Nepal is a special place. Even though we didn't get to see all the beautiful views of the mountains like we had hoped, it was still extraordinary. And we stayed at the Hyatt Regency. ( The 5 star hotels in India and Nepal are absolutely stunning and much less expensive than comparable hotels here and in Europe.)
Our first day in Nepal we just hung out and enjoyed our surroundings. It was an adjustment day. The next morning we caught a flight to Pokhara.
We loved the plane. You could see into the cockpit the whole time. And we saw the mountain peaks sticking out above the clouds. Magical!
We took a TINY cab to our hotel. It's a good thing we travel "light". Our suitcases had to sit on a rack on the top of our car.
Christine's friend Tim had introduced her to a friend of his who is from Nepal and lives in Pokhara. Jagan was our guide while we were there and having him take us around to see the sights was definitely the highlight of our entire trip. Once again, it's the people, folks! We saw Devi's waterfall, the Temple Cave, Climber's (Everest) Museum,the Gurka Museum and the Sika River Gorge.
The Gurka Museum was one of Lefty's favorites. As a kid, his dad had told him stories about the Gurkas.
Our second day in Pokhara stole the show. We had a driver take us out of town where we began our trek up the mountain to a village. We stopped at the home of some of Jagan's friends and had coffee, we visited a preschool/daycare center, continued our hike to the Stupa on a hand built road.
We hiked about 7 K with about a 1500 foot vertical up and then back down. Boy did we feel it! At the bottom of the mountain, we took a rowboat across the lake back into Pokhara. What a day! We had time for dip in the hotel pool before meeting Jagan for dinner.
Our last day in Pokhara, we walked to Jagan's bike shop ( he has a mountain biking/trekking business). We went on to his home where we got to meet his sweet family. It was a holiday that day, and we were given bracelets, flowers, silk scarves, and a red mark on our foreheads. Then it was time to head back to the airport to catch our flight back to Kathmandu where we enjoyed a lazy afternoon back at the Hyatt.
The following morning we set off to tour all the sights and sounds of Kathmandu. Really an interesting day.
We started at the Monkey Temple, and went on to see the courtyard palaces, the shopping district and throughout the city there were festival activities and parades with marching bands.
Darshan was our guide at the monkey temple.He spoke beautiful English and was a wealth of knowledge.
And then my battery went dead... On our way back down the 365 steps from the top of the temple, Louise did some serious bargaining for a hand stitched elephant embroidery piece that Christine wanted to buy. From that moment on, every purchase we made involved Louise's honed skills of negotiating for the best possible price.
Our last morning in Kathmandu, we walked to the Stupa behind our hotel. It is one of the most sacred sites in all of Buddhism. We are so glad we took the time to visit this place. The girls got some great pictures here.
Nepal was a very different experience than India. It was cleaner and people seemed more relaxed and content. We are seriously considering a return trip to do a bike trip with Jagan.
Our first day in Nepal we just hung out and enjoyed our surroundings. It was an adjustment day. The next morning we caught a flight to Pokhara.
We loved the plane. You could see into the cockpit the whole time. And we saw the mountain peaks sticking out above the clouds. Magical!
We took a TINY cab to our hotel. It's a good thing we travel "light". Our suitcases had to sit on a rack on the top of our car.
Christine's friend Tim had introduced her to a friend of his who is from Nepal and lives in Pokhara. Jagan was our guide while we were there and having him take us around to see the sights was definitely the highlight of our entire trip. Once again, it's the people, folks! We saw Devi's waterfall, the Temple Cave, Climber's (Everest) Museum,the Gurka Museum and the Sika River Gorge.
The Gurka Museum was one of Lefty's favorites. As a kid, his dad had told him stories about the Gurkas.
Our second day in Pokhara stole the show. We had a driver take us out of town where we began our trek up the mountain to a village. We stopped at the home of some of Jagan's friends and had coffee, we visited a preschool/daycare center, continued our hike to the Stupa on a hand built road.
Our last day in Pokhara, we walked to Jagan's bike shop ( he has a mountain biking/trekking business). We went on to his home where we got to meet his sweet family. It was a holiday that day, and we were given bracelets, flowers, silk scarves, and a red mark on our foreheads. Then it was time to head back to the airport to catch our flight back to Kathmandu where we enjoyed a lazy afternoon back at the Hyatt.
The following morning we set off to tour all the sights and sounds of Kathmandu. Really an interesting day.
We started at the Monkey Temple, and went on to see the courtyard palaces, the shopping district and throughout the city there were festival activities and parades with marching bands.
Darshan was our guide at the monkey temple.He spoke beautiful English and was a wealth of knowledge.
Our last morning in Kathmandu, we walked to the Stupa behind our hotel. It is one of the most sacred sites in all of Buddhism. We are so glad we took the time to visit this place. The girls got some great pictures here.
Nepal was a very different experience than India. It was cleaner and people seemed more relaxed and content. We are seriously considering a return trip to do a bike trip with Jagan.
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ReplyDeleteLouise the bargainer? I love it! So brave of her! :)
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