Journeys & Adventures by JAYA

Tadapani-Ghandruk-Birethanti

DAY 4 – continued from previous post.

We are in Tadapani, and its the morning of day 4 of our trek. The night before we had decided to sleep in our sleeping bags, on our beds as it was so cold. So I was snuggled in, and I suddenly kept feeling a continuous tap on my leg. I thought I was dreaming. I eventually opened my eyes to see Mel and she said, she had been trying to wake me up for sometime 🙂 🙂 She said, get up, the sun is coming up. I thanked Mel for waking me up. After awhile she was already out of the room. We had agreed the night before that we would wake up to see the sunrise this morning. I quickly got out of my sleeping bag and dashed out of the room, with my phone.

We did not have to walk far to bask in the stunning view as it was visible from just a few steps away from our room. Mel was already clicking away taking pictures. So captivated was I of the view that I too could not stop taking pictures of it. The view of the mountain range kept getting more mesmerizing as the morning went by.

Here are some of the stunning views of Annapurna range with Machapuchare totally visible from our “front yard” 🙂 Mesmerized!

Trying to capture Machapuchare (on the right) as well.

View at 8.29am. On the upper far right, is part of the roof of the dining hall.

I would have loved to have packed up these views and brought it back home with me to my front yard and to wake up to it every morning! 🙂

So after breakfast at the dining hall, we returned to our room, packed up and were ready to set off down the trek. Our stay for the night was Ghandruk, Syaulibazar.

Trying to capture mountain range in the background.

Came across these beautiful ladybugs during our trek…hope you can see them 😉

Decided to take a pic of this signboard 🙂

Passed through villages and lots of accommodation.

Donkeys used as mode of transportation for gas cylinders etc.

Giving way for them to pass through…we too were heading towards the same direction..

Decided to keep the hiking stick company for awhile during this trek… lol 😉

So, we finally arrived at our accommodation at Riverside Guest House, Ghandruk, Syaulibazar. The first thing I did was sit, then removed my shoes lol. I will not deny it, it felt great to sit hahaha, and we each had a cold bottled drink. Felt so good.

Pic taken when we arrived at the guest house. The outdoor dining as you see it here. The indoor dining is towards the right of this pic.

Our room was equipped with two single beds. We had to use the common bathroom that was situated not very far from our room.

DAY 5

Before breakfast we walked to the river situated close by to the guest house. There was a lovely flow of water in the river. Clean, clear and cold. Walked into the river just to get legs wet and feel the coldness of the water. After awhile, we then headed back and to the dining for a nice hearty breakfast.

After breakfast we were set to head back to Birethanti, our 5-day trek coming to an end. As we continue to trek down we came across some spectacular views as seen here.

Another lovely view to keep us company as we headed down.

Pleasant to walk by with this view by the side.

So, we had walked by these homes from the direction of where that vehicle in the above pic is coming from.

Part of the structure of a restaurant and Canyoning activity grounds. Situated a few 100 meters away from the home seen in the earlier pic.

Arrived at Birethanti town. Big thank you to my guide/porter who carried my hiking backpack through out the 5-day trek.

Mel and I are back to where we had started 5 days earlier…TIMS Check Post. We arrived here at about 10.20am.

Here we are with both our guide/porter. We both received a document each from TIMS indicating we had completed the trek.

Appreciate both our guide/porter’s assistance in guiding us throughout the entire trek. There was an incident, that I had forgotten to mention in one of my earlier post, when our guide came to my assistance. During one of our trek, suddenly out of nowhere, a herd of horses decided to join us on our trek. They were moving so fast, I could hear the sound of the movement of hoofs and I was totally in their way. I hardly had enough space for myself, as it was quite narrow where we were at, at that point of time. I had to get out of their way, to let them pass. The horses were so close to me, as they passed me, that our guide came and stood between me and the horses. I don’t deny, it was quite frightening for a bit.

I totally loved the journey, and enjoyed the 5-day trek as did Mel. I somehow feel a sense of sadness creeping in as I finish writing this, as this journey comes to an end. I felt I was reliving it as I was writing it.

From Birethanti, we continued on foot to Nayapul, and returned by car to Pokhara.

