JOURNEYFUEL 2: CCIR CYRUS GURUNG

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Ccir Cyrus Gurung. A professor, a great host and a traveller! I was planning a solo trip to north east India and Bhutan.  Darjeeling was first on my list. I was looking for cheap reliable accommodation as I was on a tight budget. While scrolling through homestays on Airbnb, I came across the profile of Ccir. He had a ton of positive reviews from travelers all over the world. I messaged him and the plan was on. Ccir helped me plan the rest of my trip as well even before meeting me. He had a number of students who were from Bhutan. So, a lot of my cross border travel was made very easy thanks to him and his students. Just a week prior to my arrival at his house my friend said that he would be joining me. Ccir without hesitation, agreed to accommodate him as well.

My friend and I arrived in Darjeeling on cold rainy evening at around 730 p.m. Ccir came to receive us a few minutes away from his home. His home is not very obvious on the street and there were no street lights as well. We finally got to his house. His house is one room that he shares with a different person almost every day. This is because of the demand of him as a host on Airbnb. He has one entire wall covered with pictures of travelers he has hosted. The other wall has notes stuck to it. He makes every person that he host’s write a message based on their experience. Ccir then took us out to eat at Glenary’s Bakery and Hotel Penang.

The smile that Ccir has is just so welcoming. He is an amazing person and is well traveled in the north eastern part of India and Bhutan. He loves Darjeeling; you can say this by the way he speaks about the place. His knowledge about the history of Darjeeling and the places to visit is vast. Ccir took us around Darjeeling at night on his bike while explaining the significance of each place on the way. We stayed with Ccir for only a night but we shared a lot of our stories and are still in contact with each other.