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Published: November 21st 2007
Bus to Pokhara
We stepped up the 'class' level for this ride after our previous bus trip!Headed off to Pokhara on Thur 01/Nov leaving behind some gear, in safekeping, at the Thorong Peak Hotel. We were traveling by the Golden Travel bus service at US$13=$14 each as we didn't want to risk a repeat of the local bus experience we had coming into Kathmandu. We just got a taxi (100R=$1.80) to the bus departure place to get our 7am bus. This bus was not quite as flash as we had expected, having traveled Greenline previously, but it did include a newspaper, a bottle of water and a lunch at a resort stop along the way. (Even got full leg space & full access to the aisle.)
We were soon in another almighty traffic jam that took some inventive driving to get beyond - our driver was up to the challenge. The drive was pretty good, nowhere near as frightening as I remembered from our 2002 visit. Very beautiful scenery, road not too bad.
Arrived 2pm & were met by Harry - our good friend & trek guide of 5 year ago. Marg has kept in email contact over all of that time & we've sponsored his daughter, Asmita, with her schooling costs these last couple of years.
It was great to see Harry again & there were hugs all round.
We got a cab (80R=$1.40) to Butterfly Lodge, the accom we had used last stay here in the lakeside district of Pokhara. We even got the same room (now 600R=$10.50/night). It was pleasing to see it still had its fantastic garden to laze in & that it has had a paint & some bathroom renovation since we last saw it. The guidebooks tell you this is prime time for trekking & mountain views, but, & here we go again; some unseasonal cloudiness is blocking the spectacular views of Macchupichure from Butterfly Lodge.
Luke Martin (ex-DLS) had put us on to Butterfly Lodge from time he'd spent there. He'd also recommended a guide for our trek but that particular bloke was out on another assignment, so Butterfly Lodge called in Parshu Ram who ended up being a guide/porter over that trek. I remember being absolutely freaked out when this scrawny bloke strapped on our large backpack over the top of his back-brace! The rest is history - a fantastic trek & a fantastic friend at the end of it. We dropped our gear in our rooms
Parshu Ram
Our good friend Parshu Ram, a.k.a. "Harry". & went down to the corner to have a drink with Harry. We wanted to chat a little & begin talks related to our Annapurna Trek. We decided our start day & Harry provided a tentative schedule on his return visit the next day. We walked around the lakeside strip sussing out the eateries & getting a feel for the place.
Pokhara (elevation 900m) is the second most popular destination in Nepal after Kathmandu. Popular because of its position & proximity to the Annapurna Mountains & the set of treks they offer. The lakeside area is very much a tourist precinct with virtually every shop or establishment aimed at the hungry, trekking tourist. Lots of accom, lots of restaurants, travel/adventure shops, trekking gear shops, souvenirs & internet (with very new, very fast machines). Despite this heavy emphasis on tourism it is still a very relaxed & peaceful area - ideal in preparing for or recovering from a trek. On our visit here in March 2002 there were very few tourists indeed - we'd walk the main street of an evening & see empty restaurants galore. But now, the tide has turned with a lessening tension between Maoist & monarchy, lots
& lots of western tourists, full hotels - great stuff for the locals. The streets haven't changed a lot, sealed roads are more extensive & a bit more construction.
Harry came by the next day (Fri 02/Nov) to help us get organised for the trek. We walked around to the damside area to get our trekking permit, back to lakeside to hire sleeping bags & trekking sticks & to book the flights for our party back from a trek high spot, Jomsom. Our party was to include we three, Harry as guide & Banya as porter. With all that done we were able to lunch, walk, email & generally relax.
On Sat 03/Nov Harry came over to our accom after brekky as he was taking us to his home, on the other side of Pokhara, then to his mum's farm in Dhital, & back again to his place for lunch.
Caught a taxi (100R=$1.80) from Butterfly Lodge to Harry's place & met Durga, Harry's wife, and daughter Asmita. Hadn't seen these two since 2002 when Asmita was only a year old. Asmita is now a very attractive 6 year old with beautiful dark eyes, a becoming haircut, and wonderful smile.
Harry's Pokhara home
The top floor is the Harry household. She was a little shy at first but with her parents help was able to relate warmly to all three of us. Marg had bought her some bright red Chinese pajamas & Asmita had these on within seconds of receiving them & kept them on at least until our trek departure the following day). Marg had also brought along some picture books from Australia for Asmita & some small presents for Harry, Durga & Ashok (Harry's 13 year old son).
After a little while we were all ready to catch the local bus to Dhital, Harry spotted it from his home's rooftop, gave a whistle which ensured it would wait for us as we clambered downstairs. Marg, Sue, I, Harry & Asmita were aboard the bus at 17R=30c/head passing lots of rice fields with many passengers getting off here & there to join a rice-harvesting crew.