The 5-day trek ends with this post. Thank you for reading my post. Have a great week ahead all 🙂

Destination – Tadapani

DAY 3 (continued from previous post)

So, we had breakfast at our accommodation, Ghorepani Hill Top, after returning from Poon Hill. I had mixed feelings about leaving Ghorepani, as that means we will not be going up Poon Hill for another round of that stunning view of the mountain range. We packed up and were set to head down. Our stay for the night will be at Tadapani. Our return journey heading down we were told would come across as somewhat more challenging, compared to our journey up to Ghorepani. Also there will be lots of up and down, up and down treks, and its going to be testing our legs further…more physical challenges coming up…So the journey continues.

We came across many trekkers along the way, families and children too. We also walked through open fields, and also came across some spectacular views, along the way. It was like the mountain range was following us every step of the way 🙂 During the treks, I was so mesmerized by the surroundings, and whatever we came across that everything was “oh wow…oh wow…” 🙂 that I never took many photos.

Here are some of the views captured.

Trying to capture the mountain in the background, as the cloud tries its best to move away.

Some of the other trekkers we came across, and the mountain view in the background.

Mel with the tree in full bloom with the National flower of Nepal – Laliguras.

I too could not resist the full bloom behind me 😉

So, we continued trekking, while also stopping for very short breaks. There was one trek that I found very challenging for me. It was very hilly, winding upwards, and felt a cold wind throughout, and I thought to myself, that this must have been the trek that our guide had referred to earlier in the morning to be challenging. My friend kept calling out to me…Jaya, keep moving…I told her I am…so I did some Salsa dance moves 🙂 nah…I’m just kidding… lol. Instead I just stood rooted in one spot for a couple of minutes, taking a little longer break before continuing the trek up…lol…this happened for a couple of times…lol… This was so funny. Whenever we both look back at these moments we totally laugh our head off. Mel is a friend I would travel with again anytime…hope she feels the same way with me too…lol 😉

We felt some heavy fog as we continued up the hilly slopes just before coming towards the end of that trek. At the end of that winding trek, we arrived to somewhat of a flat ground, and after awhile we were pleasantly surprised to have ended up in this forest, as depicted below. I felt like I was transported to an enchanted forest in some fairytale…lol. I totally enjoyed and loved the journey I was going through.

Leaving the land of “enchantment” way way behind 🙂

Along our route, we came across stacked rocks.

Came across so much cabbage on our way to lunch.

The restaurant we were at for lunch was a little bigger, compared to the places we ate at on our way up to Ghorepani. They had noodles, Dal Bhat, vegetable dishes, meat dishes, bottled drinks etc.

So after lunch, we were back on our trek, with more energy after indulging during lunch…lol. Finally at about 5.00pm we arrived at Tadapani.

We were thrilled to take in this view (pic below) of the range and Mount Machapuchare (also known as Fish Tail, due to its two pointy peaks) up close, when we arrived at Tadapani Guest House, our accommodation for the night. We were even more thrilled when we found out that our room was located about 3 meters away from where this pic was taken. Blessed!

If you have read my previous post titled Destination – Poon Hill, there were pics of sun rise taken from Poon Hill. You would have noticed Mount Machapuchare in those pics.

View of Mount Machapuchare aka Fish Tail (due to its two pointy peaks) visible from Tadapani Guest House.

Our room was equipped with two single beds, but there was no bathroom in it. We discovered that we had to use a shared bathroom that was located about 8 meters away from our room. The dining room was bigger, but not as big as the dining room in Ghorepani Hill Top. It was located like about 5 meters away from our room. That’s convenience. Everything was close by. Even that spectacular view of the mountains…what more could we ask for!

We could order whatever we wanted for dinner from the menu. We placed our order, they have it cooked, and is served hot. Their food was good and we enjoyed it. We enjoyed the heated dining room too.

Well this is the end of Day 3. Day 4 will be in my next post.

Thank you for reading my post. Have a pleasant day and week ahead. For others have a great weekend ahead.

Destination – Poon Hill, Nepal

We both had opted for the 5-day trek, and for 6 to 8 hours of trekking each day. During the trek we break for lunch (most days lunch had been Dal Bhat, i.e. rice, dal in a bowl, some vegetable or potato, chicken curry, papadam and sometimes mint) and at times for tea break, as well. Our dinner is provided at the accommodation we are at for the night.

The following morning after breakfast at our accommodation at Silver Oaks Inn, we met with our guide and porter, who are with Village to Village Trekking, a family run business.

Pic with our guide and porter before the start of our journey.

DAY 1

That morning we went by car from Pokhara to Nayapul. We started our journey on foot from Nayapul. Our first stop was at TIMS Check Post at Birethanti where trekkers need to check in before beginning their trek.

