Sleeping by the lake
Trip Start
Sep 17, 2007
1
87
272
Trip End
Oct 08, 2008
Pokhara,
Nepal
Saturday, January 5, 2008
The bus was actually quite uneventful. We wound our way up and down the mountains and the 200km only took us 6 hours or so. We arrived in Pokhara around 2:30 in the afternoon. Our guidebook had warned about touts here but it was quite amazing really.
The worst is when you can see them running towards the bus as it pulls in. They wait right outside the door and don't even wait for you to get off the bus. Then they all start yelling.
It's pretty ridiculous really. Generally I ignore them until I have my backpack off the roof. They generally separate us and stand around each of us in a circle trying to be heard in the babble. I stand there and let the voices wash over me. At one point I raised my finger to my lips and quietly shushed them. They all got quiet for maybe 2 seconds. A couple laughed. Then it was back to normal.
We couldn't prevent a tout getting in the taxi with us. But we got the driver to take us to our chosen hotel. He got out when we got close, promising us a free taxi ride and a cheap hotel. We left him waiting, paid the driver, and escaped into Orient Youth Hostel. Those guys are annoying.
Our room in Orient was great and the staff very interesting (more about them later). I was still feeling sick so we slept most of the afternoon away in the sunlight coming through our window. Then we stored all the heavy books we were carrying in preparation for trekking the next day.
~Travis
