TravelStream™ news feed for member mericanomad on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/mericanomad en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Wed, 24 Jun 2009 05:14:51 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1245834705/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1245834705/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1245834705/tpod.html Wed, 24 Jun 2009 05:14:51 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India

After a difficult 15 hour bus ride to Manali, a hot day in Delhi and a 15 hour train ride to Varanasi I was back in Indiai. Manali had been a calm oasis in the steamy chaos of India.

]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241519700/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241519700/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241519700/tpod.html Tue, 05 May 2009 06:35:36 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Manali, Himachal Pradesh, India

going there today.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410440/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410440/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410440/tpod.html Tue, 05 May 2009 06:28:18 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Jomosom, Himalayan Region, Nepal

Anapurna

Our plan was to hike about 140 miles in 18 or so days depending on how we feel. The Anapurna Circuit is a trail used by locals to get to remote Tibetan villages scattered around the Anapurna mountain range in the Himalayas. It is nicknamed the "Apple Pie Trek" or "Coca Cola Circuit" due to the number of restaurants and lodges that populate the trail. In 2000 over 75,000 people did the circuit. Luckily for us, tourist numbers are down this year so we were able to have more privacy than usual. We often went hours or even whole days without seeing any other trekkers, except in the towns. The Tibetan towns add a cultural bonus to the trek that made this the best thing that I have ever done in my life! In each village and along the trail all the locals greet you with "namaste" which literally means, the god inside me salutes the god inside you. It is a beautiful way to say, "hello."


Day 1


We took a 5 hour bus ride from Pokhara to Besisihar. After eating lunch we then hiked about 4 hours to Ngadi with a stop in Khundi for tea. We met some Israelis and paid nothing for our room. This would be an ongoing theme on our trek. The rooms are free if you eat dinner and breakfast at their restaurant, not a bad deal. The scenery was beautiful and it felt good to be in the mountains. We met a German couple that had been in Nepal over 40 years ago. You run into the same people throughout the trek if you stick to the normal schedule. We decided to do some half days so we could avoid this. Also, you can get to a town for lunch and have time to explore the area and meet some locals. This is the real special thing about the Anapurna Trek.




Day 2


It was an extremely long day as we hiked over 20 kms to Chamje. We got stuck in the rain and took a wrong turn near the end of the day. We ate lunch at a small establishment with shocking views of the mountains. We were lucky enough to find a hotel overlooking a beautiful mountain and river gorge below. We were the only people staying there and the family treated us like kin. They made a big fire so we could dry our stuff and get warm. We sat in their kitchen while they made us dinner. There youngest daughter, who spoke excellent English, sang songs while the little cross eyed boy gracefully danced in the corner. It was very surreal being in the mountains and hanging out with a local family.

Day 3


It was another long day as we hiked to Bagarchaap. We passed through a beautiful valley town called Tal. It was hard not to stop there for the night. The scenery was spectacular as each day only seemed to be better than the day before as we accented toward the 16,000 ft. pass. At our guest house we met Bruce, Graham and Karen. Bruce recognized me from Burma. He changed some of our "dirty" money at the airport. Burma only accepts clean, crisp American dollars and ours didn't pass the grade. Bruce was nice enough to trade with us so we could pay the fine for overstaying our visa(Bangkok airport closure). A small world indeed, it is not everyday that someone recognizes you from Burma while trekking in the mountains of Nepal. Graham and Karen are a Canadian couple traveling through India and Nepal, they just finished grad school. We all ended up getting along and finished the trek together.

The cottages were brand new and reeked of pine. Graham convinced us to take the high road to Pisang. It was a better route to acclimatize and supposedly has the best views on the trek.


Day 4

We started with a smoke with the gang and ended up running into them enough times along the trek that we just kind of stayed together. We ended in upper Pisang, a medieval looking city on a hill overlooking Anapurna II. . At 11,000 ft. the altitude started to set in. I was really lightheaded and had difficulty focusing. We stayed in a great place with amazing views of Anapurna 2(about 24,000 ft.) There was a beautiful monastery on top of the hill with stunning panoramic views of the valley below.

Each day was better than the one before and this was no exception. We were surrounded by peaks and already I knew this was something special, better than anything that I have ever seen before. Normally, you do a 3 day trek with some highlight at the end. On this trek you are surrounded by highlights, plus Tibetan villages, monasteries and cultural interaction with the locals. I was truly blown away by the experience.

