Front Row to the Mountains

Anita and her husband are on their 10 months long travel adventure which has taken them to countless cities and countries in South America to Asia. The duo described being up and close to the mountains on the Annapurna trail as having a front row of an Imax movie – one could almost reach out and touch them as they were so close! They report that the trails were not that busy which they actually preferred as they avoided the “traffic jam” on narrow trails during peak trekking season.

They were in Nepal in time for the “Christmas of Nepal” i.e. the festival of lights, Tihar.

Below are a few excerpts from their blog on their experiences in Pokhara, the “base camp town” for journeys to the Annapurna range of the Himalayas.

“We arrived just in time to see Tihar celebrations – oversimplified, it’s “Hindu Christmas” and one of the biggest holidays in the Hindu calendar. Don’t forget, despite the strong Buddhist influence, Nepal is 80% Hindu.

People put up massive decorations of lights at home – kind of like Christmas but without reindeer or Santa Claus. On the third last day they put decorations on the sidewalk in front of their homes – candles, flowers and colorful handmade designs. You can spend hours walking around at night admiring the wonderful decorations. The second last day is a Bollywood style version of Halloween – girls dress up in their best red saris and go house to house dancing and singing to collect money. Again, extremely entertaining to just walk around and enjoy the entertainment – some groups are extremely professional and others are well, better for the blooper reel of American Idol.

Many people don’t have much money or job which following the April earthquake and dramatic decrease in tourist and tourist dollars is a terrible combination. So, don’t cancel your trip to Nepal! The people are wonderful and your visit will only help the country recover faster!”

All in all, they recommend the country to all wanderers and recommend that people book their tickets to Nepal Now!

Click below to read the original post:

http://journals.worldnomads.com/finally/photos/55437/Nepal/The-hermit-kingdom-contd