There is a big difference between vacation and travel. On vacation, one drives to a rented space near a beach or a lake, and moves - slowly and barefoot - between meals and naps and books for several days. Travel, on the other hand, requires one to pack light (and then cull out half), fortify the first aid kit, wear sturdy walking shoes, and accept the fact that the trip will surely end in sleep deficit.
Admittedly, Nepal was an ambitious destination for our first trip. It was also a great choice. The Nepali people we met throughout the week treated us very well. Asa and Liam got many random hugs, pinched cheeks and "Hello Baby!" from passersby. They quickly learned to press their palms together and reply with a polite "Namaste". One fellow tourist in his late-50's (not sure where he was from) stopped us on the street our first day in Kathmandu exclaiming to the kids, "You came to Nepal! You came to Nepal! I didn't get here for the first time until I was 28, but you are here!!" Indeed, all four of us were in Nepal for the first time.
Our trip began with a very easy flight from Delhi - just over an hour, during which we were served a full meal before landing. Kathmandu sits in a bowl, surrounded by mountains on all sides. Our hotel and home base for the week was situated on a quiet alley in Thamel, the very busy backpacker section of town. After a six year hiatus, it was exhilarating to be back among the Lonely Planet people. Thamel's streets were narrow and crowded - think NYC, swap taxis for motorcycles, scatter in a good number of bicycle rickshaws, take out the sidewalks, then cut the width of the traffic lane by more than half. There were so many shops selling everything from trekking gear (was it all
really North Face?) to local handicrafts, and the food options ranged from sketchy street snacks to upscale cafes. We worked out a good system to safely navigate the congested streets - Asa always moved to the inside slot after crossing the street with me, and Liam was almost always on Jonah's shoulders (note my beloved
Sea Bag - thanks again Maine book club friends!).
And after a while, it looked like this:
For dinner, it was a very short walk from our hotel to Fire & Ice Pizzeria. And we ate dinner there all three nights we were in Kathmandu. If you have ever been to Nepal, you have heard of this place, and maybe you stayed away because it is so touristy. After all, who comes to Nepal to eat wood fired pizza? Well, this is one of the benefits of traveling with kids. While Jonah would prefer to eat only local fare when we are on the road, I like a dose of comfort food once in a while. I actually believe that he is still annoyed about the grilled cheese I ordered in Hanoi back in 2002. Anyway, now I have my western food alliance. Jonah can still eat lunch in the scuzzy momo shop, but there will be pita with hummus or a brownie sundae to balance out the experience.
On the second day, our hotel had arranged for a driver to pick us up after breakfast. He took us to three temples; two Buddhist - Swayambhunath (also known as the Monkey Temple) and Bodhnath (this was our favorite), and one Hindu - Pashupatinath. We took our time walking around, avoided aggressive monkeys, spun a few prayer wheels, ate some lunch, observed monks chanting, enjoyed the sunshine, and respectfully turned back after coming upon funeral preparations at the cremation ghats. After the sight-seeing, we were on our way up to Nagarkot, a mountain village just about an hour north and east of Kathmandu where we spent our second night. Though the snow capped peaks were hidden behind clouds, the drive was beautiful and the mountain air refreshing. We enjoyed great views of the valley and leisurely walked through the village, stopping on the way back at a tiny guest house for a beverage while two young locals performed a few traditional songs.
In the morning, we were up and out early, heading back down the hill toward Kathmandu. We were scheduled to make two stops along the way but Asa's first-ever episode of carsickness put us on a direct path to the hotel. After a bath and change of clothes (for two of us), we were back in action. Our driver even returned to take us out to Patan (the second of the earlier skipped stops) later in the afternoon.
After our second night in Kathmandu (and second dinner at Fire & Ice), we were up early for the "four to five hour" drive to Chitwan National Park. It was Tuesday and the entire country was preparing for the huge Dashain holiday. This is the biggest holiday in Nepal, a time when everyone heads out of the city and returns to their home village. In hindsight, this was not a great day to be on the road. It took us forever to get out of the city, and the air was filled with fumes and smog from all the cars and overloaded buses going in the same direction as our hired Toyota Camry. Once out of the city limits, we hit the mountain passes and even though our driver was excellent, the road conditions were not what we had anticipated. Then we stopped. For two hours. There was a disabled truck ahead of us -
way ahead of us.
So after nearly seven and a half hours, we arrived at our hotel, had a late lunch, jumped in the pool, and took a short walk to the river.
Our three days at Chitwan were fantastic and rewarding. We met some wonderful people including a Finnish family with three young boys who had just moved to Nepal, and a group of four from Spain who patiently told our boys the Spanish word for every animal on the planet. We had a close encounter with rhinos, and saw lots of elephants and many other creatures including various birds, big red bugs, monkeys and crocodiles.
Our hotel arranged our outings and safaris - including a two hour trip through the jungle atop an elephant. This started out well until I realized that the point of a "safari" was to actually
see something like a tiger or a rhino. Then, about an hour into the journey, our elephant copped an attitude, slamming her trunk on the ground and making an odd barking sound. She was peeved about something. Eventually, she calmed down - I think she wanted to stop to eat? - and the ride back was smooth. We made the final river crossing during a beautiful sunset.
By Friday morning, the people of Nepal were with their families in the countryside so traffic heading into Kathmandu was very light. Our return trip to the city was only five hours. We had time to pick up a few souvenirs and get organized for the next morning's early departure for the airport. It was while we waited to get through one of several security checks at KTM (where lines were separated by gender!), that I noticed the posters promoting
Nepal Tourism Year 2011 with the slogan "Once is Never Enough". This is true, and we do plan to go back!
Click
here for lots more photos!
