Nepal 2017

Monday13November

Waking up in the Potala hotel in Ranipauwa. And off we go again for the penultimate day of walking.

Passing through Jharkot.

We are in the kingdom of Mustang, a region with a somewhat peculiar history as it was independent until 1951, the year of its integration into Nepal. In 1992, foreigners were allowed to enter its territory, and it was only in 2008 that the region definitively lost its monarchical titles...

The region still resists the winds of modernity, but for how much longer...

Troglodyte cliffs.

A Yak Donalds! Any resemblance to an existing or formerly existing restaurant would be purely coincidental!  

In places, the colors of autumn invite themselves!

And here's what we feared, like these abandoned barrels as if someone had dropped them and fled, leaving everything behind... This hitherto preserved territory is shrinking like a piece of shagreen leather. Asphalt is beginning to spread, gradually covering what remains of its authenticity. As if a whole part of Nepal's history was slowly collapsing before our eyes...  Originally, our trek was a complete loop, entirely on foot. Now, the last part is done by jeep, the paths having given way to asphalt tracks... The positive side is, of course, bringing villages closer together, but it's not certain that all this will stop at simple additions of roads to the landscape...

Man Bahadur and Subash or the quiet walk.   Mustang offers us its best panorama in this sunny November month...

A little contemplative break...

If I thought I had climbed very high with 5416 meters at Thorong La, well, look at this photo where the pass we crossed the day before is located. It is in the right part of the photo in the background, in the large hollow that separates the 2 mountains. Yes, from here all this seems quite insignificant to me. But it's all a matter of perspective because we are still 2100 meters lower...

Zoom on Thorong La Pass and its 5416 meters.

Mustang and its colors as varied as its sedimentary layers exposed on the flanks of its mountains.

A Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) accompanies us for a few minutes, describing concentric circles above our heads...    

A few goats, a young shepherd, mountains, nothing more to add.

A few more steps before dropping below 3000 meters and reaching Kagbeni...  

At the bottom of the valley, the small village of Kagbeni will welcome us until tomorrow morning.

We settle into the Shangri hotel.

After lunch, we visit the village with Narayan. To all his talents, he also adds that of a cultural guide! Man Bahadur dons his tourist coat for the occasion to enjoy the visit with us. We start with the Buddhist monastery.

Inside the temple, a Bhavacakra, the Buddhist wheel of life. Established from Buddha's visions on the functioning of the cosmos, this illustrated "guide" represents the distribution of humanity in the cycle of reincarnations, in vices and virtues leading to better or worse lives... A bit like the equivalent of heaven and hell in monotheistic religions.

"The monastery was founded in 1429 by Tenpa Gyaltsen, a Tibetan master". © Wikipedia

The monastery's prayer wheels, how many hands have touched them?...

Kagbeni is built right next to the Kali Gandaki river.

Behind the temple, debris of furniture and other prayer wheels.

Back to the monastery. It houses young monks who will be educated in worldly knowledge.

And here is the typical schedule of a student monk, from waking up at 4:30 AM to brushing his teeth at 9:00 PM!   Weekly classes are divided between sciences and languages, including Tibetan!

We continue the walk through the narrow alleys nestled between the stone houses.

Surprise encounter with the neighborhood guardian... All his strength is not in his wooden saber, but rather in another device ostentatiously presented to impress the visitor passing by...   

And if the guardian fails, it's better to have a good lock on your door...

What do shampoo, chocolate cake, and Yak cheese have in common? The Nepalese display window, of course!

On the other side of the river, the immense folds of our Earth's crust bear witness to the millions of years that preceded us! Look for the photographer to see the scale...

Back to the village where an old stupa invites us to bend down to enter its lair...

Inside, paintings tell the story of Buddha.

Outside, life goes on...

View of the temple.

Look! Yak Donald is here! But no sign of Yak Drive...  

Back to the hotel, located right next to the old stupa.

Japanese atmosphere in the dining room.

Aperitif with Nepalese Tuborg beer!  

And oh surprise when someone comes towards us with a pan full of embers and quickly goes under the table to fill a bucket!   But yes, a very good idea to replace the auxiliary heating!

End of the evening around a card game and then bedtime before the last day of walking!

Tuesday14November

Breakfast at the same table as the day before, but this time the heating is off... Then we hit the road again for our last day of walking. Tonight we will be in the town of Jomsom.

Traditionally cultivated fields border the almost dry bed of the Kali Gandaki river.

No motor machines for these farmers. Oxen have not yet given way to tractors, at least for plowing.

A new road is being built along the river.

Let's hope it won't prevent this breeder from leading his magnificent yaks to his lands.

And nothing seems capable of stopping the bulldozers, mountain eaters...

In the distance, 30 kilometers away, the snow-capped peak of Dhaulagiri proudly displays its beautiful 8167 meters. And 2 kilometers away, more modestly, the capital of Mustang, Jomsom, shows its face.

And there you have it, our last steps end in these cobbled streets. 13 days of walking that finally passed without enormous difficulties! Tomorrow, we will rest our shoes well in a car for the return to Pokhara!

The runway of Jomsom's small airport and in the distance the peak of Nilgiri.

The Buddhist temple of the city with red mills.

Some new attempts at astronomical photos... The Pleiades and the constellation Taurus on the left. And star trails on the right.

Wednesday15November

7 AM, full breakfast, then loading bags onto the car.

140 kilometers to reach Pokhara, on roads not always easy. We are glad we chose the car rather than the bus, because it will take us 9 hours to reach our destination! I can't even imagine the time a bus would need to make the same journey!  

Fortunately, the 9-hour journey includes breaks! Here, we enjoy a small coffee.

Right next door, a man is busy preparing freshly cut yak meat, whose blood has already been compartmentalized in intestines, perhaps his own...  

The head, meanwhile, is "delicately" placed in a corner for later... The blood sausages, meanwhile, are sunbathing.

Total traffic stop. When work is necessary, no alternative is provided. So everyone stops, and we wait...

Lunch break around a dal bhat.

Memories of India with this Pan Masala, provided to finish the meal well with seeds and sugar with aniseed flavors.  

Before our arrival in Pokhara, we immortalize one last time the Annapurna range, an unwavering companion of our last two weeks.

After warmly thanking them, and not without a pang in our hearts, we let Man Bahadur and Subash go, who will finally be able to return to their families! It must not have been easy because Subash became a father just 15 days before the trek...! As for us, we go out to town for lunch with Narayan for our almost-farewell dinner, as we already make an appointment for 8 days later to see each other one last time. We meet at the "Lemon tree" restaurant where I order an excellent Sizzler, vegetables and meat served directly on a sizzling hot cast iron plate.

Tomorrow, a big day to reach the small town of Lumbini, Buddha's birthplace!