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Final Thoughts: 7 Weeks In Nepal

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Dhauligiri from Poon Hill at sunrise

Nepal had always represented world-class trekking for me, yet I found the country to offer so much more.

Beyond the beautiful snow-capped mountains, green valleys, peaceful lakes, raging rivers, colorful flowers, and a wide array of birds were incredibly kind people, a lively Tibetan community, delicious food, and rich cultural history.

Reading The Snow Leopard in Chomrung

Highlights 

  • Flying past Mt. Everest and over the Himalaya
  • My first cup of Nepali milk tea
  • Meeting Rosie and Rob (the kayakers) on the bus ride to Pokhara
  • The view from the Boomerang restaurant's garden patio (and every meal I ate there)
  • Meeting Gela
  • Trekking for 10 days in the Annapurna region
  • Seeing three of the world's top 10 tallest mountains (Everest, Dhauligiri, Annapurna I)
  • Riding on the roof of the bus from Nayapul back to Pokhara after the trek
  • Spending 3.5 weeks in Pokhara simply because I liked it so much
  • Paragliding off Mt. Sarangkot
  • Hiking up to the World Peace Pagoda at sunrise and eating breakfast overlooking the Annapurna Himal
  • 3-day meditation course in Pokhara
  • Meeting Steven, Kevin, Stefan, and Marie
  • Spending a day paddling around Lake Phewa with Steven, Kevin, and Marie
  • A 3-day whitewater rafting trip on the Kali Gandaki
  • Meeting Natalie and Sara
  • Thangka shopping in Kathmandu
  • Walking to Kathmandu's Durbar Square
  • Visiting the monkey temple
  • Patan's Durbar Square
  • Pashupatinath Temple
  • Spending 4 days/nights around Boudhnath Stupa
  • Sitting in on a Buddhist monastery's morning puja
  • Surrounding myself with Tibetan culture – the food, religion, people
  • Shopping for authentic Tibetan items in Boudha
  • The prayer flags
  • The sunsets
  • The flowers
  • The birds

Marie chats with a Tibetan woman in the refugee center north of Pokhara

Lowlights 

  • Recurring digestive discomforts
  • Feelings of stress in preparation for the trek
  • Not reaching Annapurna Base Camp
  • Realizing my laptop's AC adapter was broken the first night
  • The slow breakdown of my digital camera (and need to buy a new one)
Nepali breakfast
Nepali breakfast

Nepali Food and Drinks

Lots of Dal Bhat (rice and lentils), chicken or potato curry, momos (Tibetan dumplings), pizza pizza, tea – milk, masala, mint, chocolate, peanut butter granola bars, banana lassis.

Giant butter lamp

# of Nights Couchsurfing 

0

Souvenir: Knife and chopsticks (made of yak bone) from Tibet

Average Daily Budget 

$42

Note: this is especially high due to the inordinate amount of money I spent on souvenirs and a new digital camera.

Bonus Video: Sunrise Over Himalaya As Seen From Poon Hill

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About Dave

Dave is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Go Backpacking and Feastio. He's been to 65 countries and lived in Colombia and Peru. Originally from New York, Dave now calls Austin, TX home. Find him on Instagram and Twitter.

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Comments

  1. matt says

    the beauty of going backpacking is that when you like a place, you can stay for as long as you want….

    I was only supposed to be on this one thai island for 4 days and left 3 1/2 weeks later…and only b/c my visa had expired…

  2. Casey says

    I loved Pokhara as well. Great city. Riding on the top of buses was so fun even though I thought my life was close to ending a few times.

  3. Dave says

    Terribly uncomfortable to sit on metal luggage racks as the Nepali buses bounce around but the views can't be beat.