On our last day in Delhi, Sarah and Mark took us to a fabulous hotel for Sunday lunch. We arrived at 11.45 and left around 5pm. It was a help yourself buffet with free-flowing champagne. Fabulous!!
By the time we arrived back at Sarah's we were shattered! Eating and drinking can be exhausting, but what a fab way!! to spend an afternoon!
Tuesday, 7 April 2009
Saturday, 21 March 2009
Pampering at the Plaza
After a great night's sleep and a welcome lie-in bed Sarah took me to the Health Spa for a spot of relaxation and a pampering session. We lay by the pool side sunbathing after a while I tested the water (with my toe) however, it was freezing so I resumed the sunbathing! After a couple of hours we had a manicure and pedicure. Unusually, this was done by men. They were very thorough, ending the session with a arm and lower leg massage. Afterwards I felt relaxed and very clean!
Back to Delhi!
Arrived in Delhi around 7pm on Friday evening. Our plane was delayed. It was great to see Sarah and mark again and we spent a great evening eating a fantastic home cooked Indian meal and looking at our photos on their television.
Friday, 20 March 2009
Bhaktapur
We rounded off our time in Kathmandu with a trip to the Aincient town of Bhaktapur. It was like stepping back 200 years through time. We watched women and children drawing water fron wells in the middle of the town square, washing clothes outside their doors, feeding goats and geece by their front door and women knitting, spinning wool and hanging wool out to dry in the sunshine after it had been dyed.
Our plane leaves for Delhi today.
Our plane leaves for Delhi today.
Monday, 16 March 2009
Kathmandu
Returned to Kathmandu to view some of the surrouding sights. This included the biggest Tibetan stupa outside Tibet, where hundreds of worshippers walk clockwise around its base. More and more Buddists join the procession as sunset approaches, chanting and spinning prayer
wheels as they do so.
It was a welcome relief to sit in a rooftop cafe and observe this as moments earlier we had visited a very important and sacred Hindu site where we were to witness the cremation of those dead whose families could afford such an elaborate ceremonial send-off!
wheels as they do so.
It was a welcome relief to sit in a rooftop cafe and observe this as moments earlier we had visited a very important and sacred Hindu site where we were to witness the cremation of those dead whose families could afford such an elaborate ceremonial send-off!
Saturday, 14 March 2009
Pokhara to Bandipur
After almost a week in quiet, peaceful Pokhera we decided it was time to move on. We were hoping to visit Royal Safari park at Chitwan, however, this did not seem possible due to a political situation in the area. So, we decided to visit a small village called Bandipur which is situated way up in the hills on our way back to Kathmandu.
Bandipur was small, very local and rather strange. We stayed overnight in a unique guest house which was furnished with a wealth of Buddha artifacts. Unfortunately, the spectacular views we were hoping to see were obscured by dust (apparently from the Rhajistan desert) which seems to be hanging like a mist over the majority of Nepal at the moment.
Bandipur was small, very local and rather strange. We stayed overnight in a unique guest house which was furnished with a wealth of Buddha artifacts. Unfortunately, the spectacular views we were hoping to see were obscured by dust (apparently from the Rhajistan desert) which seems to be hanging like a mist over the majority of Nepal at the moment.
Wednesday, 11 March 2009
Paragliding over Mt Sarangkot
Today Rob gave me my belated valentine present ' A paragliding session!!!!
We were collected by minibus early in the morning. There was a feeling of great excitement as everybody was celebrating the colour festival of Holi. The paragliding pilots all had their faces painted with brightly coloured powder paint. Many of them rode on the roof of the mini-bus throwing coloured powder paint and water filled balloons at the passers by (many of them retaliated in a similar way)!! We were taken to the very top of mt Sarangkot, a beautiful spot which overlooks the whole of Pokhara. I was given my pilot Armand (a wiry little french man) He seemed very pleasant and explained the rules to me; 'when we take off, you must keep on running even when we leave the top of the mountain' (EEK)!! He told me how to lean to the left and the right when we were in the air and showed me a picture of the birds we might see while we were in the air; Vultures and Eagles!!
