Aaja bhanda 5 barsa ra ek din aghi, December 29, 2000 arthat 2057 saal ko Poush 14 gatay. Tyahi din ko samjhana ma yaha kehi kordai chu I had started this thread about 3 years ago but never got to complete it. Yespaali chahi tukra tukra gari bistarai paskine sur gardai chu.

I was scheduled to leave for Pokhara along with my Japanese and Malaysian friends (from here on, known as J and M) who were visiting me in Kathmandu at that time. We had planned a short trek in the Annapurnas. Well, it happened to be during the time of the Hritik Roshan kanda. The previous day was the “Upatyaka Banda” called by the CPN ML. There were rumors that the same party was calling the following two days as “Nepal Banda.” Of course as usual, there was no word regarding this issue from the state controlled media. However, there were also rumors that other parties, including the CPN UML, had been negotiating with the CPN ML not to call a strike on the King’s birthday (ironically the last one for King Birendra). Without knowing for sure whether the strike was called off or not, the three of us left home around 5:45 am. As we walked through the Gusingaal ko galli, there were a couple of chiya pasals open but that was far from confirming that the strike was called off since shops away from the main streets are usually open anyway. As we reached Hanumanthan, we saw a taxi that appeared to be waiting for passengers. That sight gave a little boost to our worried spirits.

As we crossed the Bagmati bridge and headed west towards Tripureswore, we saw a few more vehicles. By now, we were thoroughly convinced that the strike was called off. Tespachi pabitra Tukucha paar gari Rangasaala ko chewai bata Uttar haniyo, walking along the sidewalk raised high above the street. Tudikhel ko cheu cheu hindai we arrived Sahid Gate around 6:20 am, where we were supposed to catch our “tourist bus” at 6:30. All the tourist buses were supposed to leave Thamel and come that way. There was one European looking dude smoking a cigarette. He asked us in his barely comprehensible English if we were headed to Pokhara, I replied on the positive. It was a cold and foggy morning, and time seemed to pass very slowly. Many local minibuses, microbuses, and tempos stopped and passed by. However, no tourist bus was to be seen. While the three of us were talking and shivering struggling to keep ourselves warm, the grumpy looking European dude, who was apparently the only other person waiting for a Pokhara-bound bus, kept smoking one after another cigarette.

It was almost 7 am when one tourist bus finally arrived but that was not ours. Showing our ticket (with the bus # endorsed as 101), I asked the conductor “Ek saya ek number ko bus audai cha ki chaina?” “Audai cha” was his reply. Other tourist buses, some bound to Tandi and some to Pokhara arrived after that and I asked the same question to the conductors of each of them just to receive the same reply. Eventually the chain smoker got into his bus. I now started having doubts. I was thinking that may be the operators of that bus did not know that the strike was not called off and therefore decided not to operate that day. The two started teasing me, “You screwed us up. That bus #101 does not even exist. See, even that chain smoker is already on his way.” At the same time, I was thinking of a contingency plan of taking a minibus run by the Prithvi Highway Syndicate should our bus not arrive within the next hour or so. After repeating the same question to a couple of other bus conductors, finally one of them said “la yesai ma aunus.” So finally around 7:15 or so, we were on our way to Pokhara.

Bus pheri khataray paraycha. It belonged to Monica Travels. Unlike other tourist buses we saw, it did not have tinted windows. The two got the relatively better seats but I got the only other of the two remaining 2*2 seats. The aisle seat beside me was out of order; the backrest was tilting all the way back making it almost a flat seat. I used it to place my backpack. The window was missing a knob and was not stable. Banda garyo, ekai chin ma khyatrang khyatrang gardai khulihalne ani cheeso sireto le attack dinthyo. Tesmathi tyo knob hunu parne thau ko pwal bata aune chiso hawa ta chadai cha. After exiting the valley at Nagdhunga, we got a brief glimpse of the Ganesh Himal. After numerous twists and turns, and greeting numerous night buses and trucks headed towards Kathmandu, we reached Naubise. Dr. Harka Gurung, in his renowned book “Vignettes of Nepal” states that the road between Thankot and Naubise turns 52 times. However, I have always been forgetting to make the count myself to verify his statement.

