Lonnie in Nepal #4

Started the first day of my trek with a guide who spoke limited English so I was not happy as I specifically asked for an English speaker. I was told by the boss, 'oh he speaks better English than I do' which turned out to be a lie, but it was too late to do anything different as I'd already paid my money...a refund wouldn't happened so here goes...

We took a taxi to the point where we would start trekking and I begin my assent up a mtn that was around 7,000 feet and this was just the warm up! 20 minutes into it, I was sweating, 40 minutes into it, I was drenched in sweat! What the hell had I gotten myself into? and I had 9 more days to go...and go I did as there was no turning back. So I trekked over and thru waterfalls, rivers, boulders, wet rocks, mud slopes, jungle vines, trees, and grasses, while it rained nearly the entire time.

I needed more than faith and willpower to get through this so I called on my angel Eva (with stage IV cancer who has more life and light in her than the majority of so called healthy folks). I would dedicate the entire trek to Eva. When I needed her inspiration, I'd touch the pink ribbon on my necklace, breath in Eva energy, say a silent prayer, and keep trekking.

The first day's trek was around 8hours, Whew! ...not fun and a whole new level of insanity!

9 more days to go!

Photos: trekking along the way meeting Americans, Thai lady, Koreans gone wild, local baby, trek map (check out the distances between villages...passed thru a few villages/day) rain, clouds, mountains, mountains, mountains....

ps: just found out that my photos are small enough to upload more per blog.....yipppeee!

Lonnie in Nepal #3

The food here is acutally pretty good and very International as Nepal is on the spice route so the food influences are diverse. Tibet's big culinary contribution are Momos which are steamed dumplings (or fried) stuffed with veggies, or meats, cheese, etc. The National dish is Daal Bhaat which is rice, lentil soup, curry veggies, a salad and a crunchy lentil cracker. The cost is around $1-2 and you can get as much refill as you like. There are many Indian, Italian, Chinese dishes on the menus also. I sat down at one lakeside restaurant and it was all Mexican food. I didn't stay for that but opted for local food at the "Laughing Buddha" restaurant which has excellent food!

Breakfast cost around $1.30, lunch $1-2, dinner $2-3 and my room with cable tv, ceiling fan, and a mtn/lake view cost around $9/Day.

Liliam introduced me to some of her local friends who were fun and entertaining. The sunset at the lake was beautiful as I watched people come and go in long row boats. The waters were calm, the air was fresh, and the people were chilled.

photos: Nepali club, Pokhara, peace pagoda, devil's fall, live bull walking

Lonnie in Nepal #2

After a failed attempt (due to landslides and huge boulders) to reach Pokhara by bus, spent all day (12hrs) on a bus before reaching Katmandu again! I got a plane ticket and left the following day to the majestic city of Pokhara. Arrived and was treated to a welcome lunch by a Couchsurfer (International travel network) friend Liliam. Made plans for a trek and had to cancel the Tibet part due to insufficient time and complications.

Still, Pokhara is like Berkeley, CA on a lake as it's very laid back with plenty of backpackers in town to do trekking, rafting, hang-gliding, etc. I signed up for a 10day trek to ABC (Annapurna Base Camp), a vantage point to view sunrise in the Himalayas. From my hotel room, I could see the lake and surrounding mtns. When it was clear in the morning, I could even see Macchupuchre (one of the Himalayan snow-covered peaks)

On my 2nd day in Pokhara, I took a rowboat across the lake and hiked up to the Peace Pagoda (a tribute Stupa to friendship between Asian countries). It was an exhausting vertical climb. I later found out that I'd hiked up 3,800 stairs!!! It took an hour and bucket of sweat but the views were stunning. The whole of Pokhara, the lake, mtns and the huge Golden Buddha.

I allowed a local youngster to show me a 'short cut' down the back of the hill so I could visit 'Devil's Fall' and he literally took me over the rivers, thru the woods, and down the backside of the mtn. All I can say is, next time, i'm taking the long way.

Enjoy the photos in Pokhara

Lonnie in Nepal, #1

Namaste all!

I am overjoyed that my 31hour trip to get here has already proven to be worth it as Katmandu has a little bit of everything! After spending a 7hr layover in Hong Kong, an hour stopover in Bangledesh, I got a ride from the airport, checked into my room, took a shower and passed out! Surprisingly, I only slept for 6 hours?

The air quality is aweful and many people wear nose/mouth masks. I've put mine on a few times. The streets are narrow and packed with cars, trucks, pedestrians, shops, street venders, but thankfully, no cows!

Anyway, the Nepali people have been quite hospitable and offered good info on what to do, where to go, etc. I already have plans to leave chaotic Katmandu (Nepal's capital) and head for another city called Pokhara (on a lake) tomorrow. There, I will meet up with a travel network friend, Liliam, from Portugal.

Meanwhile, enjoy the Katmandu photos of Burbur Square Temple, Monkey Temple, and African refugees that I had the pleasure of sharing wonderful conversations about almost everything.