I was strapped into my harness, the parachute was unfurled and Armand had his harness on and, before I had time to be too worried, we were running towards the edge of the mountain!! The parachute dragged us back but we still ran then all of a sudden, we were flying way above the top of the mountain, looking down on the paddy fields below us!! Ahmand told me the weather conditions were perfect (the previous day there had been strong winds and many people had vomited!!) We soared way above the mountain and spiralled up into the thermals with an enormous vulture! Luckily Armand did not have another flight so we were able to stay in the air for longer than usual. All too soon, we were heading towards the lake side where we were to land. I did feel slightly dizzy as we spiralled down towards the lake, I did not fancy the idea of a wet landing!! The landing was good. However, I forgot to keep running and flopped down onto my knees. We quickly packed away the parachute and walked a few yards back to the office. A fantastic day!! What a great Valentine present!!!
We were collected by minibus early in the morning. There was a feeling of great excitement as everybody was celebrating the colour festival of Holi. The paragliding pilots all had their faces painted with brightly coloured powder paint. Many of them rode on the roof of the mini-bus throwing coloured powder paint and water filled balloons at the passers by (many of them retaliated in a similar way)!! We were taken to the very top of mt Sarangkot, a beautiful spot which overlooks the whole of Pokhara. I was given my pilot Armand (a wiry little french man) He seemed very pleasant and explained the rules to me; 'when we take off, you must keep on running even when we leave the top of the mountain' (EEK)!! He told me how to lean to the left and the right when we were in the air and showed me a picture of the birds we might see while we were in the air; Vultures and Eagles!!
I was strapped into my harness, the parachute was unfurled and Armand had his harness on and, before I had time to be too worried, we were running towards the edge of the mountain!! The parachute dragged us back but we still ran then all of a sudden, we were flying way above the top of the mountain, looking down on the paddy fields below us!! Ahmand told me the weather conditions were perfect (the previous day there had been strong winds and many people had vomited!!) We soared way above the mountain and spiralled up into the thermals with an enormous vulture! Luckily Armand did not have another flight so we were able to stay in the air for longer than usual. All too soon, we were heading towards the lake side where we were to land. I did feel slightly dizzy as we spiralled down towards the lake, I did not fancy the idea of a wet landing!! The landing was good. However, I forgot to keep running and flopped down onto my knees. We quickly packed away the parachute and walked a few yards back to the office. A fantastic day!! What a great Valentine present!!!
Tuesday, 10 March 2009
The following morning, we continued our trek towards the beautiful, hilltop village of Chomrung. Our ultimate aim was to enter the Annapurna Sanctuary and hopefully, reach ABC (Annapurna Base Camp). It took nearly all day to reach Chomrung. It was a very steep asent followed by a swift decent followed by yet another steep asent. However, the views along the way were well worth the effort. We stopped for a welcome drink of tea and hot lemon pancake at a tea house just outside Chomrung. The view of the Fish Tail mountain and Annapurna South were stunning. Above us there were Griffins circling in the sky. We reached Chomrung around dusk. We had walked for around six hours!
The following morning was bright and clear. We headed towards our destination with the fish tail mountain in our view. The decent was steep! We climbed down over 3,000 (so I was informed)stone steps, then up a winding footpath then more even steeper stone steps. All the time the landscape around us was changing from green fields to rhododendron trees and Bamboo forest. We spent the night at Buddha Lodge in a small village named Bamboo (after the surrounding vegetation). During the evening, several other parites arrived at the lodge. They had all reached ABC and had some great experiences to tell us. The evening was cold and a Cerosene heater was put under the table to warm us. It also dried and warmed our boots and clothes.
The following day we set off towards Hymalayan Hotel. The landscape was beautiful, like an enchanted forest. We saw black faced, grey Lemur monkeys watching us from the ruins of a disused lodge. We reached the Hymalayan Lodge around lunchtime. It had snowed heavily. We decided to spend the rest of the day and the night there. It was at a higher altitude than we had previously been so it would help us to acclimatise to the higher altitude of our next destination. The night was very cold so we borrowed several thick quilts to keep us warm.
The next morning we set off for Derali, from there, we hoped to reach the ABC (Annapurna Base Camp) the following day. However, as we approached Derali, we had to cross an avalanche which we were told had happened the previous evening. When we reached Derali, the news was not good, nobody had set off for ABC on account of the heavy snow and more avalanches. Towards the afternoon, more trekkers arrived at the Derali lodge, hoping, like us, to make it to the ABC. We stayed the night, hoping the snow would clear.
The following morning, the snow was still too deep to attempt to reach ABC. We were less than five hours away from our goal!!!! We decided to decend along with the other groups of trekkers who had stayed at the lodge.
It was much easier to decend!! The snow was powdery and fun to walk on (I fell down a few times but was ok once I got used to it!!!) It took only 2 days to return to Chomrung. From there we decended steeeply to a tiny village called Jhinu.