We were soon at our stop - the foot of a very steep ridge, which was to take 1hr to walk up to get to Harry's family farm. One of the reasons for this visit to his mum was so that Harry could see how fit, or otherwise, we were for the trek. It
Marg, Asmita & Lazz
Asmita tried on her PJ's straight away. was certainly a good measure, a very difficult climb, despite Asmita's running aheadof us
in her thongs. Since our last visit Harry's dad has died & his mum been quite ill. She is now living by herself in this little 2-room farmhouse on the side of a mountain among the paddy fields. She does not work the fields much herself, the nearby extended family see to that & keep an eye on her well-being. Harry tells us that she will shortly move in with his family in Pokhara.
Harry's mum, Didi, met us as we approached & led the way to her house where she lit an open fire inside to make us some tea. Despite the fact the area does have electricity connected not many actually do because of the expense of connection & use! Didi can't speak any English & we no Nepali. She did remember our overnight stay back in 2002.
After our tea stop with Didi we returned to Pokhara by the reverse process of our coming. Again, a whistle from Harry, when we were still 20m up the ridge, had the bus waiting for us when we got down. Back at Harry's, Durga had prepared
Didi - Harry's mum
This is Didi sitting on the porch at her Dhital farmhouse. some chicken & dhal bhat, & after a beer & offers of Coke, etc, we were into it. A most enjoyable lunch - I didn't get even one chicken bone! After lunch we played a little 'Connect 4' with the kids & a bit of handball with Ashok's new Sherrin. We then headed back to lakeside to psyche ourselves up for the trek.
What a great day & what a great family Harry has.
After our Muktinath Trek & return to Pokhara we found the weather far more kindly then before our trek. Fishtail, the mountain overlooking Pokhara, could now be seen! Previously a very hazy environment & clouds galore obscured the mountains. So impressive was the sight of mountains from lakeside that we decided to head up to Sarankot, a 1690m hill nearby, early on Thur 15/Nov to have a really good look at the superb display of mountains visible from up there.
We left Butterfly Lodge at 6.30am & caught a taxi (350R=$6.30) to this high point, met Harry at the main turnoff to Sarankot, not far from Harry's place. It was a little difficult but well worth the effort - and a very popular thing to
Dhital
A view from our climb up to the Dhitel farm do judging by the very many others we passed coming & going to this lookout spot. We walked back down the big hill, using the road & some tracks, going directly to Harry's house. We had a coffee here & then headed to Anjuli Boarding School, where Asmita & Ashok go to school (though not boarders). It was a little after school start time, 10am, & a whole school assembly in the yard was still in progress. All the kids lined up in columns, 2 per class, 1 for boys, 1 for girls. They soon marched into their respective classrooms in a most orderly manner. We were then able to have a few words with the school principal & he allowed us to have a bit of a look around. We went into Asmita's class, grade 1, typical of all the classrooms - class size ~30, children sat in 2 columns of rows of 4. No decoration to the room just the chalkboard at front. The computer room had 8 computers & grade 3 up get access to these. A small, musty smelling library was also seen. The school is a private, fee paying one, of 325 students from prep
Lazz at Dhital Farm
Rugged as ever & ready to take to this country life. to year 9 and gets no subsidy from the government.
After our school visit we went back to Harry's place & had an early-ish lunch of a very nice fish dish. With lunch done w wer off, back to Lakeside. We were meeting up with Harry's family that evening o we could treat them to dinner at one of the local eateries as a thankyou & farewell - we were leaving the next day, heading back to Kathmandu.
Harry & family arrived,
on his motorbike, at the restaurant & had bought each of us a little gift to say goodbye. It was a very pleasant evening, a good way to finish our stay here. In fact, Harry, actually dropped by the next morning just before our bus departure & there were a few misty eyes to be wiped before the bus pulled out.
The drive back to Kathmandu was on board a Tourist bus this time, costing 400R=$7 each. The clearer environment we'd had recently in Pokhara extended to Kathmandu. The views to be seen from this very beautiful country were awesome - snow covered mountains, not visible when we travelled here a fortnight ago, were now strutting there
stuff. It was a big reminder to me that you really don't need high altitudes to score some marvellous sights. Travelled along rivers, round mountains, upwards, passing broken down trucks, scooting round blind corners (quite OK as long as you sound your horn first), on steep narrow roadsides. You could even see snow covered mountains from Kathmandu - I don't think we saw that even in our 2002 visit!
We made really good time until we hit the outskirts of Kathmandu & then a slow crawl set in until we got back home (Thorong Peak).
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