Namaste

Trip Start Jun 29, 2008

Trip End Nov 27, 2008

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Where I stayed

Shangri-La Pokhara

(Pokhara hotels)

Flag of Nepal Pokhara, Nepal
Monday, October 27, 2008

We spent 1 day in Kathmandu at the very beginning of our Himalayan experience, and a further 2 days after our visit to Tibet and before heading to Bhutan. Kathmandu is a busy city of 2.5 million people, considerably larger than the second largest city in Nepal, which is Pokhara, with a population of 250,000. Kathmandu does have some charms, with interesting Hindu and Buddhist sites, but these are tempered by the crowding, the constant traffic noise and chaos, the dirt and the poverty of some of the population. Our whole group was glad to have seen Kathmandu, but also very happy to leave it behind us. I'll leave a discussion our sight-seeing in Kathmandu until after Tibet, which is when we completed our tour of this, the capital city.

Pokhara was definitely a delightful change after Kathmandu - it was quiet, amazingly scenic and had a slower paced and more comfortable way of life. The town shows evidence of greater affluence than Kathmandu, partly as a result of this being the area where the Gurkhas have been, and still are, recruited (300 positions per year with about 30,000 hopefuls trying out!). The town is in the sub-tropical midlands of Nepal, but has a wonderful view of the Inner Himalayas, which includes the famous Annapurna range and the 'Fishtail' mountain (Macchapucchare). The town lies on a lake, and the main tourist area is in a strip along the lake called 'Lakeside'. We had 2 days to enjoy Pokhara, and the temperature was so delightful it allowed swimming in the hotel pool with a view to the snow-capped mountains.

We had just one morning of 'sight-seeing' while in Pokhara, starting with sunrise atop Sarangkot to watch the sun's rays light up the peaks of the Himalayas. Following breakfast, we then visited Devi's falls, a Hindu cave within which you can view the falls, the regional museum, Tashiling Tibetan refugee village (where we contributed by buying one of the hand-made Tibetan carpets) and a boat-ride on lake Phewa Tal..