Jhinu is famous for it's hot springs. We spent a very relaxing two days there. The hot springs were wonderful! Were were watched by several families of brown Rhesus monkeys. Apparantly, they wait until people have left the springs then they go in for a bath!!
After Jhinu, we continued our journey towards Tadopanni. The landscape changed again to Paddy fields and farmland. Again we climbed and decended steeply. The following day was bright and clear, the landscape changed yet again to tall Rhodedendron, birch and Magnolia forest. The Annapurna Massif was continually prominant in between the trees. It was much easier to walk as we were following a ridge. We spent the night at a small hamlet named Derali (yes! Another Derali). From here we ascended 200m to a viewpoint with observation tower to take in sunrise over the mountain panorama. We were the only people there, unlike the famous poon hill which affords similar views but is crammed with over 100 tourists each morning. After breakfast we began the long descent, via Ghorenpani to Nayapul. Although downhill virtually all the way it was tough on the knees with over 5000 steep stone steps. We did not envy those coming up. It took another over-night stop in a local village (where for those who were really struggling could hire a pony to reach their destination) before finally reaching NayaPul late the next afternoon.
Sunday, 8 March 2009
Back in Pokhara!
Wow! What a fantastic experience!! I have never done anything so rewarding or physically challenging!
We began our trek after an hour's taxi journey which took us up and around the foothills to the start of our trek at a village called NayaPul. We took our trekking pass and reported in to the office to let them know how long we were going to be in the concervation area for and where we intended to go. Then we treked for 7 hours (with a few stops at tea houses along the way for a refreshing drink of black tea- with lots of sugar in for energy!!) We arrived in a beautiful village set into the hillside called Gandruk. Strangly enough, we were asked by a Napalise guy where we lived in the UK. When we replied Derby , we were told the owner lived near Derby in a town called Belper!!! Imagine that!!!
The following day we hoped to walk to a village called Chomrung however, I think we had overdone it the previous day, without a porter or guide to help us, we found it very hard going up and down hills some of the steepest hills I had ever climbed so we stayed the night in a small local hamlet at the bottom of a very steep hill. We were so tired we could hardly eat our dinner!!
We began our trek after an hour's taxi journey which took us up and around the foothills to the start of our trek at a village called NayaPul. We took our trekking pass and reported in to the office to let them know how long we were going to be in the concervation area for and where we intended to go. Then we treked for 7 hours (with a few stops at tea houses along the way for a refreshing drink of black tea- with lots of sugar in for energy!!) We arrived in a beautiful village set into the hillside called Gandruk. Strangly enough, we were asked by a Napalise guy where we lived in the UK. When we replied Derby , we were told the owner lived near Derby in a town called Belper!!! Imagine that!!!
The following day we hoped to walk to a village called Chomrung however, I think we had overdone it the previous day, without a porter or guide to help us, we found it very hard going up and down hills some of the steepest hills I had ever climbed so we stayed the night in a small local hamlet at the bottom of a very steep hill. We were so tired we could hardly eat our dinner!!
Sunday, 22 February 2009
Oh, I forgot to mention tomorrow's celebration! Tomorrow there is a big festival in Nepal. It is the Hindu festival of Shiva the destroyer, 'Shivarati' it is called. The men (and boys are allowed to smoke any kind of hallucinogenic substance without reprimand. Apparently, the monks are the most ardent users!!!
Pokhera
We have really enjoyed our week in Pokhera. Most of our time has been spent relaxing. Our Guest House has been fabulous. It's owned by three brothers who were all born there and still live in the house in the garden. The majority the food they serve is grown in their garden and they each take turns to cook the breakfasts. It has such a homely feel that some of the other guests are there long term. There is a Canadian guy in the room below us who has been staying there on and off for years.
We hired a boat yesterday and rowed across to the other side of the lake. We spent most of the day walking uphill through a shady forest to a beautiful stupa. There were tea houses along the way to stop at if we felt thirsty.
Tomorrow we have planned to start our trek into the Annapurna mountain range. It will probably take us two weeks to visit the places we have planned to see and unfortunately, there will be no internet to update my blog. However, I'll update as soon as we return.
We hired a boat yesterday and rowed across to the other side of the lake. We spent most of the day walking uphill through a shady forest to a beautiful stupa. There were tea houses along the way to stop at if we felt thirsty.
Tomorrow we have planned to start our trek into the Annapurna mountain range. It will probably take us two weeks to visit the places we have planned to see and unfortunately, there will be no internet to update my blog. However, I'll update as soon as we return.
