The World Peace Pagoda is a "buddhist stupa designed to provide a focus for people of all races and to help unite them in the search for world peace". There are several peace pagodas around the world.
On our last day, Kingsley and I hiked up to the Peace Pagoda in Pokhara.
First stop on the trip, bfast at Mike's an Organic Cafe. Sat at little table in the sunshine right on the lake. From there we took a small boat across the lake to the start of the hike.
On our way up the mountain we walked through several villages and came across a bunch of kids sprinting down the mountain - late for school. They did pause ever so briefly to wish us Namaste. Namaste is a common greeting in Nepal but the meaning of the word is actually very deep "that which is of God in me greets that which is of God in you".
Made it to the top.
View from the top looking back down at Pokhara.
Labels:
Nepal,
Travel Adventures
I was fortunate to be able to do some medical volunteer work while in Nepal. A Nepali friend of ours was able to set up an opportunity for me to work in one of the small government hospitals in Pokhara. This hospital serves the people from the surrounding villages.
I was involved with the BCG immunization for newborns. This is the immunization against Tb- which is actually no longer given in the US. The women showing up for the clinic brought their infants often only hours after giving birth.
It was really amazing to be able to do some medical volunteer work again but a little bit of a shock to the system as well. They have very different medical standards which took some getting used to.
Many of the mothers looked very old, in fact at one point I had to ask if it was the mother or grandmother with the baby (it was the mother). Its amazing what years of working outside in the sun will do...
I came across this board while touring the hospital. The price is in Rp. the charge for a general normal delivery is 300 RP which is $4.13 USD. Crazy!!
Having red Tikka placed on my forehead to bless me and bring me good luck
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Nepal,
Travel Adventures
One of the main reasons for going to Nepal was for the paragliding which is world renowned. We joined a group of 9 other pilots from the States, many of whom we knew from Seattle.
Paragliding crowd checking out the launch.
Kingsley getting ready for his first flight
I have to say it makes me so happy to see Kingsley doing something that he loves.
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Nepal,
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While in Pokhara, a rare opportunity came up to watch a vulture feeding. Many of the vulture breeds in Nepal are endangered at the moment. There is a program that was started to feed the vultures in hopes of increasing the numbers. The way it works is the organization buys old or sick cows from the local farmers for 200 RP ($2.77 USD) then they let them roam around on the vulture property till they eventually die. Once dead the cows are skinned and put out for the vultures to eat.
I'm not gonna lie, it was a little gruesome to watch but also pretty amazing to be able to observe.
We got to see 11 different species of vultures during the feeding, several of which are critically endangered.
Within an hour there were only bone left...
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After meeting up with the rest of the paragliding group and spending the night in Kathmandu we all headed to Pokhara. This resort town is a 20 min flight from Kathmandu but a grueling 7 hour drive. We opted to fly and so got to experience Yeti Airlines, actually it wasn't so bad but I was happy when we were finally on the ground.
Mount Everest
This was the view from our hotel room, the mountain in the background is where the paragliders launched, at the base of the mountain is Fewa lake.
Fewa lake which is beautiful. I came to this spot a few times to sit and read while enjoying a cup of tea.
Pokhara is the third largest city in Nepal and is considered by many to be the most beautiful place in the world. It is also one of the most popular places for mountain trekkers. Anapurna mountain range base camp is a popular trekking destination.
The climate in Pokhara is sub-tropical so during the day it was often warm (apx 70 degrees). But the minute the sun set it was freezing (mid 30's).
This is the main road through town. Notice the large cow walking down the street. Cows are sacred here so pretty much go wherever they please. While driving if you have the choice between hitting a human or hitting a cow, you go for the human.
I loved this creative baby playpen, the baby was given a packet of chips to rattle around and play with. Just goes to show you that you don't need all the fancy baby toys to entertain a kid.
There were a few good restaurants in town and lots of these little shops selling yak wool sweaters, shawls and blankets. Again electricity was only on a few hours each day so most people put their goods on the sidewalk for people to see.