Kramasha

तो ठामका सपै ढुङ्गामुडा नी चिनीचु दादा मैले !क्यार्नु खै ! आफ्नो त १८-२० बर्से बैँस तेतै जो बित्यो !

कास्की नाउडाडाको भन्ज्यागंमा "पौडेलको पसल" भन्ने दोकान त मैले नि चिनिचू। चिया खाको नाता छ।

दादाको पौडेल (दोकाने ) सँ नाता नरहनी त कुरै भे'न नी !हे हे हे !

हन यो कास्की मा पनि नाउँडाँडा छ र ?

छ नि हऊ माइला ज्यू !खुशीको कुरो मैले दुवै ठाऊँ चहारेको छु ! तपैँको घर जानी स्याँङ्जा नाउडाडाको बाटो हैन र ? हे हे हे !

हे हे हे समून्द्र जी, तपाइँलाई कसरी मेरो घरजाने बाटो स्याङ्जा नाउडाँडा भन्ने लाग्यो?

यात्रा ABC (Annapurna Base Camp) सम्‍म पुराउनु है । फेरि लामो हुनछ भनेर घान्‍दुक बा पुन हिलमै सक्‍ने हैननी

मुटु छुने लुम्लेको हावाले!
हावाले!

Dadaji le ahile bhane thikka geet chhannu bho. Tyo geet ma ullekhit praya jaso thau haru yo yatra le sameteko cha.

Ocean, baas ta Ghandruk napugi basiena, chinta nagaru.

Naudanda ta ma pani duitai pugeko chu. Syangja ko Naudanda ta jamma ek choti ho. Pokhara bata Waling janda auda bus chiya khana rokeko thiyo. 21 barsa huna lagecha tesko pani. Kaski ko Naudanda ko kura ta aba yahi yatra samsmaran mai garula ni.

Usofa, ABC lai yo yatra le sametdaina, tara plan gareko bhanda chahi yatra kehi lambieko thiyo. Bistarai bistarai tesko bayan garihalchu ni.

gajjab cha samsaran ta chiple dai.....aba dolalghat ko macha khana napaye ni malekhu ko le chitta bujauna parla! afno ta nepal ma yatra garne sapna nai bhayo. hopefully things will be better next time around

छ न दुबै ठाम मा नैडाडा । म त दुबै ठाममा साइकल चढेर पुगेको छु , त्यो पनि गियर नभाको ( नमाउनटेन बाइक) , अइले त कता हो कता जस्तो लाग्छ, कसरि उक्लियो होला त्यो उकालो------अझैहोला त्यो साइकल घरमा , अब त पाङरा पनि गुड्छ कि गुड्दैन कुन्नि ? ह्या चार पाङर मटर चलाको छु भबेर ठुस्किएर बसेकको छ रे भर्याङ मुनि एउटा कुनामा ।

छ न दुबै ठाम मा नैडाडा । म त दुबै ठाममा साइकल चढेर पुगेको छु , त्यो पनि गियर नभाको ( नमाउनटेन बाइक) , अइले त कता हो कता जस्तो लाग्छ, कसरि उक्लियो होला त्यो उकालो------अझैहोला त्यो साइकल घरमा , अब त पाङरा पनि गुड्छ कि गुड्दैन कुन्नि ? ह्या चार पाङर मटर चलाको छु भबेर ठुस्किएर बसेकको छ रे भर्याङ मुनि एउटा कुनामा ।
---------
पढ्न मिल्ने गरेर फेरि राखिदिए ।

So what are we going to take? We had this dilemma as we reached the bus station. Taking a bus would save us perhaps Rs. 300 or so while taking at least an hour longer. The going rate for taxis was Rs. 150 per person or Rs. 600 per taxi. As we were discussing our options by the taxi queue, we were offered a ride for Rs. 450 (without a 4th passenger). Apparently, the driver had been waiting for a long time. Soon we exited the bus station in a 1970’s Corolla. Following the course (and the dam nearby) of the Seti, we passed Simpani and exited the city area shortly thereafter. Soon, we left the Seti and started following its tributary Yamdi (kasaile Ghatte Khola, kasaile Harpun Khola pani bhaneka chan tesailai…Harpun ta sidhai Phewa ma milcha haina ra? Kun khola ko cheu lagieko ho kasaile prasta paridiu na). Ani Hengja ko Tibetan Camp hudai chhitai Phedi pugiyo. We must have overtaken at least 2 or 3 buses to both Baglung and Phedi by then. Bus ma gaeko bhae 3 ghanta lagthyo bhanthyo driver le.

