Below are a collection of Instagrams I snapped over the 5 weeks we were in the country traveling from Kochi to Kolkata.

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Day 3: 11 km. 350 meters up to Poon Hill. From Ghorepani, another 355 m. up and 585 m. down.

Our 4:30am alarm was not alone.  As we slid out of bed we could hear the rustling of jackets and packing of bags through the paper-thin walls that separated the rooms.  In complete darkness we set out to reach the climax of the trip—the summit and viewpoint of Poon Hill.  Unfortunately, the 45 minute hike uphill wasn’t easy or relaxing.  We were accompanied by herds of other people, and like livestock we all tried to fit into the narrow hiking paths.  Some hikers weren’t going to let the crowded trail stand in their way, and they pushed through as we tried to navigate the steps in the dark.  This, combined with all the laser beam headlamps which always seemed to be piercing our eyes, made for a grouchy 5am walk.

Cold and heavily out of breath, we finally made it to the top.  The view wasn’t impressive at first, as I was still concerned with not fainting and finding a place to warm my hands.  After a coffee from the small stand at the top, I was ready to take in the Himilayan panorama as the sun was began to light up the sky.

We took our time at Poon Hill.  It was a clear day and there were so many different peaks to gaze at, all of which changed color with the passing of time.  We were above the mist from the valley below, and even above the few small mountain planes we saw buzz by.  Though still pretty far away, the peaks seemed so close.  Their enormous size was inconceivable.

Those steps at Ulleri, my sore muscles, the 4:30am wake up; it was all worth it now.

After some obligatory pictures with the Poon Hill sign, Rhys, Louise, Josh, Simon and I made our way back down to Ghorepani on a much emptier path at a much more leisurely pace.

Although that was already enough excitement (and hiking) for one morning, we still had a full day ahead of us.  The day’s trek would take us down a few hundred meters, and then back up to the height of Poon Hill all in just the first few hours.  Being that it was the third day, and we had woken up so early, I was exhausted and not ready for the journey.

The next hour was tough, and at times I didn’t think I was going to make it.  I stayed back, away from the group with my feet dragging.  I had no motivation, and when the steep inclines began I just wanted to sit down and cry.  At that point, hiking was the LAST thing on earth I wanted to be doing.

I slowly reached the top of a steep hill to meet the rest of the group with my sunglasses on, hoping to shield any tears that might happen to escape.  Now I can’t even remember what was said, or what was done, but from then on I had a second wind.  Something on that hill restored my motivation and I continued with more of a bounce in my step.  Every steep incline was taken light-heartily as we all found comfort in each other’s common misery.  “This must be a sick joke!” we all agreed as each new incline approached.

Things didn’t get any less exciting from then on, and though our legs were trembling and our ankles were aching, we had a few other encounters which put a  hop in our step.

As we trampled down a muddy stone path playing an endless game of “What’s the capital” we turned to hear some rustling in the trees.  “WHAT ARE THOSE?!” I shrieked as 2 long haired black and white animals with curved horns glanced our way.  “Yaks!” Josh informed us.  He would know, since he had just purchased a painting in Pokhara (as 12 year olds do) with a few of them in front of the Himalayas.

Before I could finish snapping a few pictures, the yaks began to move around, and to our surprise, began heading our way.  With the others realizing before me that there was only one way in which they could go, they began to run ahead.  Stumbling behind, I turned to see the yaks pick up some speed.  “We are being chased by yaks!” we shouted.  “God, and I’m the one in the back!”

Finally yak free, we continued our hike until another obstacle would be thrown our way.  Over the green rolling hills, dark clouds moved quickly in our direction. As we passed a few small shops and restaurants, the locals began covering their things and closing the windows.  Knowing we still had a while to go, there was no way to avoid it, and we put on our rain jackets and prepared for some water.

