Happy Duwali!!!!

Darjeeling is unlike any place I have ever seen. The rolling hills, the beautiful view of the himalayas; we are at the same height as the clouds. There is a peacefullness about the people here- they smile, sing and take life as it comes, mostly due to the strong buddhist influence. Dogs roam freely here as they did in Kolkata, but rather than being skin and bones they all look fat and well taken care of. The ponies here are much the same way, but passing by the stable I was surprised to see a sorrell pony eating a breakfast of green vegtables and slices of bread. We spent a rainy afternoon at the botanical gardens where we saw giant wisteria vines that were over 128 years old, along with a greenhouse filled with rare orchids and plants. Went to check out the missionaries of charity here, but although they said they would have work for us, upon arrival we had little to do there. Clipping fingernails and spending time with the patients (all were mentally handicapped in some way) was how we spent Wednesday morning, and again we felt discouraged. We are still certain that we are intended to be here but are still waiting for God's plans to reveal themselves.
On a brighter note Brandon and I went to the zoo yesterday where we saw bears, tigers, wolves and red pandas. The zoo was impressive and is known to be the best in the country. Currently we are in the middle of the Duwali festival which is a five day hindu holiday known as the festival of lights. Similar to christmas people light candles, hang lights and give gifts. The past few days have been one crazy street party with small children lighting giant firecrackers in the street from 6 at night to 7 in the morning- sounds like a gun battle is going on outside of our hotel room. We plan on leaving for Nepal in a few days.