Oct 19, 2019 - The final countdown

Here it is, the end of another trip and one which we all feel really sad now that it is finishing. It hasn't gone out quietly though which isn't a surprise as Karma was involved this morning. The national sport is archery with competitors firing at targets from 140 yards, there are inter-valley tournaments, as well as local village tournaments. From Karma's description gamesmanship of the highest order is in play to, so confirming our description of Sunday morning football, and lines like "my daughter could shoot it further than that" are...

Oct 11, 2019 - Kathmandu

So after a lot of sitting down in airports, on trains and planes we have arrived at our first destination, the wonderfully chaotic city of Kathmandu. Arrived at Heathrow early having avoided the extinction rebellion that was taking place in central London (the pollution from the increasingly static and frustrated traffic was way above usual levels). Met up with the group, a couple of whom I have met previously but typically it seems like a good mix of people and ages (I'm not the youngest unfortunately!). Flying with Emirates, got to fly on...

Mar 29, 2019 - Return to Kathmandu

Long drive back to Kathmandu today. Actually only 200 km but took 7.5 hours. Winding mountain roads all the way and then major roadworks in Kathmandu causing chaos. Relief to finally reach our hotel and god to find we have been upgraded to a suite. Pity we are only here for a night.

Mar 27, 2019 - Lumbini to Pokhara

Long drive to Pokhara today, much of it through winding mountain roads. Parts of the road are in very bad condition unsealed and potholed. Some parts are in reasonable condition, of course reasonable here would be bad at home. Pokhara is considered the tourism capital of Nepal,being a base for trekkers undertaking the Annapurna circuit in the Himalayas. The Annapurna range contains 3 out of 10 of the highest mountains in the world. In this region the mountains rise very quickly and within 30 kilometres the elevation rises from 1,000 to...

Mar 26, 2019 - Lumbini

Morning drive to Lumbini took about 5 hours. Lumbini is known as the birth place of Lord Buddha - founder of Buddhism, and is a major pilgrimage site. Lumbini has a number of older temples, including the Mayadevi Temple, and various new temples, funded by Buddhist organisations from various countries, have been completed or are still under construction. Many monuments, monasteries and a museum, and the Lumbini International Research Institute are also within the holy site. Also, there is the Puskarini, or Holy Pond, where the Buddha's...

Mar 24, 2019 - Kathmandu to Chitwan

Early departure for our drive to Chitwan. Speaking of time, should point out the time zone for Nepal is +5.45. Not sure why they didn't go with +6 but is a litle confusing. Distance to cover today is 175km, time taken 5.5 hrs. The "lodge" we are staying at is an all inclusive package so we had lunch there when we arrived. In the afternoon we went for a jungle walk with a local naturalist, spotted lots of birds and a few crocodiles along the river banks.ended the walk with a quiet drink beside the river watching the sunset. In the evening...

Mar 23, 2019 - Bhaktapur

Up early this morning for the much anticipated sunrise over the himalayas. Not perfect weather but much clearer than yesterday. After breakfast we travelled down the mountain to visit the best preserved ancient city of Bhaktapur. This is also the cultural hub of the Newari people. Many of the highly decorated buildings and shrines were destroyed in the 1934 and 2015 earthquakes. However the main square still contains a few temples and other architecural show pieces, the Lion gate, the statue of Bhupatindra Malla, the palace of 55 windows,...

Mar 22, 2019 - Nagarkot

This morning we started our sightseeing with a visit to Boudhnath stupa which is also known as “Mini Tibet” and is one of the largest Buddhist stupa in Nepal. This stupa is surrounded by Tibetan settlements and monasteries. You can visit a number of the monastries and witness Buddhist rituals and traditions. The stupa is surrounded by prayer wheels and is meant to be good luck to walk clockwise around the stupa spinning the wheels. From here we went to Pashupatinath temple located on the bank of Bagmati River. This temple is dedicated to...

Mar 21, 2019 - Kathmandu

A late start with a leisurely breakfast at the hotel. Then we headed out to the Swoyambhunath stupa located on a hill top overlooking Kathmandu valley. Excellent views of the surrounding valley and views of the central Himalayan ranges.. The Buddhist stupa is famous as “Monkey temple" and true to its name the place was overrun with monkeys. This did not overshadow the stupa. Interestingly both Hindus and Buddhists pay homage to this site. We then headed to another UNESCO site – Patan Durbar Square. Patan is known as “City of Beauty" and...

Mar 20, 2019 - Last day - back to Kathmandu

Wednesday March 20 We made it! Yesterday we got to walk through the Tiger Nest Monestary! We started the walk early at about 8.30am but there was already plenty of others on the track. The temperature when we started was only 3 degrees and was due to warm up to about 12 degrees - we had several layers of clothing which we peeled off as we warmed up. The track is very rough and a steep incline. We climbed from an altitude of 2,200 meters at the base to 3,100 meters (10,240 ft) at the Monestary. Not only is the terrain extremely rough we...

Mar 15, 2019 - Into the Jungle

Friday, March 15 Yesterday we travelled by bus from Pokhara to Chitwan. The journey was not as long as the other day but just as exciting. Another crazy driver who just had to pass everything. Luckily there was not as much traffic as a national strike of some kind kept most of the large trucks off the road. The area is famous for its National Park and wildlife. It's much hotter down here in the lowlands (in the high 30's today). In the afternoon we did a walking tour through the local village and then a visit to the elephant breeding...

Mar 13, 2019 - A day in Pokhara

Wednesday March 13, Pokhara We had a 5.30am start to get to the top of Sarangkot, a hill that looks down over Pokhara that is famous for its sunrise over the Himalayan Mountains. It was a spectacular close -up view of Annapurna, Fishtail and many other peaks as the sun came up. A quick visit to a Hindu temple on the way back to our hotel and then breakfast. Pokhara is the 2nd largest city in Nepal and is a very clean and well organized place when compared to Kathmandu. It has the snow capped Himalayans looking down on one side and a...