Nepal: Travel

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NEPAL • TRAVEL

Stats:

Total km biked: 1080.09
Days biked: 19 (Biking Days)

Road conditions:

All major roads are paved and in much better condition than people had previously mentioned. The road crossing the border from Tibet at Kodari was a dirt road in very poor condition. Many areas showed evidence of landslides in the rainy season.

Weather:

Beautiful clear, sunny skies, a few days of haze and only a couple of days of rain during our entire 60 day stay in Nepal.

Food and water:

Dal bhaat (rice, lentils and curried vegetables that is served all you can eat style) is our new favorite meal. Food is available nearly everywhere, fruit, drinks (tea, mango juice, water), momos (steamed or fried dumplings stuffed with vegetables or meat), aloo parantha (potato stuffed bread), and chapatti (flat bread) are common foods. In bigger cities (especially Pokhara and Kathmandu) you can find all sorts of imported western foods, like chocolate, biscuits, soups, pasta, etc, although all these items are very expensive. Dal Bhaat can be purchased outside the major cities for about 40 to 50 Nepali rupees (about 60 cents), while tea costs about 5 rupees (less than 10 cents), soda in a glass bottle - 15 rupees (less than 20 cents), and mango juice - 15/16 rupees (less than 20 cents). Prices in Pokhara and Kathmandu (Thamel), the two largest tourist areas in Nepal are significantly higher than other areas in the country (other than trekking circuits, which are also expensive).

Sleeping:

Other than camping while we were climbing in the Ganesh Himal, we spent all other nights in guesthouses. The average price for a double room for us was about 150-200 rupees (between US$2-3). These rooms varied in quality from really nice and clean to not so great. There seems to be no problem finding accommodation on major roads, though in more remote areas, with large stretches between villages, it may be a bit more difficult.

Alternate transportation:

In large cities, there are all forms of transportation, including busses, rickshaws, taxis and tuk tuks (small wagon-like trucks). We took a bus to and from Syabrubesi, where we were climbing in the Ganesh Himal. The bus covered about 180 kilometers in about 8-10 hours, due to the stretches of poor road due to frequent landslides (cost - 250 rupees (about US$3.50)). We also took a minibus (called microbus in Nepal) 60 kilometers (cost - 115 rupees (about US$1.75)). Tuk tuks seem to be the most ecomonical transportation in Kathmandu.

Maps used:

We used a large political map of Nepal, which wasn't very detailed, but free from another cyclist friend. Distances between villages were hard to determine from our map, but road markers consistently line the side of the highways and mark the kilometer distance between major villages/towns.

Highlights:

The Nepali people are incredible. People consistently went out of their way to help us out and answer questions. More than once, we were allowed into public events free of charge since we were "a guest of the country". The Nepali people are fantastic when it comes to hospitality. The children of Nepal are extremely amazing and kind. Trekking and climbing in the Ganesh Himal was incredible. Other highlights were seeing the wildlife around Chitwan National Park, the varying landscapes between the mountains, foothills and plains, watching and listening to all of the traditional music and dance at the Waling festival, visiting schools and medical facilities. Nepal is extremely affordable with both guesthouses and food being a great value. “Hello…one pen.” “And give me 5 rupees.”

Misc:

Internet is not readily available outside of major town and cities. Even in the major towns/cities, the connection is quite slow.

Images

going to school