Row row row your boat... (Pokhara, Nepal)

Matt finally got convinced (after much resistance and under the condition that Maddie paddles) to take a boat ride around Phewa Lake even after reading in the local newspaper that a British man was found dead while fishing a few days earlier. The cause of his death remains a mystery... After a hard trek, a nice and peaceful excursion to one of Nepal's most beautiful lakes sounded divine (to Maddie at least). So along with Dimitri Petrov a cigarette rolling, avante garde, Russian literary professor from St. Petersburg, the threesome set sail on a three hour tour.

Mr. Dimitri Petrov, the only Russian aristocrat "rucksacker" in this side of the world...

As Maddie promised...


Three strenuous strokes later...

Foiled again... Sucker!

Pokhara lies amidst the Annapurna range and on a clear day one can see the reflection of the Himalayas. Pokhara was discovered by a bunch of hippies in the 70's and from the looks of it, some never left. It's quite beautiful once you get past the rubbish and the plethora of tourists. It's not our favorite place in Nepal, but it's a good place to rest for a few days after a trek. We were just eager to get back to our Dharma practice and attend a 10 day retreat in Boudha.

Phewa Lake







Another lost hippie...

'Aint No Mountain High Enough (Nepal)

Matt overlooking Mustang Valley

What you do mean that's a hill?! According to our porter (a 90 lb., black belt, formerly Hindu, now Buddhist real cool cat who lugged our sack) in a matter-of-fact tone,"Mountains don't have trees." A bit perturbed by the Nepali definition of mountains versus BIG!!! hills??? (GULP) that we were about to hike up, we just scratched our heads and continued to climb, up and down, day after day, dodging donkey feces and the occasional European tourist. Man, if these were hills.... what did we get ourselves into this time?! We signed up for 20 days of this? We hiked 6 to 9 hours a day, sometimes beginning as early as 4 in the morning, from alpine forests and windy riverbeds to barren, moon-like landscapes, eventually to summit at the 5,416m (17,872 ft.) the Thorang-La pass crossing over the main Himalayan range. No words can begin to describe how spectacular the highest mountain range in the world truly is. We were certain that we were on top of the world, way beyond clouds and mist, or perhaps at the gates of heaven. As we marveled at this sublime landscape, we made sure to stop for a moment, short of breath, our lungs straining for air, just to say hello to our loved ones now resting above and offering gratitude for our safe journey.

We made it to the top!




Sunset over the Annapurna Range...

The trail to the top of the pass...



We knew that this was more than a walk in Central Park and would require a lot of physical and mental endurance, but at first we thought, 20 days!?? PSSSH, not for a couple of New Yorkers. We trek everyday through the concrete jungle. Dodging yaks and yetis, experiencing altitude sickness, crossing hanging bridges over class 5 rapids, walking against 55 mile hour winds, frostbite, giardiasis... that's kids' stuff! Try the "A Train" at rush hour. Well... 13 days later, covered in dust and blisters with aching muscles that even Tiger Balm can't soothe, we're back from the mighty Himalayas with a hot shower, western toilet and some good ole' Nepali thin crust pizza (tastes like hot ketchup on Matzoh bread). But when all you've eaten is DAL BHAAT (literally, rice and lentils), nothing else grows at 17,000 ft., even a melted to the wrapper Snickers bar is like a delicacy. So the highest mountains in the world proved to be a tough one for a couple of "cocky" city slickers, but Wow! Wow! Wow! do we feel extremely fortunate to have been able to marvel at the majestic Himalayas.

One of the many hanging bridges to cross over the highest gorges in the world... Yikes!

This is the "Gates to Heaven" according to the Nepalese...

Nepal has 8 of the 10 highest peaks in the world and traversing endless hills and walking through remote villages just to be at the foot of these peaks is a testament that Shangri-la must exist here. Nepal is like Disneyland for backpackers so we expected to be surrounded by Gortex clad, North Face wearing, mountaineers. But fortunately we caught the tail end of the trekking season so most of the time the only living things we saw were a trail of donkeys carrying tons of gear from expeditions attempting to climb the Annapurnas. It was refreshing to have the trails to ourselves, but unfortunately seeing the lack of tourists is also evidence of Nepals' political unrest in the last decade. Tourism has been greatly affected after the Maoist uprising and the massacre of the Royal Family. Locals assured us that tourists don't get any grief from the political situation and, "To not worry, my friend! Namaste! Namaste!" and as a matter of fact, they made it very clear that before blowing up a bus the Maoists make sure to let tourists off first for a small fee. That made us feel better... Anyhow, our trek required us to walk through Maoist territory with Communist flags hanging at almost every village. And they were right, we didn't get any grief. It was a peaceful walk in the mountains, oops, we mean hills. The only uprising we witnessed was from a village woman...

Beautiful life in the Himalayas...

More beautiful people...