Sunday, 15 February 2009
Home of Living Goddess
The Living Goddess makes a brief appearance at midday from the window of her 'home'. Photos are strictly prohibited at that time otherwise the perpretrator will suffer a hideous trekking accident.
Nice bus journey from Kathmandu to pokhara which took about 7 hours. Staying in a very relaxed guest house within a short distance from the lakeside and its restaurants . Weather almost perfect, sunny but hazy the Hymalayas are visible until the afternoon. made the mistake of drinking several hot Nepali wines whilst watching a traditional dancing show and still suffering the after-effects which resemble altitude sickness, something I think we are going to experience in the not too distant future. Will plan on taking a rowing boat across the lake followed by a steep climb to a stupa which overlooks the whole of Pokara. Ideal conditions for paragliding with good thermals which allow 40 minutes of flight time and is very popular here, being the only place in Nepal where it is practised. Unable to download photos at this moment but will attempt to do so later
Friday, 13 February 2009
Kathmandu
Robs better now so today we caught a taxi to the Immigration office we needed to extend our Nepalis visas for an extra week to include our trek into the mountains next week. It was a bit tricky but we managed it in the end! Sadly I haven't been able to download any photos recently because there are lots of power cuts here and I have to grab the Internet when I can. It leaves little time for downloading pictures as there are always a lot of people waiting to use the Internet.
After we visited Immigration we took another taxi to Durber square. It is a massive complex of 16th and 17th century Hindu temples and Royal palaces. It was an extraordinary place. We saw a living child goddess. (she was around 5 yrs old. The guide told us she was selected to be the living goddess from an ancient family line. It was very interesting. Unfortunately no photographs were allowed to be taken of her.
Tomorrow we catch the early morning bus to Phokera from there we intend to organise our trek an the Annapurna circuit.
After we visited Immigration we took another taxi to Durber square. It is a massive complex of 16th and 17th century Hindu temples and Royal palaces. It was an extraordinary place. We saw a living child goddess. (she was around 5 yrs old. The guide told us she was selected to be the living goddess from an ancient family line. It was very interesting. Unfortunately no photographs were allowed to be taken of her.
Tomorrow we catch the early morning bus to Phokera from there we intend to organise our trek an the Annapurna circuit.
Wednesday, 11 February 2009
Kathmandu
We arrived in Kathmandu yesterday around noon and quickly got a taxi to our Guest house. I had expected the weather to be much cooler here but it was 25 degrees!! However, it got cooler towards the evening.
Nepal although a poorer country than India appears to be much cleaner.
The Guest house is off the main street and has a lovely garden with tables, chairs and soft cushions. Our room is massive, spotlessly clean and simply furnished. It has big Indian quits to throw over the bed during the night when the temperature drops. The bed is rock hard though!!!!
The streets here are narrow and winding with no pavements to walk on and you have to be constantly on guard for cycle rickshaws, motorbikes and the occasional car. They sell a multitude of hand knitted hats and socks, felted slippers and bags, fake mountaineering clothing and camping gear and trekking tours.
Today the weather is slightly cooler and Rob isn't well, it's either the beginning of a chest infection or something he's eaten. He usually comes down with something during our holidays!
Nepal although a poorer country than India appears to be much cleaner.
The Guest house is off the main street and has a lovely garden with tables, chairs and soft cushions. Our room is massive, spotlessly clean and simply furnished. It has big Indian quits to throw over the bed during the night when the temperature drops. The bed is rock hard though!!!!
The streets here are narrow and winding with no pavements to walk on and you have to be constantly on guard for cycle rickshaws, motorbikes and the occasional car. They sell a multitude of hand knitted hats and socks, felted slippers and bags, fake mountaineering clothing and camping gear and trekking tours.
Today the weather is slightly cooler and Rob isn't well, it's either the beginning of a chest infection or something he's eaten. He usually comes down with something during our holidays!
Monday, 9 February 2009
Sunday, 8 February 2009
More Photographs of Amritsar
A man at the station told Rob he was a very handsome man. What do you think?
We ate a great meal at the temple!
Guards at the boarder control gave a great display.
The Golden Temple
We reached Amritsar early on Saturday morning. It was still dark when we arrived so we caught a rickshaw into the city. We were lucky to catch our 1st glimpse of the golden Temple just as the sun was rising.