None of us expected the monsoonal downpour that would soon hit, nor the intense incline up a forested mountain, and in between thunder and lightning, we trampled through small rivers which ran down the trails.  “Is this for real? Has all of this really happened today?”  Unable to keep my small pack dry with my arms, Simon offered to carry it along with my camera bag under his poncho.  Covered by the bright yellow plastic, his backpack made for a large hump while two other bags hung from his shoulders.  Almost every part of my body was quickly being soaked with water, and as the hail became to come down all we could do was laugh.  Soon in mutual delirium, we decided Simon was no longer Simon, but ‘Gollum’, Josh became ‘Frodo’ and I was now ‘Gandalf’.  We splashed up the trails in our new Lord of the Rings reality in order to escape the actual horror that was upon us.

The mythical trio finally entered Tadapani and we scurried in all directions.  “Do you have any rooms?”  “Do you have any rooms?” we repeated to guesthouse to guesthouse until someone agreed they could take us in.  There was one small condition though, and there wasn’t enough space for Simon and I except in the staff’s quarters.  We ended the long, eventful day, lying in a small cupboard sized room on the beds of two generous Nepalese women as our clothes hung by the communal fireplace to dry.

I turned to Simon with a hopeful gaze. “Tomorrow is supposed to be easy, right?”

“Bloody better be”.

Day 4: 7.2 km. Tadapani to Ghandruk

With dry clothes and renewed energy, we anticipated a short day ahead of us.  From Tadapani, many of the trekkers split up.   Some continue onto Annapurna Base Camp and others start to head back to Nayapul, like us.   Other people combine the last two days into one long one to finish the trek in 4, but we didn’t have the energy nor the desire to leave the mountains.

Almost completely downhill, day four was a change of pace compared to the others.  Without having poles, or a walking stick, I calculated each step.  After a few days of walking, and straining new muscles on the decline, my legs were shaky and without concentration they were in danger of coming out from under me at any given moment.

Knowing the hike would only take a few hours, we took it slow and stopped whenever we felt like it.  There was no rush on day four, and instead of huffing and puffing we continued to chat with each other to pass the time.  All subjects we could think of– our interests, our previous travels, our dreams– were fair topics.  It was hard to believe we had all only met a few days prior.

We reached Ghandruk well before lunch time and wandered through the cobblestone allies to find a guesthouse.  The early arrival made for a perfect day of rest in one of the most picturesque villages of the trip.  The mountains towered in the distance and rice paddies cling to the hillside below.

Day 5: 13 km. Ghandruk to Nayapul (start)

The final day was upon us and it was bittersweet.  While the LAST thing I wanted to be doing that day was trekking, I didn’t want our time in the mountains to be over.  The views just weren’t the same from Pokhara.  An endless amount of steps took us down steep narrow trails through rice paddies and a hotter climate.  While Simon and Rhys trotted ahead with motivation to finish, I dragged behind.  Hungry, tired and sore I just wanted the walking to be over.  There was no viewpoint to work towards.  There was no quaint village to reach for lunch.

Time passes slower when motivation is low, and I felt like the final descent took ages.  When we did reach it, we celebrated.  Lemon and sugar pancakes for all!  Later that night for dinner, Simon and I celebrated with a feast, a few beers and bags of sour candy. All that exercise, instantly reversed.

As the days passed and we got ready to make the long trip overland into India, I got more and more nostalgic for the mountain villages and the simplicity of beautiful scenery.  Having to work for each view every day, made it even more special.  There were no distractions from our surroundings either.  For five days we hadn’t been online, read any news stories or watched any TV.

We were both more pleasant to be around, enjoying the simplicity of a good conversation or an entertaining game of cards.  We got dressed quickly as we didn’t have much to choose from.  We didn’t waste our supplies, as we needed the shampoo and toothpaste to last as long as possible.

For 5 days, we lived in complete simplicity, reminding us of one basic principle of travel.  One doesn’t need many possessions to be happy, just enough to be carried on one’s back while wandering from one beautiful place to the next.

