Prologue - Kathmandu-Besisahar (820m) via Dumre 175KM

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The transit bus left Kathmandu dead on 7am. Don't be fooled by the 'tourist' bus title, this wasn't a VIP bus with leather seats and onboard chef. Once the young lady in front had reclined her seat cosily into my groin there wasn't a lot of room for maneouvre. No AC either. Never mind, once we had eaked our way out of Kathmandu traffic and into the surrounding hillside the views were very enjoyable. We followed a winding road hugging the banks of the River Trisuli all the way to Dumre. We arrived in Dumre at 1145 and walked into a right old row. After getting off the bus we were rushed onto a mini bus (by a somewhat beligerant young man) bound for Besisahar. I asked Mr beligerant how much the fare was. '650 NR each'. Eh! Don't be silly the tourist bus all the way from Kathmandu had only been 350 NR and Besisahar is only another 2 hours away! Hari beckoned for us to get off the bus and told us the fare should only be 100NR. The rate then miraculously reduced to 400 and eventually 200. A heated exchange followed for 5 minutes between the driver, my beligerant friend and Hari. To get going we agreed to pay NR200. Speaking to Hari afterwards it seems he was given some abuse by his fellow countrymen for telling us the correct price. Nice to know he was batting on our side at least.

We arrived in Besisahar around 2.20 so just under a 7 and a half hour trip from Kathmandu (with a 30 minute stop). We are staying at the Mongolian Guest House at a rate of 200NR each (GBP2.00). It offers fine views of the Himalayan foothills and this evening whilst we strolled back through the town back to the hotel the clouds cleared and revealed our first glimpse of snow capped mountains, a tantalising glimpse of things to come, fantastic! Darren got himself a shave whilst we were in town and I got some pictures of the local kids who were so friendly and loved having their pictures taken. It feels as though we are already a million miles away from the madness of Thamel. Everyone is so friendly and willing to exchange a 'Namaste' and a smile without it seems the expectation of financial reward.

We have also spent some time today working out where we want to stop enroute and have a basic guideline in place. The full Annapurna Circuit plus Poon Hill and Annapurna Base Camp (ABC) side trips should take us 25 days. 25 days in the mountains will be one heck of an adventure and we are both extremely excited.

Tommorow is Day 1 of The Annapurna Circuit, Besisahar to Bahundanda, 18KM with a 400m ascent, let's get the show on the road!

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Photos

Dumre local bus
The local bus doubles up as a builders delivery service - scaffolding being offloaded here

Kids in Besisahar
Cheerful crowd..

Annapurna strategy meeting
At the 'Mongolian Guest House'

Comments

[Jo]

Hello
Hiya Rich, Well done for getting to the top....the photos are amazing. looks like you deserve a rest now. Enjoy the rest of your trip and take care. (some sunscreen is needed, you look a tad burnt)