Phedi bata laamo thaado ukalo chadhnu thiyo. Despite its age, our taxi handled the steep climb very well. We praised Toyota for its excellence. The driver proudly added that he had recently made an almost 400 km trip from Pokhara to Gorkha and Narayanghat (I wonder if he really drove an extra 100 km locally in addition to the 300 km highway distance) and back the same day without a problem. Mero gadi pani ta Toyota Corolla ho ni, ramro maintain gariyo bhane arko 20 barsa kaso nachalla bhanne sochay man manai.

As we gained altitude, the view became more and more spectacular. Phewa Taal ra Pokhara upatyaka ko manoram drisya dekhina thalyo. The vegetation soon changed from tropical to subtropical/alpine with an increased dominance of pine trees. Naudanda bata ajhai ukalo lagay pachi Khare pugiyo, from where we exited the Pokhara Valley and began our descent. Ghumauro bato ma Lumle hudai Nayapul jhariyo. Nayapul must have sprung up as a transshipment point (and a popular alternative to starting treks at Naudanda or Phedi) after the construction of the Pokhara-Baglung highway. Bato ko daya tira sana sana chhapra haru thie, baya tira ta bhir matrai. Our driver made a very quick and sharp U turn, missing the cliff by perhaps only a few centimeters, and said “Jharne bato yahi ho hajur”, as he stopped.

Kramasha

किन रोक्यो कुन्नि, बा तलबाट गाडि उकालो लाग्दै छ र हो. साइड दिनुप-यो नि. जे होस् क्यासेट त सुन्नुप-यो स्टा्र्ट मै राखेर.

ए! पुन: हिलैमा,
फूल जस्तो सोल्टिनी बस्यो दिलैमा!... ... ...

म बढि बोल्या भे "Horn Please!" है. बाग्लुगं पुगेसी संझाम् है, अर्को गीत गाम्छु के नेपथ्यमा.

Dada Giriji,

Tapai lai "Horn Please" haina "Speed 40 km/hr" bhannu parla jasto cha :)

Baglung ta ahile samma pani pugeko chaina ma, kasari samjhaunu. Gadi rokinu ko karan chahi paidal yatra suru garne thau aipugera ho. Cassette sunna chahi walkman bokay matrai ho, gadi ta aru kehi din dekna pani paudaina.

Herda ramro Ghandruke gaun cha
jaha gae ni mayalu dil ma thau cha
Rupa Taalai ma
phoola jasto solteni basyo dilai ma

arko geet chahi

Lumle mathi Chandrakot
Modi Khola Nayapul
Ghandruk gaun ma bhet bho dil ko phool

Yatra ko aru bayaan bistarai takraunechu.

Taxi bata jhariyo, trekking suru bho bhani danga pariyo. Dhungai dhunga chhapeko bharyang bata oralo jharna thaliyo. Within a minute or two, we met a European accented lady who greeted with us with a namaste. “End of your trek?” I asked (as if it were not obvious). “Yes”, she smiled. “We are just starting ours,” I said. “Just a few more steps for you”, J told her. We continued our descent crossing a local motorable road few times before crossing a suspension bridge. The trail, lined with numerous shops, started following the Modi Khola that separated the Kaski and Prabat districts. It was becoming hazy but the true shape of Machhapuchhre could be seen with it’s twin peaks. Down below, pebbles could be seen under the crystal clear water of the Modi. Within another 20 minutes or so, the Bhurungdi Khola joined the Modi across us. We crossed the Modi by an iron bridge and reached Birethanti.

