Realising a Lifelong Dream, Nepal.

Nepal:
Finally I stand on the top of my world and marvelling at the beauty of the Himalayas.
Living my dream and loving being there.

Nepal with my favourite travelling buddy.
Sharing my dream and loving it.

Dreams do come true and sometimes they provide amazing journeys and insights into life. 2012 had been a very busy year for us and midway through the year we had the opportunity to book cheap seats to Nepal on Air Asia. This was a new direct flight from Kuala Lumpur to Kathmandu. As the rest of the year unfolded we were able to plan a very full 16 days which would give us an amazing peek into the top of the world.

The dream catcher.
Bipin ,from Social Tours, our companion.
He caught my dream and delivered it to us.

We do have to thank the team from Social Tours who worked with us to put together an itinerary that meant we could get to the places we had identified, as on the list. Early on we decided not to head up high, so our adventures were going to stay below 3000 metres, but a trek with home-stays was high priority. We enjoy learning about other cultures and believe to do this you have to go off the beaten pathways, so we tried to target places that a lot of other tourists bypass. Of course we wanted to enjoy the Himalayas, from a distance, but how can you go to Nepal and ignore the top of the world.  Social Tours helped us to meet every one of these criteria, they provided a personal approach with guides, porters and accommodation all taken care of, so that the logistics just happened, and we got the most out of our trip. The next few posts will  break our Peek into Nepal down into the highlights and provide some reflections on a lifelong dream, come true.

Life going on for local people.
Daily needs catered for at this stall.

Kathmandu: Wow! What an amazing city, we were lucky to have completed the Kumari walk with a guide who was really knowledgeable. We were taken through some interesting alleyways and shown life on the backstreets of Thamel as we walked down to the Durbar Square.

On the edge of Bhaktapur Durbar Square early one morning,
This women is dressed in the traditional Local Sari.

Kathmandu Valley: Bhaktapur and Patan, with their own Durbar squares and more life bubbling on the streets, provided us with some  interesting encounters with friendly people. Not to mention opportunities to soak in the depth of history that has evolved in this interesting part of the world.

A little Up and a little down.
Negotiating the trail next to a drop off.
This part was easy going and Ruth doesn't
realise that the next part was going to be even more challenging. 

We passed villages and schools.
As we approached the local school children assembled to
practice their greetings.
Only the brave ones actually spoke.

Trekking. Hugdi - Hattibang, mostly up. Homestay. Hattibang - Upardhangdi Nepali flat, a little up a little down. Homestay. Upardhangdi - Shakitor, Down hill all the way. All done Bistarei! Bistarei! Slowly! Slowly! At our pace with some great photo opportunities along the way.

Streetlife in Sauhara. You don't hear the elephants coming up behind you.

A Mugger Crocodile that we bumped into alongside the Rapiti River.
These are real wild animals and we were in their domain.
Crocodiles have enormous teeth and razor sharp claws.

Chitwan National Park: Staying at Hotel Parkside, at Sauhara, and taking part in three days of activities which provided up close encounters with the flora and fauna of the western lowlands of Nepal. Also an insight into the daily lives and culture of the villagers who farm and live here. Here you can  learn to appreciate the wonderful gentleness of the Asian Elephant.

Manakamana Temple is a legend.
We took the cable car up.
There were no goats chickens or pigeons in our  gondola.

Bandipur town is set on a ridgetop.
My travelling Buddy tries out one of the local resting places.

Mountain views that kept taking our breath away.
This was an evening at Gorkha as the sun set and the clouds  cleared.
Prior to this the mountains had spent the day in the clouds.

Manakamana - Gorkha - Bandipur: Magical places that each hold their own charm and natural beauty. All off the beaten path a little and bypassed by most tourists who hurry from Kathmandu to Pohkara to get Himalayan trekking experiences. Every day in these 3 places we had amazing conversations with locals and gathered insights to fit into the complex jigsaw of life in Nepal.

Narrow lanes and alleys often open onto interesting  squares.
Even more interesting are the stalls and shops that have traded in these places for generations.

Buddha under repair!
On the way up to the Monkey Temple this was one of 3 statues
being given a makeover.

Tailors on the edge of Patan Durbar Square.

Kathmandu: Exploring streets, temples and life on the streets some more. Not forgetting to mention a lesson on cooking like a local, at Social Tours. A wonderful dinner at The Rum Doodle Restaurant and Bar.

I found out that there is an art to making a tidy Momo.
They tasted good but mine just didn't the finess of the others.
All the same a great way to spend a morning.

If you wanted the short version of an Adventure in Nepal then you won't need to read the next few posts. But if you are interested to know why we fell in love with Nepal and to find out why we are already planning our next trip to the top of the world please enjoy as I try to capture the details and relive our exciting dream come true.

There is more to Nepal than Mountains,
However you look at this country it is impossible to escape the magic
of the Himalayas.