It's hot and sunny here in Amritsar (the holiest of places if you are a Sikh) It has the most beautiful golden temple set in the middle of a lake. People come here from all over India (and the rest of the world we met a guy from Luton here today) on pilgrimages to visit the holy temple. To enter, you must remove your shoes and anything else which is made of leather and cover your head. Then you walk around the temple in a clockwise direction. The mail building and the pavements are built of white marble which shines in the sunlight. The perimeter of the temple is shady and there is a carpet to walk on which is great as it gets hot and slippy with water as people dip themselves into the holy water of the Nectar lake which surrounds the golden temple in the centre. Volunteers prepare food in a 24 hour kitchen to provide a meal for every cast and faith. It's great food!
We also went to the boarder control yesterday. That was very interesting too. It is on the boarder of India and Pakistan. The guards meet in no-mans-land for a ritual ceremony of high kicks, stamping and head flicking, it's about as aggressive as they can get without actually touching each other. Both sides shout abuse at each other in an atmosphere of controlled hysteria. Very interesting!!
Tonight we travel back to Delhi on the overnight train
It's hot and sunny here in Amritsar (the holiest of places if you are a Sikh) It has the most beautiful golden temple set in the middle of a lake. People come here from all over India (and the rest of the world we met a guy from Luton here today) on pilgrimages to visit the holy temple. To enter, you must remove your shoes and anything else which is made of leather and cover your head. Then you walk around the temple in a clockwise direction. The mail building and the pavements are built of white marble which shines in the sunlight. The perimeter of the temple is shady and there is a carpet to walk on which is great as it gets hot and slippy with water as people dip themselves into the holy water of the Nectar lake which surrounds the golden temple in the centre. Volunteers prepare food in a 24 hour kitchen to provide a meal for every cast and faith. It's great food!
We also went to the boarder control yesterday. That was very interesting too. It is on the boarder of India and Pakistan. The guards meet in no-mans-land for a ritual ceremony of high kicks, stamping and head flicking, it's about as aggressive as they can get without actually touching each other. Both sides shout abuse at each other in an atmosphere of controlled hysteria. Very interesting!!
Tonight we travel back to Delhi on the overnight train
Thursday, 5 February 2009
This morning we went to the university to buy train tickets to Amritsar. We travel tonight at 7pm on the sleeper train and arrive at 5.10. Then we have to find a hotel!!!
We are planning to visit the Golden Temple tomorrow morning and the Pakistani border in the evening. Hope we manage to fit it all in.
Wednesday, 4 February 2009
Sarah took us shopping yesterday to buy some appropriate Indian style clothing. The weather is getting hotter and when visiting religious sites care must be taken not to cause offence (Rob had to wear a yellow Sarong because his legs were causing offence) Arms and legs (and head) must be covered. We plan to travel to the Sikh temple at Amritsar soon.
Tuesday, 3 February 2009
Arrived in Delhi on Sat 1st of February. Sarah's driver met us at the airport and took us to her apartment. The apartment is in a different area to where we last stayed and it's quite a way out from the centre of Delhi. There is a park nearby which has cows and big, black, hairy, wild pigs roaming about in it. There is also a small shopping mall which sells everything from clothes to cups of spicy, chi tea. We've been buying small meals called Chaats which are lovely and spicy.
Brij, Sarah's driver has shown us some fantastic places this past week. He has picked us up each morning and taken us to see temples, places and forts which I'm going to download
Wednesday, 28 January 2009
January 28th 2009
The day before my big India adventure.
I had an email from Sarah Sansom today to confirm theat her driver woud meet us from Indira Gandi International Airport on Saturday morning at 6.30 am!!!!
Spending my last evening in Derby sorting through mail, packing and talking to my children. Looking forward to tomorrow but it will be busy; work, then home to finish packing etc. Driving to East Midlands airport around 10pm to catch the coach to Heathrow airport. Hope I manage to get some sleep on the coach! Our flight is due to leave Heathrow at 10am... I don't want to think about how long the flight is but we land in Delhi at 6.10am on Saturday 31st!!
The day before my big India adventure.
I had an email from Sarah Sansom today to confirm theat her driver woud meet us from Indira Gandi International Airport on Saturday morning at 6.30 am!!!!
Spending my last evening in Derby sorting through mail, packing and talking to my children. Looking forward to tomorrow but it will be busy; work, then home to finish packing etc. Driving to East Midlands airport around 10pm to catch the coach to Heathrow airport. Hope I manage to get some sleep on the coach! Our flight is due to leave Heathrow at 10am... I don't want to think about how long the flight is but we land in Delhi at 6.10am on Saturday 31st!!
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