Thanks for reading. If you enjoyed this post, feel feel to ‘like’ and share! 

Our flight to see Mt. Everest for Simon’s birthday. (the one slurge I didn’t include in the budget!)

Month 2: March 22- April 21  (Nepal: 17 days, India: 4 days, Bangkok: 5 days, Myanmar: 4 days)

(for a summary on our first month of travel in India, click here.)

Planes: 4
Trains: 2
Buses: 5
Bed bugs: 0!
Mosquito bites, tummy troubles & unexpected power cuts: COUNTLESS

Total spent: (not including flights purchases prior to the trip which came out to about $326 each.)

$1,696.26 together, which is $848.13 each.

Can you guess which country’s currency this is? Comment below if you happen to know..

• Daily average: $28 each
• Most expensive place: Bangkok for Songkran.  We spent almost $200 each in about 5 days, even while trying to limit our spending.  In Bangkok, especially during a festival, there are so many temptations and little things to spend money on.
• Cheapest place: Varanasi, India.  As with all of India, it is easy to keep a low budget consistently while eating well and sleeping in decent accommodation. While there we averaged $15 a day each.
• Cheapest accommodation:  Nepal.  We found many double rooms for only $4 a night which were clean and comfortable.  Our cheapest was only $1.15 for a night during the Poon Hill Trek. The most expensive places were in Kathmandu for about $5-12 for a double.
• Most expensive accommodation: Myanmar.  It seems almost impossible to find anything for under $20 a night for a double room.  Most nights we paid $30 which included breakfast.
• Most expensive food: Trekking in Nepal.  Up in the mountains even the local food was expensive (for trekkers) averaging $4 each per meal. (A lot for such a poor country).

Bangkok for the Songkran water festival. Our biggest splurges where on super-soakers (but a very worth-while purchase)

Costs of Traveling in Nepal

Seventeen days of our second month was spent in Nepal.  This ended up being longer than originally planned because for one, it was more laid-back and less hassle than India and two, a strike prevented us from getting a bus to leave as planned.

For most travelers and families, Nepal is a very economical travel destination.  While you may be spending more on food, the price of accommodation can offset the cost.  Expect to spend much more for excursions such as rafting, paragliding & guided treks.

Typical Prices in Nepal NPR = Nepalese Rupees. $1=86 NPR as of April 2013 

A large Everest Beer: 150NPR

A basic double room in a guesthouse: 600NPR

Lunch at a restaurant: 200NPR

Bus from Kathmandu-Pokhara: $10-20

Permit to trek in the Annapurna Conservation Area & mandatory insurance: $50

Paragliding in Pokhara: $60

The lassi: a cheap, sweet yogurt drink in India, Nepal & Myanmar

With all of this in mind, it seemed completely senseless to visit Nepal without doing a trek, but there was one problem. Simon and I were no where near prepared! For one, we didn’t have any appropriate gear or trekking clothes and we both hadn’t worked out in months.  After some research, we reluctantly convinced ourselves to embark on the Poon Hill/Ghorepani trek which could be done in 4-5 days and was one of the shortest overnight treks possible.  Still, this seemed like ages to be hiking.  The night before the trek I wasn’t even so sure that I wanted to do it, and I was most excited for the final day when it would be over!

Oh, how I was wrong.  Looking back, we both agree that the Poon Hill trek (Ghorepani/Ghandruk) in the Annapurna Conservation Area was the best thing we have done on our entire trip thus far.  Compared to how I was feeling before, and how lazy of a person I am, one thing is incredibly surprising- I actually wish we would have committed to something longer.  It was so great that I would have loved to make it to Annapurna Base Camp (10-12 days!).  There is even a 21 day circuit trek which I am not sure if I could do, but I am fascinated with none-the-less.

And from someone who really doesn’t enjoy working out, that is really saying something.