We ate lunch at a great place that had amazing sandwiches. It was nice to break up the monotony of Dhal Bat and pasta dishes.


Day 5

We started out with a hard climb in order to acclimate, it is best to hike high and sleep low. Graham and Karen convinced us to acclimate well so we could get over the pass. The views and clarity from this day were amazing. We learned the German 2 step and had a long day. The altitude was becoming a factor and we saw a large German tour group slowly make there way up the steep pass. They were methodical; one, two, one two, they were German. We used this baby step method to make it up the difficult areas. The top of the first area had amazing views, an ongoing theme.

It was pretty steady after the initial 400 meter climb. We passed through numerous medieval looking Tibetan villages, many seasonal and made our way for Manang. We decided to stay in a small town about 40 minutes from Manang. Manang is a "big" village where most people spend a few days to acclimate. It is a landmark on the Trek. We ended the day in amazing fashion entering a valley full of baby sheep. Everyone was giddy and overcome with joy, it was such a beautiful sight. The river valley had sweeping views of the snow capped glacier mountains littered with Tibetan stupas and prayer flags. It was a perfect end to the day. It was as if we were in a movie and the sheep were cued flood the pass as we came over the hill and ended the day, it was truly magical. That night we stayed in a family guest house where the owner had to call in cooks and food to feed us. It was the second night in a row where we had the place to ourselves. We played cards around the fire and ate a huge dinner looking forward to some much deserved rest in Manang.


Day 6


It was a short 1 hour hike to Manang. We were looking forward to better digs and food. Manang is the first town with an airport and any semblance of civilization. We took care of business, watched a movie and relaxed. Ana had a hard time with the elevation. It was funny to watch 7 years in Tibet in some basement of a local bar.


Day 7


We took a stunning day hike up to 4000 meters in order to acclimate and enjoy the views. We saw another movie and soaked up the culture. Bruce and I found a nice sunset spot and chatted with some locals, in the best manner that we could. We continued to be blown away by the experience and were in a state of awe.


Day 8


We hiked to Yakarka, about 3 hours away and up to 4050 meters to stay the night. We made the mistake of not going higher and Ana felt really bad. I convinced her to move on the following day and felt that she just needed some time to get better. We stayed at a family run place as the better hostel was already full. We donated some money to a family that was living in a tent next to the guest house. It seemed that they could really use the money. The nights were starting to get cold at this elevation.


Day 9


We hiked up to Letdar, only a couple of hours away and at an elevation of 4200 meters in order to continue the acclimation process. Ana spent the day in bed and we felt she had to turn back. Many idiots thought we were being irresponsible and that she could die. Apparently, they attended some hour seminar and now they were experts. I read the guidebook and she wasn't experiencing any of the severe symptoms. I felt pretty bad as well, but knew I would be OK. I convinced Ana to wait till the morning to make that call. The others were already moving on when Ana surprised everyone and said she was OK to move on. It was quite the dramatic turnaround for us, we were already planning on booking a flight a few towns back.


Day 10


We hiked about 3 hours to Thorong Phedi, elevation 4600 meters, in time for lunch. We did the right thing and hiked up about 400 meters to High Camp in order to acclimate. Ana and I had a hard time going up and had to fight dizziness and severe headaches, but we persevered. I felt a lot better the more time we spent on the mountain. I felt after eating dinner, we shared a large pizza and an enchilada. We had read that the food and accommodation were pretty basic in Thorong Phedi, but were pleasantly surprised to find it one of the best places to stay and eat on the trek. It was the first time that we had a bathroom in our room and the dining hall was beautiful. We felt like we were in a ski lodge.



Day 11

The dreaded day of the pass. It looms over the entire trek, the 5416(16,248ft.) meter Thorong La pass. It is 800 meters above Thorong Phedi, where we slept, and then you have to go all the way down to 3800 meters. That is a decent of almost 5,000 ft. We did the initial 400 meter climb up to High Camp the previous day in order to acclimatize and weren't looking forward to doing it again.