After having checked in, we continued on foot, walking through a village.

Walking through a village, lined with shops.

We were grateful that our guide and porter carried our hiking backpacks for us, while we both carried our smaller backpacks. When we started trekking, we had clear blue skies, then came the rain. We felt big droplets….and we both thought….Oh no! Our guide advised us to put on our rain coats, which we quickly did, afraid there was going to be a downpour, and we were going to get drenched.

We continued walking, though it was a little bit challenging due to the rain, and the terrains being rough and uneven. We did not stop, as we needed to reach our accommodation before it got dark. So, we made it through in the rain (thankfully it was not a downpour) after having walked across a hanging bridge that was over a river, to our first stop for lunch. Lunch was at a little hut like place where we had Dal Bhat.

After lunch we continued on our trail, though the rain had not let up. After sometime we were glad to see the dark clouds clearing, and the rain had eventually stopped.

Here are some pics during our trek.

A sneak peek of the snowcapped peak of Annapurna between the two hills.

Trekking through bushes, tree roots, stones. Friend, posing, and ahead of her on the right is our guide.

Other treks consist of big uneven rocks.

We passed through guest houses, villages and communities along the way. Families always have big smiles on their faces when we come across them. Also not forgetting coming across our four legged friends.

Before dark, we finally arrived at Hill Top Ulleri for the night. Run by a family. We had our own room that was equipped with a bathroom, however there was no hot water available. We had our meal in their dining area, that was cooked by the family. The family were lovely people.

Hill Top Ulleri – our accommodation for the night. View and a glimpse of snowcapped Annapurna in the background.

DAY 2

The next morning after breakfast (prepared by the family) we were all set for day 2 of our journey, after bidding our goodbyes to the family.

Pic with baby’s mum. Bidding goodbye. Pic on right has shoveled snow on the bottom right.

Below are some pics from our trek during the day.

Continuing our trek up whilst enjoying the view.

Passing through during our trek, and saw this kid with big smiles, and the dog in the background.

Could not resist taking a snap shot of this beauty.

Captured this view during our short break.

The sun rays coming through branches and leaves of this tree that bears the National flower of Nepal.

Another shot of the tree that is found in hilly regions of Nepal.

A close up of Laliguras – National flower of Nepal.

Spotted the cabbage plant during our trek.

We arrived at Ghorepani. Blue roof buildings in the background are one of the many accommodations.

At Ghorepani, we walked around the village, came across many vendors selling souvenirs, bracelets etc. We then headed towards Hill Top Ghorepani, our accommodation for the night.

On arriving at Hill Top, we saw a sea of faces that evening. We never expected to see so many people here. Room is again basic, two single beds and a bathroom. We were thankful we had our own bathroom. We were informed of the availability of hot water for a bath, unfortunately hot water only trickled from the tap for seconds, before it turned into cold water. Our excitement was short lived…lol.

Even with heat available at the ground floor, at the dining area, it was still very cold.

At the dining hall with some of the other guests.

All guests were informed to go to bed by 9pm that night, so we could have an early start the next morning, to begin trekking up to Poon Hill at 4.45am for sunrise.

DAY 3

The trek to Poon Hill is close by to the accommodation we were at. We all started the steep trek up, that morning. It was kind of exciting, everyone of us walking up together, whilst using a head torch, as it was pitch dark.

Pics below are of the stunning views of sunrise and the mountain range from Poon Hill. The pics taken may not do much justice to capture the beauty in comparison to seeing it with our own eyes. We felt blessed to have had this opportunity to have made this trip.

The majestic mountain range in the background.

Everyone gets a hot cup of tea on Poon Hill 🙂

View of sunrise from the tower on Poon Hill.

Standing on the opposite side on the tower, with the mountain range in the background.

Tower in the background. Everyone wanted a pic with this sign post…..so did we 😉

With the most popular sign post on Poon Hill…I could not resist it 😉 and with that view in the background.

Another stunning view. Looks like I did not have enough of it 😉

View as we were heading back down to our accommodation.

View of the range from Ghorepani Hill Top.

We returned to our accommodation for breakfast. We felt blessed to have made it up to Poon Hill for the spectacular view of the sunrise and having had the opportunity to immerse ourselves in the breathtaking views of the mountain range.

In my next post soon, is the next leg of our journey and the adventure continues.