Our five days were tough, sometimes even painful, but there is something about the sense of accomplishment at the end of the day, and the crystal clear views of the mountains, that make all of the hard work seem like nothing.

Day 1: Nayapul to Ulleri 10.4 kilometers, 950 meters up

We exited the taxi at Nayapul around 8:30am and pulled our bags from the car.  This didn’t take long, as we barely had anything.  For 5 days, I only toted one small sling backpack and Simon carried a normal sized day-pack, both of which were full to the brim.  My bag fit a change of pants, 2 more shirts, a fleece, toiletries, a basic first aid kit (aka a few band-aids) and our map.  Simon carried about the same amount of clothes along with our camelbak water bladder, our sandals, a poncho and my rain jacket. Everything else which wasn’t deemed a necessity was left behind in Pokhara for the time being.

A few other taxis arrived at the same time as us, and I sized up the other trekkers to see what they were wearing and carrying.  It didn’t take long for me to realize I was out of place.  I looked down at my flowy hippie pants and my hot pink Nike tennis shoes and made peace with them, it was too late to change now.

Me looking ridiculous

We began walking and Simon broke the silence with a burst of laughter. “The two of us, just walking into the Himalayas to do a 5 day trek. What are we doing?!” I agreed with nervous laughter and shook my head.

He was correct (for once..) What WERE we doing?!

A whole five minutes hadn’t passed before we questioned if we were heading in the right direction and we stopped to pull out the map.  As we did so, a family of three with zip-off hiking pants and shiny hiking poles headed our way

“You guys already lost?” the male of the trio called to us in his thick Jason Statham-esque East London accent.  He made big strides our way and the two others trailed behind.  Hesitant and intimidated, I began to fold up my map and prepared myself to fake some confidence.   Instead, the man who we would get to know as Rhys, genuinely asked to look at it with us and explained how they were doing the same trek.  Soon, Louise and 12 year old Josh caught up and we all comfortably began walking together.  Only 2 minutes later were we already stopped again, this time for something more exciting. A group of Nepalese were in the middle of skinning a large animal, most likely a water buffalo, only 10 feet away.  As Louise shrieked, and pulled Josh ahead, I stayed back to morbidly snap a few photos.  What an exciting beginning!

Little did I know at the time, that our encounter with Rhys, Louise and Josh– our new adopted family –would be so important and beneficial to our hike.  Over the next five days, we made trekking plans, charted our progress on our maps, encouraged each other (even if it was in the form of just keeping pace) entertained each other and happily ate every meal together.

The rest of day one was categorized by many ups (in terms of terrain) and downs (in terms of mental stability).  We were physically and mentally challenged, as the 5 of us second guessed our abilities and preparedness of the trek.  We walked along a river for a long while, stopped for a few breaks and then started the infamous ascent to Ulleri.  We had read that this would be a tough ending to the day, but if we conquered it on the first day, our second day would be much easier.  With the midday sun beating on our backs, we witnessed the winding tower of the horrendous steps.  We had a 500 meter (1640 ft) ascent in just 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) and at the time, the top wasn’t even visible.  Simon kept commenting on how this was more intense than Frodo’s journey to Mordor.  It wasn’t long until our group had split up, each of us taking it at a different pace.  As I slowly tried to keep up with Simon, I could hardly breathe long enough to talk.  I was no longer chatting, but just panting, fighting back tears and cursing with every awful, sweaty step.  Yes, I am a child.

The ascent took well over an hour, but I can’t be sure, as I completely lost track of time.  The only thing I could concentrate on was taking it one step at a time, and not crying due to the extreme lack of enjoyment I felt. We finally made it to the village around 1pm with weak jello-like legs and checked into a cheap, basic guesthouse (less than $2 for both of us). After we all reunited, we spent the rest of the evening together relaxing, drinking beers and milk tea(s) and watching thunderstorms travel across the mountains in the distance.

Simon and Rhys from the little window of our little room.