Karen wasn't feeling too good, but we convinced her to give it a try. We woke up at 4:30 for breakfast and took off for High Camp. Karen had a very difficult time making it up, but it was her boyfriends life long dream to do Anapurna so she trudged on. About an hour after she had to give up and turn back, along with her boyfriend Graham. He was sorely disappointed and it was a big blow to the team, but the four of us continued on. I was sure that they could make the pass the following day in Mukkinath. It was like a real expedition with some members of the team not making it up to the pass. We trudged on using our "German two step" and slowly made it to the summit. It was an exhilarating feeling to finally be at the top. We felt like most of the trek was behind us. After relishing the moment for about 45 minutes we started our long decent toward Mukkinath. It was a rigorous and sharp 4 hour decent the mountain. We were all exhausted and delirious by the time we found the Bob Marley hostel. It was like an oasis, with cold beer, a pool table and beautiful mountain views from the rooftop. The hot shower was one of the best showers of my life.


Day 12

Mukkinath is a big pilgrimage city and we decided to take a days rest and check out some of the sites. We wandered around the villages. Bruce and I met some school children who insisted on posing for photos and showed us into their village. The temple used to be considered magic because of an eternal flame, but some westerner pointed out that it was caused by natural gas and some of the allure of the town has gone away. Numerous Nepalese people insist on bringing their dead love ones to the sacred valley.

Karen and Graham showed up early in the afternoon and the team was reunited. We were all happy that they made it, the alternative is to walk back where you came from. We had a fun night eating and drinking together.




Day 13

After a days rest it was time to move on. We planned on getting as far as Jomson or even Marpha, but got a late start due to saying goodbye to our friends in Mukinath. We left Bruce and the couple behind, but we were sure we would run into them again on the trail. The wind was very strong that day. I think it averaged about 35 miles per hour right in our face with gusts up to about 60. The landscape was much drier on this side of the pass. It had a moonscape like quality, dusty and barren. In the distance we saw Kagbeni, a green oasis up rice terraces and orchards. We went down into the valley for lunch and to take a break from the wind. We found a restaurant called Yakdonalds and I ordered the Yakburger set, what else would you get at Yakdonalds. It was a Yakcheeseburger with fries and a coke. It was excellent, I have pretty much been a vegetarian in India and Nepal, it just happens naturally. The town was so cute and charming that we decided to stay the night. We would also be able to meet up with our friends again.

We found a really nice guest house and wandered around the town for the day. Kagbeni is the jump of point for the Mustang trek. The permit for Mustang is $800($25 for Anapurna). Only about 2000 people do the Mustang trek every year, they don't want people spoiling the local Tibetan mountain population of Mustang. Apparently, people still live in caves in this remote part of the world that straddles the Nepal/Tibet border. We ran into an archery competition while exploring the town. It was the last day of the tournament. We spent the next few hours drinking apple brandy and conversing with the locals. There English was more than adequate and we were able to learn a lot about the area. I met a man named Samuel from Kathmandu who works for Ecovillage, his job is to educate the locals about Eco friendly products and how to avoid using chemicals that will pollute their villages. We packed into a little bar that was not much more than a room with some benches and drank the local whiskey. I felt like I was in a Discovery Channel documentary. The men were banging drums, singing, dancing and drinking while the woman watched from the kitchen or stuck their head in the windows. It was one of those moments that makes traveling special.

That night I was showing the owner of our hostel some of the pictures that I took and she recognized her husband. She was surprised to see that I also had met two of her children. The husband came back later and was surprised to find us at his place. He became a little nervous when I told him that I had showed his wife pictures from the contest. He had been dancing with Linda and Ana and I think he was worried about what his wife would think, I quickly assured him of the nature of the pictures and I could immediately see the relief in his face.

We were very happy to have stopped off in Kagbeni. Each day on the trek seemed to be better than the day before.


(I will write more later)......the rest is just an outline for me to fill in. enjoy the pictures


Day 14


We went to Marpha and fought a huge wind storm.


Day 15


We went to lhete via jomson, met up with graham and Karen again.


Day 16


We hiked to tatopani and enjoyed the hot springs.