I end this post with wishes of Happy Valentine’s to all!

Thank you for reading this post.

Nepal

I have always wanted to travel to Nepal. Every time I read and hear about stories of avid travelers who had hiked to Annapurna Base Camp (ABC) or Mount Everest Base Camp (EBC), I’m in complete awe. I will tell myself, I want to do that some day.

Then, back in early 2018, a friend of mine had asked me if I was interested to hike in Nepal. I needed no convincing from her, and the first word I told her was ‘yes’. I thought to myself that it was a dream come true for me. I was totally excited about it. It will be my first hike.

Some weeks later, we were both chatting, and I asked her, so we are going up to ABC right? She laughed, and said no we are not, we are heading to Poon Hill. She was tickled that I had agreed to the trip, not knowing where we were going to hike. I told her, all I heard were two key words from her, “hike” and “Nepal”, and I was on board!

We met with a couple of her friends who had hiked in Nepal before. We got together and we discussed and planned our trip, with their help. Also the type of training we would need (to get fit) to prepare ourselves for the hike and types of clothing, shoes, snacks, etc. to bring along.

We were both thrilled when the day (in late March 2018) arrived for us to fly to Kathmandu. We had arranged one night’s accommodation at Kathmandu Guest House (KGH). We thought we will spoil ourselves a little with accommodation and facilities before it came to roughing it out later…lol.

After having checked in at KGH, we walked around, and explored the district we were at. We were also on a mission, to get me a hiking backpack, which we successfully did. We also found a local restaurant to have our dinner that evening before returning to our accommodation.

View of a part of KGH premises from the breakfast area.

The following day we flew out of Kathmandu to Pokhara, for a night’s stay. In Pokhara we stayed at Silver Oaks Inn, which was located not too far away from Phewa Lake. That evening, from the Inn, we had walked to Phewa lake, taking in the sights along the way, that were lined with shops and restaurants. On our return from the lake, we had dinner in one of the restaurants, before returning to the Inn.

At Phewa Lake, Pokhara. Some local and foreign tourists waiting to board the boats to go around the lake.

Pic taken from the restaurant. Wire cables tangled and hanging from post to post in Pokhara town. Caught my friend taking a pic.

In my next post our adventure begins.

Little moments captured in Bali

Happy New Year 2021!

I wrap up here, my first post, written on the last day of year 2020.

Here, I share some of the moments captured in Bali while I was there in August 2019. We arrived in the evening and checked into our accommodation, then right after, we decided to explore on foot.

One of the attractions we came across was this cool balibeercycle! Drink on the go while being driven around…

Lovely blue skies the next morning…

Dog going on a ride on a bicycle…

Came across this absolute beauty…

View of Tanah Lot Temple…

Tanah Lot Temple in the background…

Dinner on the last night of our stay in Bali…

So, we enjoyed our holiday in Bali, and while we were there, we were already discussing about our next vacation, and that we should ensure that the other childhood friend of ours will be able to join us then, as she could not make this trip. My friend remarked “I wish we had started going for holidays much earlier”. I had totally agreed with her.

Seeing how year 2020 turned out and in addition to travel restrictions being placed, we are glad we were both able to make this trip in 2019.

Best wishes for a better 2021!

My vacation with my childhood friend from kindie.

I have vacationed in Bali multiple times with different groups of friends. Multiple times, because it’s the closest to home, for a quick and short, beach getaway. I enjoyed each and every trip made.

Last year, I wanted to go on a vacation with one of my childhood friends. We have been friends since we were in kindergarten together. We had never ever been on one together. After asking her multiple times, she finally agreed. I could not believe that she was game for a trip. I was totally overjoyed, as was she. All the vacations she had been to, were with her family.

We discussed destinations where we could go to, and, Hooray!!! Bali, here we come. It would be her first trip to Bali. We were both looking forward to this trip.

When in Bali, she had shared with me, that back home she had already decided that she was going to agree to go on a vacation, if, in the event, I had asked her again. Boy! was I glad I had not given up asking my dear friend….LOL. Childhood friends are hard to come by, because many, after some years will start moving on and away for many reasons. And we are so glad that we had continued to keep in touch with each other, and continue to do so.

Our vacation took place in August 2019, and it started even before we boarded our flight! We had loads of laughter, doing the silliest things and getting excited about anything and everything, because, after all, we were just two girls going on a holiday!

This is us, having arrived at Ngurah Rai International Airport, Bali, Indonesia.