Hidden Nepal with Adventurous Women

Hi there everyone! As I'm sitting here typing this blog, I am reflecting on our recent adventure to Nepal. I feel myself smiling as I recall some experiences and the wonderful friendships that were made, whilst on tour.

We were a party of 9, varying in ages & backgrounds and based in three different states of Australia, which no doubt added to the excitement of our adventure! It's a wonderful thing to see women stretch and grow (including myself) and I personally feel that Nepal is one of those magical places where we do learn so much more about ourselves. Just a few things we've learnt along the way:

You can do anything you put your mind to
We volunteered in a school with very little financial support, which certainly showed. The children were all clean and in uniform, BUT the school itself was of very low standard, unpainted buildings, disgusting ablutions - so bad that the stench seeped into some of the classrooms, leaking roofs, minimal school supplies, lack of teaching resources, just to name a few. We learnt here that we could contribute in so many ways, not only financially. Some of us had never painted, but we were quick to learn, others taught in classrooms, even though they had never taught a day in their life, others showed students how to grow things from seed and played games with the children. A couple of us were invited into the homes of some of the students and that was certainly an eye opener! Our experience at this school was very rewarding and we hope to return and offer further support in the future.

Inner Strength
Our trekking experience was tough, I admit...but when 8 of us reached the top of Poon Hill, 3200m above sea level, at sunrise and saw the might Annapurna range light up, we were elated. The impressive view and the power of these mountains was certainly worth the tough trek and again we learnt more about ourselves....we had to dig deep at times, encourge others, and find that inner strength to keep going!

Let the child out to play
Bathing the elephants in Chitwan National Park was a playful experience, which I would recommend you do if ever you have the opportunity! We had so much fun holding the elephant gently by the ears and sliding up on his trunk, rolling around and stroking him in the river, being tossed off his back into the water and showered as he cheekly flicked a trunk full of water over his shoulder!! Check out the video of us frolicking with the elephants on You Tube

Some of our other experiences included Rickshaw rides, boating on Lake Fewa, traffic jams on the mountains, walking amongst the moving mass of people in Kathmandu, massages at Seeing Hands by blind massage therapists, women's refuge, Tibeten refugee camp, singing on the bus, breaking down on the side of the road, sleeping under the stars, spotting rhino's, deer and other wildlife in Chitwan......and much more!

There are no more overseas trips scheduled for the remainder of the year, although there is still plenty of activity happening in most states of Australia, so check out our 'Adventure Club' for what's on in your state! If your into Yoga and looking for a bit of relaxation, check out Sunshine Yoga's 8 day retreat at Lord Howe Island starting on 6th December.

Next year begins with a bang — we have a Yoga Retreat in Tasmania scheduled for early January, Egypt at the end of Feb/Mar, Bali Bootcamps start up again in March, Hiking in Spain, April, Highlights of South America 8th May, Kokoda & India in the second half of the year.......and I'm sure there will be lots more!

Pokhara

Cool - here we are in Pokhara, which is the second city of Nepal. The city is situated around a massive lake and sits in a valley at the foot of the Annapurna's. Pokhara is the starting point for all treks within the Annapurna Region. Our next visit to Nepal will no doubt encompass another trek and I would choose the Annapurna Circuit, for various reasons - one being that altitude doesn't seem to pose as much of a problem as the Everest Region.....especially as Pokhara is already at lower altitude than Kathmandu itself. One of the other reasons is that if we were to bring our boys here, I believe there is a lot more on offer around the region, including white water rafting, mountain biking, paragliding.....

Anyway our trip to Pokhara was by "tourist" bus which takes 7 hours but its cheap at around $18AU each, including lunch and water. The bus was air conditioned.......but the driver only put the air con on after a couple of people started getting ill - and I mean ill as in vomiting out the window. He was obviously trying to conserve energy!!!!! The bus trip was a real treat - lots to see - going around mountains and passing trucks and other buses by "beeeeeeep" then just going for it and hoping someone else wasn't coming the other way!!!!!! OMG! Seeing village people showering under the various outlets from the river and doing their washing, waving at tourists and locals riding on the top of the bus with all the luggage (very dodgy), rice paddy fields and locals farming, beautiful river running through the mountain ranges. It certainly was another exciting experience.

Once settled into our hotel .....after beating of the hoards of touts offering or should I say forcing upon us taxi rides and hotels..... we took a stroll down to Lakeside where all the restaurants, bars, shops etc are. Its so peaceful here - I think we will stay a few extra days and do very little - maybe hire a mountain bike and explore this city, go up to Sarangkot for a sunrise view of the snow capped mountains hovering over the lake, do some boating and maybe take in a "bollywood" film at the local cinema hall - and of course EAT HEAPS.........great food around here! Lost a bit of weight climbing those mountains in the everest region - I don't think anyone will see any evidence of it though - as I said the food is great here....YUM!