Blogs from Chitwan, Nepal, Asia - page 12

30th Nov - 2nd Dec We departed Kathmandu early to travel to Chitwan National Park in the south of Nepal. We were to spend two nights on the outskirts of the park, in a town called Sauraha. Unfortunately due to a tax dispute between the lodges inside the park and the government, all the lodges inside were not open. After a six hour bus journey through some small valleys (not quite of the scale of the Himalayas), although still amazing, we reached Chitwan. Our first day was spent being educated by our guide on the local traditions and ways of living - mud huts and subsistence living. We then went to meet the government elephants which are used for labour as well as tourism. Natalie was very excited about seeing the elephants as they are her ... read more

After the brief stop back in Pokhara, I board a tourist bus for Chitwan National Park. Ever since seeing a wild tiger at Ranthambhore in India, I'd wanted a chance to experience the same thing again, so deciding to skip the Jim Corbett Reserve in Uttaranchal for the sake of a swift exit to Nepal, I booked myself in for a few safaris at Royal Chitwan, another bastion of the Royal Bengal Tiger despite recent poaching for Chinese medicine. However, knowing how difficult these animals are to spot, I didn't really hold out much hope of seeing one, so for me Chitwan was more about seeing the rare one-horned rhino, as well as getting up close and personal with the park's population of elephants. We arrived at Sauraha, the nearest town to the park, early afternoon, ... read more

Sunday brought with it an early start as we caught the 'tourist bus' to Chitwan National Park, just south of the city of Kathmandu. Tourist buses are exactly that, you pay a little more for the luxury of a private bus, although they still squeeze as many people on as possible and with the heat it's still pretty unbearable... a gruelling 5/6 hours later we arrived on the outskirts of the park and were driven to our resort by the river. We were shown to our little two bed cabin and given the afternoon to rest from the bus journey... the heat made sleeping for a few hours very easy! At 4 we were then shown around the village, where we were told more about the national park and came face to face with our first ... read more

Weiter auf der Reise: Von Pokhara sind wir nach Bandlipur gefahren. Das ist ein sehr suesses mittelalterliches Bergdorf. Aufgrund eines city development projects waren die touristischen Auswirkungen auf das Dorf sehr moderat und es hat viel von seinem urspruenglichen Charme behalten. Nachdem wir uns in einer netten kleinen Pension niedergelassen hatten mit atemberaubenden Ausblick auf die Berge (Und einer durchsichtigen Schiebetuer als Klotuer und bedbugs als ungebetene Mitbewohner) wollten wir zur Siddha Cave, der groessten Hoehle in Nepal wandern. Ein nasser Steinweg und damit zusammenhaengender Knieprobleme meinerseits haben uns aber davon abgehalten, so dass wir dann nur im Wald umhergelaufen sind. Am naechsten Tag haben wir dann einen kleinen Tempel am Berg besichtigt und wollten in das kleine Dorf Ramkot laufen, das nicht im Lonley Planet stand, sondern nur auf einer Bros... read more

Namaste! Hope everyone is ok at home, sorry I've not been in touch for ages, combination of the internet being too slow or there being no power! The phone lines aren't all that much better either! Anyhow, today is my last day in Chitwan, just popped into the main town to pick up some food for our leaving party tonight. I finished my placement yesterday and am going to Pokhara tomorrow to see the mountains! I have loved village life, its been an amazing experience and I'll be sad to go tomorrow, but at the same time I'm looking forward to the change of scenary and cooler climate! The novelty of the Nepalese way of life has also worn off somewhat as well and I'm ready to be more active! Don't get me wrong though, its ... read more