Birethanti marked the official entry to the Annapurna Region, where trekkers had to register at the ACAP office as well as the police station. It is also one of the popular stops along the trek possibly because of its serenity despite being located just minutes from the highway. It is also where the trails to Ghorepani and Ghandruk split. I enjoyed the next few minutes enjoying the surrounding view as well as the roar of the Modi while they registered. Now, I should say, our trek officially started.

Closely following the Modi, we headed towards Ghandruk. The twin peaks of Machhapucchre could be faintly seen for some time. The surrounding view was breathtaking with the greenery and numerous waterfalls. Bistarai Syaulibazaar pugiyo, ani Kimche bata ta thado ukalo thiyo. The view became more and more stunning as we climbed higher on the stone paved trail. Modi Khola ko valley, ani pari patti Landruk ko danda ko drishya herdai swaa swaa gardai ukali chadhiyo. Modi khola bata jati tadhie pani tesko awaaj bhane airahanthyo.

Ramailo mandai ukalo chadhidai thiyo, we were stopped by a man asking for medicines. His little son had fallen on a rock and had a deep cut on his lip. Clearly, it was pretty badly infected. The only treatment he had received in the past few days was some local jadibuti and jharpaat like banmara. The three of us judged that his infection was serious enough to require antibiotics. Unfortunately, none of us carried that. I did strongly advise him to rush to the nearest health post (was there one in Ghandruk or Nayapul?). He said he had no money. I told him that he may receive free treatment at a government health post, and he should rush to the closest one ASAP before the infection gets worse. I told him to take him to Kushma or Pokhara if no treatment was available nearby. “We should have carried some antibiotics,” M commented as we proceeded.

That encounter with the man and his son was a rude shock to me. It made me realize one more time that our beautiful country is plagued by poverty and lack of education. I was at one of the more prosperous places of the country. Aru thau ma jhan kasto hola bhanne lagyo. I also regretted for not providing him any financial assistance (not that he directly asked for it). Dui char saya rupiya dieko bhae bichara ko kalyanai hunthyo ni bhanne sochay. Yestai sochdai hindai thie, Ghandruk nai pugiecha.

Kramasha

It was late in the afternoon when we reached Ghandruk, one of the largest Gurung villages of Nepal. It is also where ACAP’s headquarters was located until the Maoists attacked it a few years ago. The sky was becoming overcast and it was windy and chilly. We settled at the Sakura Lodge right across from the police station. Although the peaks of Machchapuchhre, Annapurna South, and Hiuchuli were behind the clouds, we did enjoy the view of the compact village, surrounding hills, and the roar of the now-invisible Modi and its tributary Kimrong.
It was dark soon, and we hit the bed after having a hearty meal of daal bhaat tarkari. Thakai le garda hola, majja le nidaiecha. When we woke up the next morning, it was cloudy again, and to our disappointment, the peaks were invisible. After breakfast, we started our march towards our destination of the day, Ghorepani.

Passing through the narrow alleys of Ghandruk, we were soon in a dense forest. Thuprai sana kholsa haru tardai ani chara haru ko chirbir sundai bistarai oralo lagiyo. We soon approached a narrow valley of a stream where I had encountered a fresh landslide in 1997. After crossing the wooden bridge, it was a steep climb. Bistarai paani parna thalyo. We stopped for lunch at Bhainsi Kharka, a small clearing in the middle of the forest with only a few lodges.

Kramasha

Lodge ko sahu sanga ek chin kura gariyo. He had worked in the UAE for a few years before deciding to return to Nepal and start his own business. I asked him if he encountered many fussy customers. He did not have good words about Israelis in particular, and then proceeded to tell a story about an American lady.

