Pokhara is like the stepping point to go to some of the most popular hiking destinations in Nepal such as Annapurna Base Camp and Poon Hill. Of course we were heading there when we had our very first glimpse of the Himalayas on our flight from Kathmandu. It is a quite a sight to be seen from a flight with mountains and terraces dominate much of the landscape.
We didn’t get to explore Pokhara when we arrived there because of the need to rush right to Nayapul from where we then set out to the 8-days journey through some of the most amazing views that I’d ever come upon in my entire life.
Being quite a big city, Pokhara is quite ensnared in dusty air although not as bad it is in Kathmandu. But just as it is in the capital city, Pokhara too applies load-shedding of electricity which is almost impossible to escape from even if you are at a decent hotel. Meaning, you only have a few hours to do all the charging in the world unless you’re prepared to explore the city without a working hand phone and a camera in your hand. Again, just as it is in Kathmandu, there seems to be a lot of construction going on in Pokhara. I’m not sure if it is indicative to the fact that they are progressively moving forwards towards a better economy or it is just the way it has always been right from the beginning of time.
We returned to Pokhara one day earlier than scheduled so we did have a bit of time to explore the city. To tell the truth, there’s nothing really much to see in Pokhara. I mean, it is a very relaxing city to take a stroll around in but if you are expecting to get wowed by whatever it has to offer at least within the city itself then you might be in for a disappointment. Perhaps the only thing that wowed me was the big lake with emerald water that has an island in the middle. Some tourists would go on a boat trip to explore the lake but we were not quite in the mood of joining any of them, may be because we were still tired from all the days we spent hiking up in the mountains.
Seeing no point of just wasting our time when there’s nothing much to do and see in the city anyway, we decided to hire a taxi with a driver for some USD35 a day. Our tour guide from the mountains Mr. GS was so kind to offer us free tour-guiding although he didn’t seem to know much about the places that we went to. I don’t blame him anyway. Nepal is very particular about tour-guiding licensing that every tour guide is only allowed to guide tourists within his/her own field of expertise.
We started our tour by wheeling off to the World Peace Pagoda of Pokhara. Situated on top of a hill, it is one of quite a number of World Peace Pagodas built all over the world to spread the message of peace. The idea was initiated by the founder of Nipponzan Myhoji, Most Ven. Nichidatshu Fuji of Japan after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during the World War II.
Well, the pagoda was a delight to visualize but it was the view from there that made me go wow. The city of Pokhara is set deep in a beautiful valley, on the side of a lake with emerald water that glistens beautifully against the sky. It wasn’t the clearest of air to see everything in dots, but still it was beautiful. The terraces were made for the eye – or rather a picture postcard, with a little bit of photo-shopping of course to make the air look clearer. Heh.
We returned to Pokhara to see the Devi’s Fall which was surprisingly located very much in the middle of the city. I mean, I did have the impression that whatever fall it was, it was actually man made and that the water came from their sewerage system or something. Oh well, there was no way of telling if the water was part of their sewerage system but looking at the deep gorge to which the water was flowing into, it was quite obvious that it had been there for a very long time, perhaps even before the existence of Pokhara.
We were there during a dry season so there wasn’t much water flowing in but still it was a sight to behold. I couldn’t help but thinking of the safety of the people that stay within the close proximity of the cave because seriously, with all the heavy loads that comes from the buildings around it, there was no way of telling if the soil and rocks would stay the way they are forever. I refused to say it was a time bomb but that was exactly what I had in mind. A time bomb.
Our next destination was Gupteshwor Mahadev Cave which was within a walking distance from the fall. Again, it was right in the middle of civilization so you are talking about a void of space right under a heavy lump of buildings. I didn’t like the idea of going down to it but of course I wouldn’t say no to an opportunity that doesn’t come often.
The cave was in the middle of an extensive refurbishment when we were there and I gotta say I was quite impressed with what they were doing at least architecturally. There seemed to be a lot European influence in the architectural features of the cave, or at least up to the entrance, with strong depictions of Kama Sutra – a text widely considered as the standard sexual behavior in ancient Indian Hindu.
There is nothing much to see in the cave. I mean, if you are a Hindu then you might look at it differently because it is a place of worship and thus considered holy. It was dark and wet and I couldn’t help but feeling a little bit uneasy. I know it was just me but it was quite suffocating down there. The fact that there were buildings right on top of the cave made me feel quite uneasy. I mean, it really is easy to imagine things when you are in the dark and it was such a relief to be back out in the open again. That place has a lot of potential to be a place of major attraction in Pokhara but it certainly is not for the claustrophobic.
Our next destination was the International Mountain Museum. I mean, if there was a country in this world that can deservingly lay claim to the glory of the mountaineering world, it has to be Nepal. I really loved it there. It has a lot of stories and pictures that really inspired me so much. I mean, I’m not aiming for the impossible – although people keep saying that nothing is impossible – but to see how many people actually had the gut of conquering the mountains, with a big chunk of them died trying, I just had a lot of respect for these people.
The museum put everything there is to know about the mountains, not only those in the Himalayan region but beyond. I took interest in learning about the cultural and tribal diversity of people living in the Himalayan region and the International Mountain Museum really is the place where I learned so much of it. The Tamang, the Thakali, the Chhantyal, the Gurung, the Pun Magar, the Gurkhas among others, and of course the most famous tribe of them all – the Sherpas.
It was here that I learned about the eight-thousanders as they call it – all 14 of them – and those who have conquered them. Of course it was quite a proud moment to think that only a few days ago I was looking up right at one of them – the Annapurna II. Some of those who have conquered the mountains had donated to the museum the very clothes that they wore when they conquered the mountains.
Of course there was a section in the museum dedicated to all the conservation efforts in Nepal which just like most other countries in the world nowadays is being threatened with poaching problems.
The museum really inspired me so much that by the time I got out of it I felt so charged up and ran right to the top of Mount Manaslu – one of the mighty eight-thousanders which is, thanks God, located just outside of the museum. Meh. LOL.
So, that was the end of our half-day tour in Pokhara. I’m sure Pokhara has a lot more to offer but we were there for a very short period of time so we fitted in whatever we could fit in within that very short stay that we had there. We did try to catch a very last minute deal with the hotel to one of those balloons for which Pokhara is most famous for but again apparently we underestimated the popularity of the idea of hanging over the air while viewing the city from the eyes of a bird. They were all full house. Grrrr!
We spent the rest of the day lazing and sauntering up around. Evenings in Pokhara can be quite relaxing. We did quite a bit of shopping, although unintentionally, but it was more relaxing compared to shopping in Kathmandu where the streets are as heavy with vehicles as they are with people. I happened to find out that things in Pokhara are cheaper compared to those in Kathmandu. My travel buddy had bought a pair of Keen sandals in Thamel thinking that he’d made the best of purchase only to find out that he could actually get it for almost half the price in Pokhara. Oppss.
Eateries in Pokhara can be quite limited at least in number but rest assured you would never starve. We already had too much of Dhal back in the mountains so we were craving for something else. Amazingly we found quite a number of Chinese restaurants with decent dishes so we enjoyed all the time in the world fulfilling our cravings for Chinese food – something that we are so used to having back in Malaysia.
We left from Pokhara with mixed feelings. There was no way of telling if I would return there ever again because there were so many other mountains that I had in mind.
But for sure, my days in Pokhara would never be forgotten.
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