November 2023. Darjeeling, West Bengal, India.

            Street view of the famous Mall Road in Darjeeling, at one of its quieter times. 
 
The feel of this street has changed considerably since my first visit in 2012. The stalls that sold both local and TIbetan handicrafts have disappeared, and many of the small local shops/restaurants have been replaced by big brand chain stores. Thankfully some of the iconic stores and restaurants have remained, but even they have become more a focal point for "selfie seekers" rather than for their own utility. 
I still adore Darjeeling, and try to visit at least once on each trip to India, but I'd be lying if I said it still held the charm it used to (and on my first visit I already felt it was a little too 'touristy'). Seeing hordes of people line up for selfies outside Glenarry's, and then ignoring most of the local restaurants and filing into a KFC is not something I would have ever imagined in this street, and to be honest it is quite sad. 

As night falls and the street food vendors take over, the atmosphere of the street does change, and become a little more pleasant. I know Mall Road has been a crowded tourist spot for decades, but it had managed to retain much of its old charm up until about 6 years ago. Now it is often little more than a heaving mass of time popeople. tourists rushing about to see everything without really seeing anything. 

Don't let that put you off Darjeeling though. In my opinion it is one of the best small cities in India to visit. The views are amazing, the town still has great charm, the locals are WONDERFUL, and even the tourists who swarm the area are generally more pleasant than those who swarm the hill stations of Himachal or Uttrakhand (probably because the mojority of visitors to Darjeeling are Bengali, and Bengalis are a mostly considerate and polite Also, Mall Road and Chowrasta are just one part of Darjeeling. Yes, they are the epicentre for the tourist trade, and I generally stay close-by myself, but there is more to see in and around Darjeeling than just this small area.

Taken in: India / West Bengal / Tungsung Basti (show map)

Taken on: November 26, 2023

Tags:

Himachal Pradesh

India

West Bengal

street

Street photography

People

Street scene

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Sony A7iii

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Camera: Sony ILCE-7M3, f/7.1, 1/100 sec, 90mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Sony ILCE-7M3
Lens:	FE 90mm F2.8 Macro G OSS
Aperture:	f/7.1
Exposure Time:	0.01 sec (1/100)
Focal Length:	90mm
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Aperture-priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Saturation:	High
Sharpness:	Hard
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 13.0.1 (Windows)
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