Day 17


We caught a bus to Beni and another to Pokhra to end the trek back where we started.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241422680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241422680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241422680/tpod.html Tue, 05 May 2009 05:19:57 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Chandigarh, India

We decided to break up our long trip to Manali, a mountain town in Northern India with a layover in one of the richest cities in India. The place feels weird, no cows and very few saris. It was an easy 5 hour train ride from Delhi and we checked into a clean hotel with 24 hour check out making it very convenient to get the night bus to Manali. We found an excellent restaurant, best so far in India. We ate there for all 3 meals while we were in town. We basically just relaxed, spent some time on line and got ready for our 10 hour bus ride up into the mountains where the weather is frigid, but the scenery is supposed to be beautiful.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410560/tpod.html Mon, 04 May 2009 03:51:27 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Kathmandu, Nepal

It was nice to be in a city after 3 weeks on the mountain, but we were very sad at the same time. The mountains are just so beautiful and serene, they are hard to leave behind. We took a 6 hour bus ride to Kathmandu from Pokhara. We had heard Kathmandu was a dismal, polluted hell hole. It was polluted, but we found some fun and interesting things to do. It used to be a traveler mecca in the sixties, but times have changed. It is now a sprawling metropolis, polluted and overcrowded.


We stayed in Thamel, the foreigner traveler ghetto. It has everything you need; internet, travel desks, shopping, hotels, restaurants, the usuall traveler haunts. It looks like a bazzar exploded and formed another bazzar on top of the one that blew up. Nepal is similar to India, but with some Chinese influence as well. Geography is indeed important. We spent the next few days lazing around the city, fighting power cuts and eating street kabobs. We poached some free wi-fi from the posh hotel next door to our place and made the best of it. Durbar square is worth seeing and we made the hike to monkey temple. There were tons of monkeys and there would have been spectacular views of the city if it wasn't for the LA like pollution. It actually made India look clean, an astonishing feat.

We met up with Karen and Graham, Bruce was still taking his time on the mountain. When you ask him how long he is travelling for, he replies, "a year or two." Not many people have that time frame. He owns his house in Australia and uses the rent money to pay for his travels if you were wondering how one can do such a thing. He doesn't even have to dip into any of his savings. He has basicaly been traveling for about 3 years. He is quite the character, being a former auctioneer.

We spent an evening drinking on the street with Graham, Karen and some guy we met on the trek. It was fun socializing with the locals and filling up on street kabobs. All in all, good times in Kathmandu.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1241410680/tpod.html Mon, 04 May 2009 03:38:42 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Agra, India

I was expecting much to be honest from the Taj. It is just a building and I have seen so many amazing monuments. I guess it is nice to be able to rate most of the worlds famous sites with first hand experience. The Taj was beautiful, but not spectacular. I was never blown away by it at any moment. I put it far behind Bagan, Broubodor, or even Prambanan in Indonesia.

We had to change our plans because of a workers strike in Nepal. They blockaded the roads so we had to fly out. The same thing happened to me in Bolivia. We flew to Delhi and hopped on a train to Agra to see the Taj, you can't go to India and not see the Taj. The next day we backtracked to Delhi, I hate backtracking, and spent a day relaxing in our hotel room and eating good food.

The next day we hopped on a train for Chandigar. It is supposed to be a beautiful city and cooler than Delhi. It is near 100 degrees daily in Delhi this time of year.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1237809360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1237809360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1237809360/tpod.html Mon, 04 May 2009 02:26:40 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

We arrived in Jaisalmer after a 10 hour bus ride from Udaipur. We arrived at Jodhpur at 3 am and decided to continue on rather than deal with an Indian city at that hour, a choice I later regretted as we heard great things about Jodhpur. However, all the cities in Rajasthan are uniquely special in their own way.

Around 40 touts greeted us at the bus stop, it brought me back to Indonesia and I felt the wrath of India for the first time. We quickly parted the touts and headed for an autorickshaw into the center of town. Jaisalmer is a bustling city full of people, cows, goats, camels and bright saris. A large fort sits atop a plateau overlooking the city. The fort has lots of Jain temples inside and is quite beautiful. All the buildings in the city are the color of the sand and have rooftop decks with views of the fort.

All the hotels are dirt cheap since they hope they can sign you up for a camel trek, anywhere from one to fourteen days. We chose one night with an option for a second if we wanted. Our camel guides were more than angry that we didn't take the extra night, they can be a bit pushy in these parts.

We started out with an hour jeep ride to the border, the packed us in like sardines. We went with about 5 other people; 2 dumb English girls, a French Israeli character, an Irishman and a Japanese guy who couldn't speak much English.

The camels were hilarious. I could stare at them for hours and be pleasantly entertained. We rode the camel for about 90 minutes before stopping to rest in the shade. It turns out that there is a lot of down time on these camel treks. We spent the next 5 hours lounging around, eating lunch and watching the camels graze. Luckily, we brought our speakers and treated ourselves to the soothing sounds of Miles Davis, the others in our group were very happy about our speakers.