As we took our "seats" on the luggage racks on top of the bus (Moms, Dads we're okay) hoping that our driver had more than a month experience since the inception of the new road. We traveled across dry and rocky river beds, stone paths carved along cliffs and ducking from electrical lines and trees, our ride came to a premature end as a Nepali woman with a strong Brooklyn-like attitude, demanded that we get off and eat or spend the night at her village. The road has recently expanded 10 minutes past her village and as a result her livelihood lies in great duress. She kept screaming that this will ruin the landscape and trekkers will less likely stop for food and shelter. The jeep was first introduced in these parts of Nepal only less than a month ago and a new road is currently being built along one of Nepal's most popular trekking routes. Clearly, this new road would take the pressure off of those hard working donkeys and porters who carry 50-100 lb. sacks of goods into and out of these remote villages. Seeing a person in flip-flops with a full chicken coup and cases and cases of coke and beer bottles strapped to their foreheads is quite humbling as we struggle in our expensive boots and anti-shock hiking sticks. But it appears that the cons outweigh the pros, as villagers and porters that depend on the trekking industry will be surpassed by trekkers and their livelihoods will suffer, at least those hard working donkeys will finally get a much deserved vacation. :(

Porter with a chicken coup...



A donkey ready to retire...

Wow! We're lucky...

Vinny Said It Best...

"Yo, these cats are holding it down for the rest of us." Welcome to the most devoted show on earth! It's 4:30 AM, barely the break of dawn, and the band next door, which we've come to call "When In Robes," is already practicing. Monks chanting, horns blowing, bells ringing, conch shells howling, drums beating... Did we mention it's 4:30 in the morning?! Our guesthouse rests among three Tibetan monasteries in Boudha, Kathmandu home to the world's largest stupa (a Buddhist structure designed to hold Buddha's relics) and where Tibetan culture thrives, untouched and accessible. Hundreds of pilgrims circumambulate the stupa holding prayer wheels with their right hand and beads in their left every single day. With each footstep, another mantra uttered, another prayer wheel spun the Boudha stupa is like church on steroids! The spiritual devotion we've seen so far is unparalleled. It's easy to be swept away by the energy of everyone offering prayers of peace and compassion to all beings. According to Buddhists, every loop made around the stupa cleanses your karma ten thousand fold. So for all you sinners out there this should be your next destination.





The essence of this place is enchanting to say the least. Being here for only a week we already feel a sense of community and have met people who we know will be lifelong friends. No sooner than we sat down in the courtyard at a nearby monastery a monk sat down next to us to strike up a conversation. Meeting Tashi has enriched our experience in so many ways. Everyday with a cup of Tibetan butter tea he helps us to understand and unravel the mystery of both Nepalese and monastic life. Tashi being the middle child, devoted his life to the robe as is customary in the Nepalese Buddhist culture. At lunch one day we mentioned wanting to go to Pharping to explore the Guru Rinpoche's cave where he became enlightened and of course to meet the infamous, Jutral Rinponche. Hearing stories all week about THEEE seemingly quirky Rinpoche and his plight to save the fish had us hooked. Coincidentily, Tashi had to take a trip there as well to make an offering on behalf of his monastary. So about the fish... The sign in front of his monastery said it all, "We do not kill animals to simply fatten our flesh." Thousands of monks and laypeople visit him every year in order to give offerings, but he refuses to accept them. Instead this 94 year old monk travels to Calcutta every year buying fish at the markets and setting them free into the ocean. Apparently, Steven Seagal, the American action hero... paid him a visit and offered a donation, but Rinpoche told him to go back to the U.S. and use the money to free fish there. And, he did! Unfortunately, the Rinponche was on retreat in India, so we left a donation in honor of our beloved gold fish, Sashimi, who's back home. While in Pharping, we visited many of the other magnificent gompas (Tibetan monasteries) tucked away in the picturesque hills outside of the Kathmandu Valley. While there, Tashi described how monks come to these hills to retreat for 2 to 3 years in complete silence with no human interaction at all. Wow.




While our romantic notions of Nepal have come true, the reality is that it's still one of the poorest countries in the world. The most difficult aspect of our journey is having to see children and women with no adequate shelter, clothing or food. As a Hindu Kingdom, Nepal still holds true to the caste system which in many ways breeds oppression especially toward women. Sadly, women are only recognized as part of society when they bear their husband's a son. Bearing witness to all this suffering has humbled us, and most of all strengthened our resolve to help. Needless to say, in just 7 days Nepal has given us a lifetime of memories and this is just the beginning of our journey...




We leave tomorrow for Pokhara and the beginning of our 3 week trek along the Annapurna Circuit. We'll be eating clouds as we traverse the mighty Himalayas at heights of up to 17,000 feet. When we return to Kathmandu in June it's off to a 10 day meditation retreat at the International Buddhist Academy with Khenpo Appey Rinpoche and all of his venerable Tibetan Buddhist teachings. With all this and a bag of Masala chips we probably won't post again till mid-June. We'll miss you. Tashi delek!