Crowded streets, dirty air, unbelievable low prices, friendly people, sweaty treks, great climbs, spectacular views, freezing peaks and tasteful food… these are some of the things that can be said to describe our trip to Nepal. We went on some amazing trips last year, and most of them I’ve shared here with you guys. I can actually go so far as saying last year was one of the best years of my 22 years on this planet. Not only did I get to experience new and exciting things and places. But I go to share it with one of my most favorite people ever.
We travelled a lot last year; we actually had one trip booked for every month. Everyone seem to be wondering how we can afford all of this, well let me tell you, sometimes the places we go to is not places on our bucket lists, but places we find at incredible prices, find in travel fairs, win and some of them bought through some crazy Air Asia or Nok Air deal.
This time, we found an incredible deal through Groupon. I’ve heard Groupon doesn’t do well here in Thailand, but seriously guys; there are a lot of things to find there. And if it wasn’t for groupon we might not have ever gone to Ghorepani Poon Hill, which is an experience I never want to forget.
We booked this 11 day 10 night trip in March this year, not really knowing what to expect, other than that we were going to one of Nepal’s most popular treks, mostly because of its scenery but from our guess also because of the difficulty level. (It is a hard trek, don’t get me wrong… but compared to Annapurna circuit and Everest base camp which is a lot longer and higher altitude, I would say this one is easier.)
I’ll tell you guys about this trip step by step, so if you guys would like to do the same trip you know exactly what to expect. This whole trip was arranged by Himalaya Social Journey and I can’t say enough positive things about them. If you ever go, this is the company to travel with. They help you with everything, I mean everything. Nepalese people are pretty awesome in general so they might all be great, but at least this one I can vouch for from experience.
Walking the roof tops of Kathmandu.
The trip starts with two nights in Kathmandu. If you haven’t been there before, you will be fascinated about how different it is from home. Especially if you come from Norway or Bangkok as I do. The streets are overly crowded with honking cars and motorbikes always trying to get in front of each other. The air is very polluted, so make sure you bring something to cover your nose and mouth because you might get a little sick from the air- better to be safe than sorry. It’s a cultural city so there will be plenty of things to see.
On the second day we visited four of the main sites, Pashupatinath Temple, Boudhanath Stupa, Durbar Square and Swayambunath.
For 1 USD you can have your photo taken with the babas. I must say, it was worth it. Their story is very interesting, so if you don’t know about them, click here.
Boudhanath stupa in Kathmandu.
On the third day you will be going on an eight hour bus ride through beautiful nature to arrive at the peaceful Pokhara. If you ask me which place I liked the best, I would say Pokhara. Actually EVERYONE prefers Pokhara to Kathmandu, he-he. You get to stay there for a night before the trekking starts. There are loads of shops and things to buy and eat in there. They have everything of trekking gear and clothing at a fraction of the price at home, so if you want to save some money or just don’t bother travelling with any luggage, just buy it here.
Our first stop on the way up to Tikhedhunga
From the fourth day you will be spending 4 nights in the mountains, starting from Nayapul to reach the peak of Poon Hill to then descend through the two villages Tadepani and Gandruk.
Tikedhunga The hike up there takes around 3 hours if I remember correctly. It’s pretty easy but it gets really hot so you should start with a shorts and a t-shirt. (We trekked in November) It’s a jungle atmosphere up there and a great place to have your first rest. If you didn’t bring a stack of cards, get it there. You’ll use it a lot up in the mountains, and the guides (at least ours) have many tricks to show you.
Ghorepani Poon Hill
Spectacular view of the himalayan range.
The hardest trek of them all is the one from Tikedhunga to Ghorepani. I think Tikedthunga lies around 1450m above sea level and Ghorepani around 2800m. It’s pretty much uphill the whole day and it takes around 6 hours. They start of telling you the hard part is the 3200steps up to Ullevi, and when you think it’s over its at least 3000 more. But trust me, once you start seeing the view you’re going to forget all about it. The view from Ghorepani is stunning and when you climb up to Poon Hill for sunrise or sunset you will be gob smacked. The view is absolutely breathtaking. You get to see more than 10 peaks of the Himalayan range, with Annapurna south and fish tail being two of them. Fish tail/Machhapuchhre was my favourite peak of all of them and I think we were its favourite too, because it did follow us all the way down to Ghandruk.
We had to get a picture at the Ghorephani Poon Hill sign. We looked super dorky in the hats we got in Kathmandu.
The third day you hike “a little bit up and a little bit down” as they say in Nepal, and then you arrive to Tadepani, where you stay for one night. The following day the Trek goes downhill to Ghandruk the home of the Gurung people.
After the trek you get to stay two nights in Pokhara, the first to chil and the second to explore.
We were taken on the lake and up to the peace pagoda. You have to climb up to the pagoda, but again… the view is absolutely gorgeous. If you tell them you’re up for exploring even more, your guide will be happy to show you. Our guide (Shankar) took us to see Devi’s/Davis fall and the inside of the fall, Gupteshwor Mahadev Cave.
A part of Phewa Lake and the nature.
View from the peace pagoda in Pokhara.
Last night is spent in Kathmandu, with a special dinner with a cultural show, and of course Dhal Bat is on the menu. <3
This trip was absolutely amazing, and one of my biggest adventures so far. I had expected us to stay in dirty rooms in the cities, and sharing room with others in the mountains, and I was OK with that, but instead, we got our own separate cleans rooms, and sometimes our own bathrooms, and the food was amazing. We were actually pretty shocked about how great it was, it didn’t matter what type of food you ordered, they mastered everything, I actually gained a couple of kilos for this trip so I wouldn’t lose too much, but ended up gaining even more while staying here. If you like flavorful food you’re going to love Dhal bat, it’s seriously power food, and they have a saying here, Dhal Bat power- 24 hours. (Don’t worry; you’ll get it when you go there). Oh, and remember to get the Mars roll when you’re in Ghandruk!
In the end I want to extend a big thank you to our guide Shankar from Himalayan Social journey, our trip wouldn’t have been the same without you. (Even though you cheated in pretty much every single card game, hahaha)
We are definitely coming back!!
PS! Try contacting the company directly instead of getting it from Groupon in the future. You might get the same prices as on the app, but more of the money will actually go to the people that are offering you the service.
Contact: www.nepalsocial.com.
Don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions. 🙂
–A
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