Two Weeks in Nepal

Nepal is a medley of wonderful people, awful roads, spectacular scenery, insane telephone cables and dust. It’s a place that exudes adventure and relishes in bright colors despite the darkness it often must face.

Walking in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, can feel like walking in a vacuum; the near-constant dust makes its way into your nostrils and pores and sets up a permanent camp there. We pass endless piles of bricks. bamboo poles holding up sideways buildings and find that heaps of debris are as commonplace as doormats. Nepal is reminiscent of a place struggling to recover from disaster, because, well, it is. While it looks like disaster struck only a few weeks ago, in actuality, it has been two years (almost to the day).

The magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck this small land-locked country on April 25, 2015 had a catastrophic impact, as earthquakes so often do. By striking in Nepal, however, this earthquake hit the destruction trifecta; it was large; it occurred in a vulnerable nation where infrastructure was already subpar at best; and it hit an economically developing region – one of the poorest in the world, in fact. Due to this, Nepal possesses little resources to accommodate to the widespread destruction it experienced. In essence, the 2015 earthquake delivered a swift kick to Nepal when they were already down. Aftershocks then kicked them again and again.

22,000 injured. 8,857 dead. $10 billion USD in damages.

Driving through Nepal is like perpetually being in a construction zone. A very slow construction zone with an epic amount of dust spewing in each direction, mind you. The dust makes it nearly impossible to breathe without covering your face with whatever is handy: a surgical mask if you’re prepared, your shirt if it’s big enough, or your hand if it’s all you have. At the end of the day, I was often blowing dirt out of my nose into a tissue. Regardless, Nepal is picking up the pieces and working through the hand they were dealt with grace and positivity.

But first, a stop in Bangladesh (eye roll)

Getting to Nepal was an ordeal in itself. An epic and not exactly fun misadventure, if you will. My flight itinerary began in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (home to one of my favorite airports, as a matter of fact) and ended many, many, many hours later in Kathmandu, Nepal. In the middle of that sandwich was a 4-hour-layover-turned-8-hour-layover-turned-11-hour-stay in Bangladesh, home to the worst airport I’ve ever involuntarily found myself.

Let me paint a picture: flickering florescent lights (in areas where lights even worked), broken benches, unattended counters, stray cats. It felt like I was in a zombie video game at the turn of the apocalypse, only worse, because in reality I was in a Bangladeshi airport. Not only were the “staff” extremely rude, if they existed at all, but there was only one place to eat and we had zero access to the outside world. In their defense, they did give us complimentary meals of bad pastries with juice boxes, and later a heaping pile of rice.

Miracle upon miracles, we finally boarded a questionably built plane and flew into the proverbial sunset that is Nepal.

Kathmandu and a Change of Plans

We originally planned to spend a month in Nepal, however, we quickly learned that unless you are doing a 3-week trek through the Himalayas or an uber-long meditation retreat, then there isn’t a whole lot to sustain you for that amount of time. At least not for us.

Instead, we visited the main cities, embraced the outdoor activities, came to be very well-acquainted with the cafes of Kathmandu, briefly took in the sights of the Himalayas, met many furry friends, became all too familiar with bumpy bus rides, spoke with the locals to hear their stories and, of course, inhaled a lot of dust, lest we already had forgotten that.

To be honest, I thought I’d love Nepal far more than I actually did, though it’s possible that my expectations set me up for disappointment. How often I am guilty of this, I am downtrodden to admit – Paris, I’m looking at you. This isn’t to say that my travels here were unenjoyable, because let it be known that I absolutely loved it. In fact, I enjoyed my one-month-turned-two weeks immensely. Plus, the people were right up my alley: accommodating but not pushy, interesting and funny yet not jaded by the influx of mountain tourism.

Now you may be wondering, what does one do in Nepal if they aren’t climbing that little mountain known as Everest? Good question, and spoiler alert, it is more than trekking, I assure you.

Two Weeks Around Nepal

KAthmandu | 3-4 days

The capital of Nepal is as chaotic and haphazard as it is charming and intriguing. Like most cities in Asia, it is a feast for the senses. The streets are filled with chatter from small shops selling hiking gear and traditional handicrafts and the smell of incense fills all the spaces, including but not limited to restaurants, nostrils and streets. Colorful flags hang between buildings, temples and really whatever object they can be tied to.

To my delight, the assortment of random animals abound here. From monkeys on roofs to goats navigating their hooves through cobblestone streets and dogs enjoying an afternoon with pigeons, there is never a dull moment in Kathmandu.

best for

Culture

Bustling city life

History

what to do

Markets in Thamel

Historic sites in Bahkatapur

Durbar Square

Boudhanath and Swayambhunath Stupas

Pahupatinath and Jana Mahal Temples

Garden of Dreams

Weather

Oct - Mar | 65° - 80° F

Apr - Sep | 80° - 85° F

Pokhara | 5-7 days

For many, Pokhara is the gateway to mountain treks in the Himalayas. While it is considered an adventure base, it also serves as a quiet(er) escape from the bustle of Kathmandu. We devoured delicious mo-mo’s, met an unexpected array of animals, watched the whimsical boats pass by and enjoyed sunset over Phewa Lake.

For our hiking adventure, we did a shorter trail in the Annapurna mountains. At two days, the Dhampus Trek may be considered short, yet still highly rewarding.

best for

Adventure

A low key town

what to do

Hiking

Relaxing at Phewa Lake

Canoeing

Trek the Annapurna Circuit

Weather

Oct - Mar | 45° - 65° F

Apr - Sep | 60° - 75° F

Chitwan | 2-3 days

This area is best known for its dense forests and wildlife safaris. While the town itself is nothing to write home about, the region is rich in scenery and animal sightings, including elephants and the rare one-horned rhino.

We did a small group safari to see the animals though we met our fair share just in our general wanderings around the area. Water buffalo, ducks, dogs, cows, elephants - it was a real party.