Pokhara to Chitwan

Pokhara to Chitwan

We where relived that the 6 hour bus journey to Chitwan actually took 6 hours, and the trip was actually enjoyable since the Nepali countryside is so stunning.

We are spending 3 and 1/2 days here, so it has been a good opportunity to settle in and unpack in our little resort accommodation. Hamish is struggling with the heat- Chitwan is the tropical  part of Nepal away from the mountains. We booked a place with aircon, but sadly our aircon seems to have died, along with the power and at times the water supply. This seems to be the way of life here. Power goes off for four hours at a time, as there isn't enough supply for the whole country.

We spent a sweat soaked day walking inside the Chitwan National Park stalking out wildlife, and where lucky enough to get a glimpse of some monkeys, a rhino, a sloth bear, peacocks in trees, crocs and some dubious gorillas (which may or may not have been people). It was a cool thing to do, but an endurance fest at the same time with the humidity and heat.

Yesterday we bathed with some elephants which was fun but I felt the elephants where poked and prodded to perform when they probably didn't want to. We rode an elephant in the avo through a community forest, which was amazing! Favorite thing yet.

Today is our last day with our friends James and Bronnie. We are planning to hire bikes and cruse around the countryside, then tomorrow we board a 7 hour bus back to Kathmandu and fly on to Madurai in Southern India.

Kathmandu to Pokhara

It's been a good week since I have written a blog, so I'll start with our last day in Kathmandu as it was a memorable day.

We visited a Hindu temple with ghats on the outskirts of town. The ghats were fascinating- situated by the river, it's where people go to cremate passed family members, and then push the ashes into the river. There was a special cremation of a political guy happening on the day we visited, so half the city where there to watch, as well as the army.

The next day we boarded a 8 hour bus to Pokhara, with a stop on the way for some rafting.  Hamish and I had contracted some gastro by this stage, so the bus trip involved a few emergency toilet stops. We pulled ourselves together and dragged ourselves to the grade 4 rafting trip! It was crazy but fun. The guides kept throwing each other in, and one of the tourists jumped out for a swim mid- rapids upon the guides suggestion, but got stuck in a whirlpool and dragged to some rocks, only to be rescued 40 minutes later! So dodgy.

Anyway, we ventured off on our 5 day trek the following day- just Hamish, our guide Bhimsen and myself. We had monsoon rain most days which bought out leeches! We got a few glimpses of snowy himalaya mountains through the clouds, and passed some amazing waterfalls with all the rain.

Our next adventure continues with our old friends James and Bronnie, who we where excited to met at our hotel on our return. 

Next stop, Chetwan Wildlife Park.

X

Singapore to Kathmandu

Singapore to Kathmandu, Nepal

We had a great two days of sight seeing in Singapore to kick of our trip.

The first day we where eager and crammed in a lot-  we did all the recommended tourist sites in the CBD, including a walk around the Marina Bay, up the amazing Marina Bay Sands hotel which truly blew our minds, then a museum visit to see an Andy Warhol exhibition, lunch at China Town, saw some beautiful temples in Little India, had a mandatory afternoon Singapore Sling at the Raffles Long Bar, then a Night Safari at the zoo.

China Town and Little India where the most interesting neighborhoods away from the malls, full with locals, stalls and great food. We ate at hawker stalls most of the time in Singapore, and the food was amazing- green thai curry, fish ball soup, chicken rice (the most popular dish in Singapore), and a laksa that Matha Stewart had tried once when she visited. I'm salivating thinking about it all.

We where seriously buggered after such a full on first day, plus Hamish had some heat induced 'aliments', so we took it a little easier on the second day. We visited a museum to get a jist of Singapore's history, checked out yet another shopping area, then decided to flag the city and head to a East Coast Beach to chill with beers for the rest of the avo.

We are now in Kathmandu, a vast contrast to orderly Singapore. I didn't expect Kathmandu to be as raw as it is. Hamish describes it as a post apocolictic war zone. I'd call it chaos. 

Our arrival at the airport coincided nicely with the Nepalise Cricket Team, who were returning home successful after a tour. The airport was packed with fans officials and paparazzi..and a band. It was a pretty exciting way to enter the country.

Then came the taxi ride through the city to our hostel, everything you could imagine- crazy traffic, cows hanging out on the road, crumbling buildings, wafts of strange smells, piled rubbish heaps lining the roads and people everywhere going about their day. I thought it was quite interesting that amongst all this, most people seemed to be really nicely dressed and their cloths where generally clean and pressed.

Our hostel is great- we are staying at Tibet Peace Guest House- a recommendation from a friend Grant- it's down a lane way so it's quiet and the lights even work..most of the time.

First Post!

FINALLY....

Hamish and I are heading off on our 4 month trip on WEDNESDAY (September 5th) which will take us to Singapore, Nepal, India, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia!

I'm going to write a blog so I can share our experience with our family and friends.

Follow us to find out what we get up to!!

x missmishmosh