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Nepal,
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Swayambhunath Stupa a.k.a "monkey temple" - the most ancient of shrines in all of Kathmandu. Story goes - a miraculous lotus was planted by a past buddah which blossomed from the lake that once covered Kathamandu valley. The lotus mysteriously radiated a brilliant light. This is the site of the monkey temple today.
One of the main rules is that you have to walk around the temple and spin the prayer wheels clockwise. Don't know what happens if you go the other way...probably something dire like the earth getting knocked off its axis!
Its called monkey temple because there are hundreds of monkeys running around. But these are not just any monkeys, they are holy monkeys. Its' said that the head lice (from some god of wisdom and learning named Majusri) transformed into these monkeys.
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Nepal,
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Last week was Chinese New Year which pretty much means the entire city shuts down for apx 4-5 days. And by "shuts down" I mean even the dependable 24 hour minimart is guaranteed to be closed!
Kingsley and I arrived in Singapore the week of Chinese New Year - one year ago. Everything was so exotic and strange then but I do remember being shocked to see a massive city come to a jolting halt for the New Years celebrations. Its crazy to think an entire year has gone by. The year of the Tiger has finished, the year of the Rabbit has just begun...
Although we enjoyed the CNY celebrations last year we were eager to take advantage of a few vacation days and explore a bit more of Asia. Typically any travel within Asia during Chinese New Year is incredibly expensive with most places booking out months in advance. However, Kingsley and I managed to find one country that wasn't overbooked - Nepal! I guess visiting one of the poorest countries in the world wasn't in the top 10 CNY vacation list!
We had a few simple goals on this trip. Kingsley - paragliding. Lynn - medical volunteer work.
Both - learn about and explore Nepal. We ended up joining a group of paragliders from Seattle for the week we were there. When participating in a dangerous sport in a third world country it is typically better to have a group to watch your back and help out if anything happens!
I didn't know very much about Nepal before we booked our tickets. But thanks to my (top 5 favorite things I own) Kindle I was able to download a few books about Nepal. I would highly recommend reading
Little Princes. An amazing story about a college kid who volunteers in an Orphanage in Nepal then returns a year later to open his own Orphanage for in Kathmandu.
Bath time on the side of a busy road in Kathmandu
The last 10 years have not been easy for Nepalese people. First the (much loved) King and family were shot and killed by the King's son at dinner in the palace one night. Evidently the son was angry that he wasn't allowed to marry a girl from a different caste so killed the whole family. Then the Kings brother took over but no one really liked him very much (kind of like Mustafa and Scar in the Lion King). In 2006 after years of Civil war, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) succeeded in kicking the King out. In 2008 a Democratic Republic was established but to this day there is no clear political leader or party.
All of the fighting and instability has meant extreme poverty for the people of Nepal. Although it is rich in natural resources, there is only electricity for 6 hours a day as the rest is sold to India (rumored - to pad some politicians pocket). You never know when the 6 hours of electricity will be, often we found it was in the middle of the night which makes it kind of useless.
You can see the inside of the shop (on the right) is dark due to no electricity
There are often fuel shortages as well. Our hotel in Kathmandu could not send the hotel car to pick us up at the airport due to lack of fuel.
Most business transactions take place on the street or sidewalk as the shops are often dark due to lack of electricity.
About half the population in Nepal live below the international poverty line of $ 1.25 per day.
Although this blog post paints a pretty grim picture there is a lot of hope for the future. For a start, tourists (like us) are starting to return to Nepal bringing in much needed revenue. Also the Nepalese people are gentle but tough, they are survivors.
Labels:
Nepal,
Travel Adventures
The World Peace Pagoda is a "buddhist stupa designed to provide a focus for people of all races and to help unite them in the search for world peace". There are several peace pagodas around the world. 
First stop on the trip, bfast at Mike's an Organic Cafe. Sat at little table in the sunshine right on the lake. From there we took a small boat across the lake to the start of the hike. 
On our way up the mountain we walked through several villages and came across a bunch of kids sprinting down the mountain - late for school. They did pause ever so briefly to wish us Namaste. Namaste is a common greeting in Nepal but the meaning of the word is actually very deep "that which is of God in me greets that which is of God in you". 
