

How to reach: Kurseong is very well connected with the nearest railway station New Jalpaiguri and nearest Airport Bagdogra. From NJP railway station or Siliguri at a distance of about 47 kilometers and from Bagdogra Airport about 53 kilometers. Kurseong is about 32 km from Darjeeling town. Several shared cars and jeeps are available those drives upto Darjeeling, on the way one also drops at Kurseong. Or you may take a full car (on hire) that drops you at Kurseong.

Best time to visit: Kurseong can be visited throughout the year. The winter is the best time to get a clear view of Mt. Kanchenjunga and the surrounding hills. It is better to avoid the monsoon. Though many photographers rush this hill town in the rainy season.