At the time of the incident, he was selling coke for Rs 30 a bottle (btw, room and board prices are set by the committee of lodge owners for each place, and each establishment has the same price). The American lady complained that the price was too high. So the lodge owner asked how much a coke would cost in an American restaurant. She said about a dollar, and offered the same amount. She paid for the coke with a dollar bill. The exchange rate at that time was around Rs 50 for a dollar :)

The light rain continued as we left Bhainsi Kharka. Soon we reached Tadapani where the trails to Chomrong and Ghorepani split. It is also the largest cluster of lodges between Ghorepani, Ghandruk, and Chomrong. Some lodge owners offered us to stay there but we proceeded politely declining their offer. Views from Tadapani were supposed to be good, but just like during my first visit there, it was raining and nothing was visible. After a steep descent to a stream followed by an ascent, we reached Banthanti. Banthanti was also yet another cluster of lodges in the middle of the forest. After a brief rest stop, we continued upwards.

Soon, the rain turned into snow. M and J were very excited to see snow after nearly 3 years (ever since they moved south to Raleigh, then to India). I was also very excited for experiencing snowfall for the first time in Nepal. The accumulation grew thicker as we gained altitude. We were on a steep trail following a small stream. Soon, we passed a small hut out of which electricity cables sprung uphill. Deurali ma pani bijuli balna thalecha, I thought. It was the smallest hydro powerhouse I had ever seen. It supplied electricity for just the three lodges located above.

After a brief rest in Deurali, also the boundary between Kaski and Myagdi, we proceeded towards Ghorepani. The snow fall had stopped, leaving beautiful thin white layers on the ground as well as the pine and rhododendron trees. A relatively gentle trail finally brought us to Ghorepani, where we were to spend the last night of the second millennium.

घोरेपानी को याद आयो!
चिप्लेढुङ्गा जी continue गरौँ
:)

चैते दशैँ बाग्लुगें मेलैमा
कस्तो माया बस्यो नि ख्याल ख्यालमै!

The first lodge we approached was full, so we went to another one, Kamala Lodge. There were two Canadian men and a Japanese lady staying there. The Canadians had hired a porter who was addressed as G Man (they found it too difficult to pronounce his real name, and used his first initial instead). The Japanese lady, who also had the same first initial, was called G Girl. They had been trekking together for the last couple of days after they met on the Jomsom trail. The Canadians were teaching in Kuwait while the Japanese was doing the same in Missouri. As we introduced each other, they obviously found Chipledhunga a difficult name to pronounce, and therefore started addressing me as C Man. Mero paalo pani uniharu lai B Man ra P Man bhanna thalidiye.

We were in the dining room, with a heater below the table. Without the heater, it would have been bitterly cold. We started drinking beer. It was getting dark and the other four started getting worried about DB. DB bhaneko chahi G Girl ko guide rahicha. They had stayed at the same lodge in Tatopani the previous night. Tyaha bata Ghorepani tira jhandai dui ghanta hiday pachi (and most of that was a steep uphill climb) one of the Canadians realized that he left his camera at the lodge. DB had gone back to the lodge to fetch the camera and promised to meet them at Ghorepani.

Finally DB arrived. He had literally run down the hill to Tatopani, drank two bottles of coke, and immediately rushed back to Ghorepani with the camera. The Canadians were extremely grateful for what DB had done, particularly given the fact that he was not someone they had hired. Soon we had our dinner. While M and J went to bed as they were too tired, I gladly accepted the offer of the “group of initials” to welcome the new millennium together.

Both of the Canadians were heavy drinkers. One of them was a heavy smoker as well (nothing compared to the chain smoker we encountered before though). Churot pani Khukuri khando rahicha, kadaa po chha ta tyo. Some of them started smoking ganja as well, ek dui sarko ta maile pani tanidiye. That is the only time I have ever smoked ganja since I graduated from college. As we sat there chatting, drinking, and smoking, I realized that DB was more than a guide to G Girl, not that I was unaware of such cases before.

It was midnight, and we cheered “Happy New Year.” We could hear the same from the other lodges nearby. G Girl and DB immediately went upstairs to bed, good night bhandai. “Have a good f***,” one of the Canadians whispered as the two disappeared. G Man, who was sitting next to me, whispered “Gora (as foreigners are commonly called in that region) sanga nasutera kina Nepali sanga sutna pareko hola.” “Nepal aesi Nepali sanga pani ta ramailo garnu paryo ni,” I whispered back. After smoking a cigarette each, afno afno kotha tira laagiyo.

Kramasha