The camels are amazing. They graze for hours, some going very far from the group, suspiciously like they don't want to come back. It took the guides almost an hour to round them up, but I don't think they were in much of a hurry. Desert people seem to take their time.

After lunch we spent another couple of hours on the camels and made our way to the camp site. We camped in the middle of beautiful sand dunes while the camels were free to roam. We had a nice camp fire, ate dinner, drank beer and listened to the guides sing songs. We cut them off in favor of our music, they weren't too happy about it, but everyone else seemed pleased. It was amazingly peaceful under the desert sky.

There was a sandstorm that night that made it difficult to sleep. We woke up sand blasted and my sleeping bag cover was lost to the storm. Everyone on the tour had had enough. We all decided to go back, much to the pain of the guides, even the two dumb British girls who had paid for two nights were against staying another. One night in the desert was enough for us, it would have been nicer without the sandstorm., but I guess it made it an interesting experience.

Overall, it was a great time. It was fascinating to see so many camels up close. After a couple of days back in Jaisalmer we were on our way to Nepal.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1238656980/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1238656980/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1238656980/tpod.html Mon, 04 May 2009 01:01:26 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Pokhara, Nepal

Pokhara is the gateway for the Anapurna Circuit trek, a three week odyssey through the Himalayas. We spent the next few days buying supplies, permits and mentally preparing for the three week trek. We had a basic outline, but probably underestimated the effects of the altitude. One has to spend a few day acclimating once you get over 12,00o feet. I have had problems with altitude in Peru and China, but my body always seems to adjust.

Pokhara is a pleasent city with a lake and views of the Anapurna range, though not when we were there. The air quality was too hazy to see them, but the postcards looked beautiful. Nepal is a playground for outdoor enthusiasts. You can paraglide, kayak, trek, mountain climb, canyoning, repel under waterfalls, fly mini planes and about any other extreme sport you can think of.

After 3 nights of relaxation and preperation we woke up early and caught a 4 hour bus to Besisahara in order to start the trek.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1238656260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1238656260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1238656260/tpod.html Mon, 04 May 2009 00:54:20 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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New Delhi, India

We had to take 2 train rides and a bus to the border to get out of Rajasthan. The first ride was an easy 18 hour jaunt into Delhi, where we got stuck for the night since the all the trains were full. The following day we took a 13 hour train east toward the Nepal border, before hopping on a 2.5 hour bus for the border where we had to change into a taxi for the ride to Pokhara.

We decided to spend a night in Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha, to break up the trip. The area was very underwhelming, but it is quite a pilgrimage site for Buddhists. It seems every Asian country has built a monastery in the area, each one trying to outdo each other, just as Buddha preached, even Myanmar. It makes me sick when countries spend so much money on crap religious buildings and they can't even feed themselves.

We split a cab with an Irish guy named Colim, we met him on the Camel trek, and arrived in Pokhra the following night. Our taxi was a comedy of errors. We stopped at a mechanic on the way out of town. We had to push the car to get it started, a la Little Mrs. Sunshine, though we were doing it on dirt roads amongst the Himalayas with trucks and tractors whizzing by. It was a long journey, but we were all glad we sprung for the taxi to forgoe the dreaded night bus.

We were looking forward to our mountain treks.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1237807920/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1237807920/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mericanomad/1/1237807920/tpod.html Mon, 30 Mar 2009 06:30:36 -0400 Jesse and Ana go aroundspreading democratic principles and American values to the local peasants.

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Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

We got a morning bus for Ajmer and transfered onto a local bus for the 30 minute ride over the mountain to Pushkar. Pushkar is a small city with a lake where many pilgrims come every year for a variety of festivals. The town has tons of shops with numerous hotels for travelers. The whole town used to be all temples, but now many of them are used for shops, restaurants and homes. The streets are packed with motorbikes, cows, people and monkeys. The main street is a zoo, but the alleyways and off streets are quite relaxing. There is a ton of cow shit everywhere, in India cows pretty much have free rein in most of the cities.

We spent the next few days soaking up the sites, dodging cow shit and enjoying the views from the rooftops. Most of Rajasthan seems to be this way. The next day we hopped on a bus for Bundi, Kipling used to live there.
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