This day started after experiencing the second worst sleep this trip in a really wanky Nepalese hotel where the people running it seemed truly pissed off we were there. Food nasty, rooms nasty, bed really nasty… On the other hand, from the roof you could see Nepali life go by, and the opening above our shared outdoor sink looked over a beautiful terraced valley. And the dramatic thunderstorm before dinner was really great! This morning, a funky greased egg-fest for breakfast and off we go.

Letting Brits set the pace intentionally; part of what I do on these trips is to read the group, and play the appropriate role to ensure group morale. Today; many stops, very slow; hope they get to evaluate their afternoon biking in the heat theory; bottom line is that Mariola was in the lead all day. (Slightly passive aggressive, I’m fully aware…) In the hills all day; mostly climbing; eventually descending to Pokhara

Sample of Brits complaints today… Too many hills. Too long between breaks. Too hot…. What they really want is to ride for 30 minutes and break for 20 minutes continuously. Whiners. (Serenity now…)

Even the Swiss Flavia goes on about “where are the mountains!! When are we gonna see the mountains??” “Why aren’t things more clean???” “The haze is still there!”

Arrival in Pokhara!!

After a fantastically luxurious hot-water shower and doing laundry, I was treated to another fantastic thunderstorm that I could see directly out the little veranda off of my room. I’m very fortunate here, I think I’m the only one of the group that has a little back veranda. Me so lucky!

The thunderstorm and attendant rain continued for a bit, so I decided to hang out in the room chillin’ for a change (w gin/tonic ) rather than walk out with the rest of the folks. Besides, I definitely feel like I need a break from their energy anyway. And I’m sure they need a break from mine as well! So back in the room, doors and windows open, enjoying the thunderstorm and wind, waiting a while for the weather and then I will go out for dinner. I have been carrying a little bit of gin and tonic water with me, so today is the day for a basic gin and tonic sans limes, but that’s okay it still tastes pretty darn good compared to whiskey or beer!

I have had absolutely fantastic Nepalese food here, and some really marginal Nepalese food as well, but tonight since there’s so many western type restaurants here, I’m thinking about pizza! It is such a cliché food to eat pizza, and while I’m Pokhara, Nepal; why would I do that? Well, because it’s familiar, and sometimes that’s very comforting and desirable.

If you remember the photo of the Buddhist Pancha Sila that I posted photo of previously, the five things that an enlightened person avoids… Well, in the last 20 hours, I’ve violated two of them; killing that spider that I never intended to except the Brits called me in to deal with their problem, and now drinking some gin. The other three I’m usually pretty good at minding anyway.

Pokhara is probably the second most visited tourist city in Nepal. As we were riding our bikes into town today, we saw so many white people (as Nepalese call us), and it was almost a shame in a sense because so many Europeans and their shorts and T-shirts and bald heads and fat butts, it’s somehow not a welcome sight after every where else we’ve been so far as “they” have been completely absent, except Kathmandu I suppose. (And yes, the hipocracy of that comment is not lost on me…)

One thing about Asia is the common practice of copying or duplicating things without concern for copyright. You see it frequently with name brand clothing, bags, etc. so I stopped at a place called godfathers pizza, which certainly not at all the godfathers in the US, but a knock off with same name. Regardless, I stop in and have woodfired oven pizza that was absolutely fantastic!

From there, I walked down the main sidestreet and ran into what looks like a barbershop but also doubles as a massage place; a common pairing here… So I’m walking by, and the barber guy says, excuse me sir, do you want massage? And I’m thinking this is the first offer of a massage from a male barber ever, so I agreed, went into a little room behind his barbershop, and received an outstanding deep and strong leg and shoulder massage that was really first class.

After that, headed back to the hotel we’re staying at, and it was maybe about 9 PM by this time. I went straight up to my room, was thinking about sleep, then the (first-ever) room phone rings Ox calls me and says to come downstairs, we’re going to have a snack and a drink. As you know, whenever the locals invite me, I consider it an honor and I certainly always try to say yes (though I don’t think I’ll say yes to a drink-fest like this turned out to be again.) So downstairs in the hotel with the hotel manager, Ox, Ganesh the driver, we had some vegetables (tomatoes, carrots, cucumber, onion) sliced up very thin with a pepper curry sauce dip, and some ground black pepper. Fantastically fresh tasting! Christian the Brit was there as well and he already seemed pretty well drunk when I got there; so we all and drank whiskey and water for a little while. We learned more about Nepali life and culture in that exchange; about Ox wife and marriage, about his cycling history, his hopes to visit the US and UK, his relationship with Redspokes, etc. Again, I just think it’s a cool to be invited to local situations like this; if you just ride a bike and wait to be served fried potatoes, you will learn little of the culture that you’re cycling through.

Finally made it to bed with a bellyful of whiskey, veggies, and friendly conversation in Pokhara, Nepal.

Tue 16 th April: Waling – Pokhara

We set off along the winding Siddhartha Highway which links Waling to Pokhara. It is a rugged, dramatic landscape offering breathtaking panoramic vistas and there are several viewpoints en-route. During the first 47 km the road undulates from around 850 – 1100 metres until we reach the pass (1,284 metres) which is the highest point along the highway. The road then nose dives for 3 km only to rise again slightly before tumbling down to Pokhara (827 metres). The scenery becomes more and more impressive as we near the end of the ride. Pokhara, located in a magnificent valley of lakes and mountains, is the second largest tourist destination in Nepal. It offers one of the best mountain panoramas in the world with spectacular views of the Himalaya. The most impressive peak is Machhapuchhre (Fishtail Mountain), which stands only 25 km away from Pokhara. Its reflection in the Lake Phewa is considered one of the most beautiful sights in Nepal.