Day 2: 8 kilometers, 840 meters up

As with all days on the trek, we rose early. Not only would this assure that most of the day’s trek would be completed while it was still cool, but also that the tallest mountains would still be visible before the mid-morning clouds shrouded their peaks.

Leaving the town of Ulleri, we got our first sense of the village life.  Cute (albeit dirty) children played alongside their small homes, people greeted us with a friendly “Namaste” as we walked by and donkeys were being loaded up to transport goods to other villages.

We still had a decent amount of stone steps to endure past Ulleri, but thankfully these weren’t as steep and didn’t last quite as long as the day prior.  Once at the top, we entered a nice forest where we could follow a shady path for the next hour or so. Inside the forest, the snow-capped Fishtail peak was no longer visible, but we had a few nice streams, ponds and waterfalls populating our surroundings.  Later on in the trek, we began to be surrounded by the red and pink flowered Rhododendron trees.  The pink flowers were my favorite, and the fallen petals sprinkled our path leading the way through the cooler, higher-altitude hills.

Most of the time walking we spent chatting about movies and music, which made time go by relatively quickly.  Josh held up conservation as much as the rest of us, and Simon and I were constantly surprised with his knowledge on these subjects. At times, Simon and Josh appeared the same age, as they sometimes continued ahead of the pack discussing new video games and the coolest dinosaurs- subjects they were both equally interested in. A few hours later, the gradual ascent started to make our breathing deep and heavy and the chatter took a pause.  I was losing motivation and energy at this point and the trail started to feel long and never-ending.

Around noon we started to see signs signaling our destination, “Ghorepani.”  A second wind kicked in and with a silent motivation I made it up the rest of the stone steps into the center of the village.

Ghorepani itself is a village stuck in a watercolor painting and was a beautiful place to spend the afternoon and evening.  When the clouds cleared, Annapurna South towered behind green forested mountains.  Below the bright blue roofs of the village, the pink Rhododendron painted the hillside.

Our evening was spent having dinner, all 5 of us of course, in a warm guesthouse restaurant with large clear window where we watched the clouds float around the Annapurnas. As the sun set, and the chilly wind picked up, we set up for a night playing card game after card game until even laughing was too tiring.  After some star gazing, it was time to head to bed as an early morning awaited.  At 4:30am, we were to begin an hour long hike all in order to see one of the best panoramas in all of the Himalayas- the viewpoint at Poon Hill.

The ascent to Poon Hill, some tearful trekking, being chased by yaks and a hail storm all to come in PART II. Thanks for reading!

Good question. 

Probably one of the least known and least visited of the countries on our itinerary, we put Myanmar/Burma on our list just for this reason.  We don’t know much about it, and we would love to experience the country before tourism takes over.  In 2008, Myanmar became a democratic state and more and more people started visiting.  Before then, and especially in the decades prior, it was closed off to most of the world.  Fearing that in a few years it might entertain the same amount of tourists as the neighboring South East Asian countries, (Thailand especially) we figured there is no better time to visit than now!

So as I write this, I’m soaking up the last modern pleasures possible from a city that has really grown on me– Bangkok.  In the past five days here I’ve realized how livable Bangkok is, and though it’s my second visit, I hope it’s not the last.  Once in Myanmar, we will be struggling with electricity once again (so we have heard) and dealing with non-existent or painfully slow internet.

Basically, this means until the 29th I’ll be offline and enjoying the simple pleasures in life.   We have about 12 days in the country, and in that time will be visiting Yangon, Bagan & Inle Lake…all via some rumored horrendous overnight buses. Nothing we can’t handle after India… 

Wish us luck!

Articles to come post-Myanmar:

• The Poon Hill Trek part 1 & 2
• Month 2: The numbers and spending
• Varanasi: City of the living dead
• A gazillion other topics I need to find time to write about and most importantly……a big announcement about my next international move!

Thanks to everyone who has been following along! As always, feel free to ‘like’ or share via your social media.