The Foothills of Machu Picchu

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Sheltered under the snowy peaks of the great Annapurna range, Pokhara provides a most welcome relief from the intoxicating, overwhealming enormity of Varanasi and our rapid ascent through the backbone of India.

A tourist town to be sure, but what a tourist town. Relaxed atmosphere with cafes scattered along the shore of a (fairly) pristine lake. Bakeries, restaurants and more nick-nack shops than you could shake a stick at. After the mania of India, this place is heaven. Add to this the fact that 10 minutes walk and you're on a wooded hillside or in rice paddies or looking out over the lake and you have a town anybody would be happy to spend a week in. In fact we loved it so much that once again we threw the plan away and just chilled.

Well kind of ...

The unfortunate thing about Pokhara is that there are far too many things to do. Hiking, rowing, treking and paraglyding made up our list, but we could have easily spent weeks wasting our time for a fraction of the price things cost at home. If it wasn't for the political strife in Nepal this place would be hoatching.

We also got to fulfil what has become an architypal travelers tale over the last few years while treking in Nepal - a run in with the Maoists!

While treking near Pokara at heights 500m higher than the peak of Ben Nevis we came across a small primary school and after a quick chat and the obligatory 'Namaste's' with ever child we set off to climb down another long winding staircase(you've never seen a staircase until you visit Nepal) when suddenly around the corner 4 bright red, hammer and sickle flags blocked our view. As they were proudly weilded towards us Nic and I looked at one another and thought 'hmmm, this could be fun' (Actually I have no idea what Nic was thinking she just seemed happy to have stopped climbing down stairs for a minute). A quick Namaste later and business commenced in rapid Nepali. Bal, our guide, seemed confident in our position, whatever it was, and the Maoists in theirs. I was just happy they weren't armed to the teeth as many of the scare stories said them would be. During the 'heated' conversation the words 'election' and 'baksheesh' appeared more than once, but Bal held firm. He took their leaflets and quickly and quietly ushered us further down the hill, giving them not a penny (rupee). We, however, continued to hold our breath until they were well out of sight.

Maybe we were saved by the stern defience of our guide, maybe it was their lack of weapons, but I would like to think it was my silly grin and the please don't hurt me look in our eyes.

As if this weren't death defying enough we felt the need (well nic needed a little persuation) to grab a big sheet and take to the skies. Paraglyding isn't something I'd ever envisaged attempting before, but now I can't think why I didn't try it sooner. As a sport it couldn't be easier, stapped to an experienced guide you basically run of a cliff and follow the birds. Soaring with the eagles is a pretty cool experience and after the initial fear and trepidation we both got a chance to perform some amazing stunts, Nic even got to fly the thing (Me thinks the French instructor likes the ladies).

Please note it is probably a bad idea to jump off a cliff with a big sheet if you do not have a bloke who's done it at least twice before.

Oh and in case anyone who knows about this geography malarky is reading we know that the real Machu Picchu is in Peru, not Nepal, but the mountains here have such tricky names. So when Nic asked if the big one is Machu Picchu I didn't have the heart to say no. I'm a big softy really, but I suppose she needs to learn.

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Photos

Machu Picchu and the Annapurnas
Machu Picchu or 'Fish Tail' is the big mountain, which is actually smaller than the others, but then they are further away (the mind is baffled)

Lunch at Last in 'Holiness'
This has to be the best name for a town in the whole world and after 2 hrs treking it also serves the world's best Dal Baat