Escaping the dusty city

It's not quite hitting me yet that in less than a week I'll be leaving Nepal and heading to my next destination: Hilo, Hawai'i. Although I am sad to be leaving this country for now, I would be sadder if I wasn't heading to a place that I fell in love with over a year ago.

That being said, do expect a few remaining posts about Nepal, particularly a breakdown of my work experience: teaching at Lalitpur Madhyamik Vidyalaya (LMV) and working with Srijanalaya. For now, however, enjoy this post about an escape from the dusty city of Kathmandu to Pokhara!

Although only about 200km away, it takes about an eight-hour bus ride to reach Pokhara from Kathmandu, due to the quality of the roads in addition to a couple of rest stops. At the cost of 700nrs (less than $7), however, it is well worth the drive over a shorter yet more expensive plane ride.

I had heard much about the city and the surrounding area, but did not think I would have the time to visit, especially since I would be working right up until the end. But when a few friends from the local climbing gym invited Cat and I to head there with them, we did not hesitate to go along. Since I finished teaching at LMV on Friday, I told my coworkers at Srijanalaya that I would be back after a few days, and we all left that Saturday morning.

The first thing I noticed when we arrived, other than the mountains shrouded in clouds, was the freshness of the air. Although Kathmandu is a great city in many respects, its air quality is lacking. My lungs were certainly grateful for a reprieve! After dropping stuff off at our hotel and changing out of our travel clothes, we headed to the lake. Although Cat had been talking about swimming since she arrived in Kathmandu, I didn't quite realize how much I had missed the water until I saw Fewa Lake. The urge to jump in right then and there almost took my breath away.

We all agreed to check out renting some kayaks so we could explore the other side of the lake, where we could get out to swim. Swimming around Lakeside would be out of the question, given the lack of privacy and the judgement we would receive from the people wandering around. Swimming in Nepal is still uncommon, especially for women. But more on that later!

My Lifeproof™case finally proved itself worthy when I took my phone out with me on the lake to take a few pictures:

From left to right: Emily, Bbek, me, Bikash, and Cat

All in all, this was a great start to our excursion (and a great way to freshen up after eight hours on a bus)! The next day, Bikash suggested we visit the village of Pame, from where we walked to a spot along the river where you could climb some boulders (in the dry season) and jump in the water off the boulders (in the wet season).

We also tested out Emily's Lifestraw™ with some smiles and laughter. We often take clean, filtered water for granted, but it's important to remember that not everyone has access to it!

Cat and I spent most of the time attempting to climb the boulders barefooted and wet (even though we had packed climbing shoes), and jumping off of them. Before we knew it, however, we had to race to get back down to the village to catch the last bus of the day. We made it just in time, and took off on another hour-long bumpy bus ride, through which I somehow managed to sleep.

After some dinner, we decided to stick with our original plan of heading up to Sarankot, which is supposed to get amazing views of the Himalayas on clear days. The rain accompanied our way there, so it was questionable whether we were going to get even close to a clear sky the next morning. Our way up to the guest houses was also not an easy one: we had to walk up a ways in the dark and in the rain with all of our things, almost going way off path, and finally paying way too much for a quick drive the rest of the way.

At this point, I was tired and started getting a bit frustrated. Traveling with a group of people, even if just for a few days, can get difficult, especially if communication is not as clear as it maybe should be. I was reminded of when Johann and I were traveling together for months on end through Australia, and as I mentioned in my previous post, that can give rise to anxiety. I headed off to bed as the others stayed up to watch the Final World Cup game. At 5am, I was hoping for a clear sky and a beautiful sunrise, but not only was the sky barely orange, it was still drizzling. I decided to stay in bed.

My anxiety returned later in the morning, as I found myself waiting for the others to start their mornings. I was glad to be up there, but something was also pulling me back down, back to the lake. My appetite for swimming was not satiated.

Even (or perhaps especially) at Princeton I don't get around to swimming much anymore. Swimming laps in a pool is not particularly attractive, and there are no nearby lakes or rivers clean enough to hop into for a swim. I always knew that I loved the water, but I think it's more than that. It transforms me: I become a little girl again, swimming around in the water, diving in and out, swimming under surfboards and tugging on people's surfboard leashes. It makes me feel more alive than ever.

Unfortunately, as I mentioned earlier, swimming outside in Nepal is relatively uncommon and so for us it meant getting stared at by those along Lakeside, or even by people out on the lake in rented boats. So, each time we went in, we took our kayaks (and the second time, our paddleboards) to the other side of the lake before taking off extra layers of clothing and swimming around. More than the fact that it's unusual to swim around here, it's also not socially acceptable for women to wear a swimsuit, or even anything that is more revealing. Women's bodies have been sexualized in many different cultures, but I hadn't felt it so strongly until now.

Even though I want to be respectful of different cultures, I feel that there are certain aspects that must be met with resistance. Women here deserve to be free: free of the fear of constant judgement, free to make their own choices, and free to do with their bodies what they wish. Nepal (as well as the rest of the world) still has a long way to go.

I think we all enjoyed our time in Pokhara (I know I did), but it did remind me of what I consider my body's flaws. I'm not comfortable with the way my stomach fat bunches, or with how white my legs are after a year of being locked inside in Princeton, or with how easily my skin burns and turns red. So, here's a picture that Cat snapped of me and all my imperfections, having a good time nonetheless:

Although our views of the mountains were limited due to the cloud coverage, we did get a decent view just as we were leaving Pokhara Tuesday morning:

Thanks for reading! I know it was a longer one... And feel free to comment below!