Loving Nepal
After a day and a half journey I finally stepped out onto the streets of Kathmandu, ready for action. Coming from India the differences are immediately noticeable; relaxed pace, non-intrusive locals, better hygiene standards and it didn't take long for Nepal to work it's considerable charms on me.
Kathmandu was a vibrant place, with some hustling and bustling being done against the backdrop of ancient architecture with the Himalayan hills constant presence in the distance. With my guidebook in hand I jetted around seeing the major tourist spots while allowing time for random wanderings through backstreets. Getting around was very easy and getting lost was perfectly safe, despite the city being in a slight state of unrest due to the Maoist rebels. I did catch a street protest of bareback Nepali men, but it was of the non-violent variety.
Dut to the impulsive nature of this side trip I arrived completely ignorant about the place and it's people, which can often be the best way so everything was a suprise to me; for example like the substancial development in Kathmandu. The most pleasant suprise however was the Nepali women in the streets who are gorgeous, my head has been turned more times in the last week than than in the other three since I left Japan. They are beautiful people; unfortunately 7000 of these women and girls are trafficked as sex slaves around Asia and the Middle-east every year.
Next it was time to go on a jungle safari in the Royal Chitwan National Park, which is the number 3 attraction in Nepal. I booked a 2 night/3 day package which included canoeing (looking for crocodiles), a walk through the jungle, a jeep safari and an elephant-back safari. Going on the elephant safari was definately the best although most uncomfortable way to see the animals. I also rode an elephant bare-backed which was brilliant but on the safari they fix a wooden harness on the beast for four people to squeeze into which is most uncomfortable. In total we spotted 3 rhinos, a gharial, a family of deer, some monkeys, a couple of wild boars, a few peacocoks and plenty of birds; the only tiger we saw was in captivity. Not so much luck but it's to be expected in a huge 900 square kilometre park and only a limited time to see it.
The real highlight was the time spent bathing with the elephants. Everyday at lunch time the elephants take a bath in the river while you sit on top of them. They spray you with water, lie down, shake you off their backs... it really brings out the Jungle Book kid inside you. Now I'm in Pohkara the other famous tourist city for one night before I make the long journey back to Delhi for my flight. It's another beautiful place in this beautiful country. I will definately return here one day when I have more time to do one of the great valley treks.
Kathmandu was a vibrant place, with some hustling and bustling being done against the backdrop of ancient architecture with the Himalayan hills constant presence in the distance. With my guidebook in hand I jetted around seeing the major tourist spots while allowing time for random wanderings through backstreets. Getting around was very easy and getting lost was perfectly safe, despite the city being in a slight state of unrest due to the Maoist rebels. I did catch a street protest of bareback Nepali men, but it was of the non-violent variety.
Dut to the impulsive nature of this side trip I arrived completely ignorant about the place and it's people, which can often be the best way so everything was a suprise to me; for example like the substancial development in Kathmandu. The most pleasant suprise however was the Nepali women in the streets who are gorgeous, my head has been turned more times in the last week than than in the other three since I left Japan. They are beautiful people; unfortunately 7000 of these women and girls are trafficked as sex slaves around Asia and the Middle-east every year.
Next it was time to go on a jungle safari in the Royal Chitwan National Park, which is the number 3 attraction in Nepal. I booked a 2 night/3 day package which included canoeing (looking for crocodiles), a walk through the jungle, a jeep safari and an elephant-back safari. Going on the elephant safari was definately the best although most uncomfortable way to see the animals. I also rode an elephant bare-backed which was brilliant but on the safari they fix a wooden harness on the beast for four people to squeeze into which is most uncomfortable. In total we spotted 3 rhinos, a gharial, a family of deer, some monkeys, a couple of wild boars, a few peacocoks and plenty of birds; the only tiger we saw was in captivity. Not so much luck but it's to be expected in a huge 900 square kilometre park and only a limited time to see it.
The real highlight was the time spent bathing with the elephants. Everyday at lunch time the elephants take a bath in the river while you sit on top of them. They spray you with water, lie down, shake you off their backs... it really brings out the Jungle Book kid inside you. Now I'm in Pohkara the other famous tourist city for one night before I make the long journey back to Delhi for my flight. It's another beautiful place in this beautiful country. I will definately return here one day when I have more time to do one of the great valley treks.
posted by Dave Tran at 12:37 AM
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