Day Hike to Kaskikot

Today was my final day of training, guided along a strenuous mountain path by Jagrit, the university student who will be my "porter" for the ten day trek in the Annapurna Sanctuary. While uncomfortable enslaving a 50kg wisp to carry my bag, I'm happy to know that the money he will earn over the next ten days will cover his tuition and support his mother (in the photo over my right shoulder) for many months to come.

Today Jagrit took me to his village, a 600 meter ascent to a mountain top that would pass as anyone's shangri-la. We sat on grass mats spread on the mud floor, eating rice, lentils, goat meat, veg curry and buffalo milk. Jagrit had warned me that in every Hindu household "guest is God". I certainly encountered at least that degree of respect and honor.

The day taught me many lessons, one being that I will be safely guided into the Himalayas by an honorable guide/porter.

This will likely be my final post until I descend from the Annapurna range around the 12th of September with many stories and photos.

The World Peace Pagoda

Although 60% of the population of Nepal is Hindu, the country has a rich Buddhist tradition. A prince of the Sakya clan, Siddhartha Gautama, was born in Lumbini (Nepal) some 500 years BC. He lived in the kingdom of Kapilivastu until he renounced his position and wealth at the age of 29 years to develop a better understanding of suffering. Six years later, after that many years wandering in the forests and plains as an ascetic, he achieved "enlightenment" upon his realization of the causes of suffering and the way out of suffering. This event took place under a great pipal tree in a forest in northern India. Prince Siddhartha is now known as the historical "Buddha", the one who is fully aware. The Buddha taught that we all can develop that same level of awareness by living a life of non-violence, compassion for others and harmony with nature and other beings.

In 1994, Japanese Buddhists constructed the 71st of 100 planned World Peace Pagodas, this one in Pokhara, Nepal, in order to convey the message of peace embodied in the teachings of the Buddha. The smaller images included here are of two of the four statues of the Buddha embedded in the Pokhara pagoda: the sitting Buddha in Bodhgaya (site of his enlightenment) and the standing Buddha in Sarnath (site of his first teaching). Both sites are in India.

The pagoda sits several hundred meters above Pokhara, overlooking Phewa Lake, one of my favorite hiking destinations as I prepare for Annapurna.

From the Himalayan lakeside town of Pokhara

Pokhara, Nepal. While preparing for the trek in the Annapurna Sanctuary, I've been doing moderately difficult day hikes in the mountains around Pokhara. Day 1 was a wake-up call: "Am I really going to be able to do this?" Day 2: "Oh no.....do I ache today!" Day 3: "This isn't so bad." Day 4: "I'm feeling the benefit of these day hikes.....it's getting easier."

Between hikes, I've been reading Peter Hessler's second book about China, Oracle Bones, in which he writes about Beijing's preparation for the 2008 Olympics. Hessler describes how Chinese athletes, trained to be highly competetive and nationalistic, play only to win. Spectators expect the team to win and offer no appreciation for individual effort. Hessler goes on to contrast his own adolescent experiences with sports, reflecting on his father's coaching him in athletics. He writes, "His lessons were always counter-intuitive: the final goal is not victory but self-improvement."

Following Hessler's father's counter-intuitive lesson, I really have nothing to accomplish here -- only to remain in the moment, not focusing on a goal of reaching any particular altitude, but simply enjoying the experience. And I'm already doing that!

First Morning Pokhara....the clouds clear!

It's now 6:00 AM and monsoon clouds give way to early morning views of the Annapurna Range looming over Pokhara.

It looks like a great opportunity to begin some training with a day hike to the green peak you see in the foreground of the upper photo. This is Sarangkot -- from there, in one direction I'll look over the lake valley below and then back to the snow-capped range.

The Kathmandu-Pokhara Highway

The highway between the Kathmandu Valley and the lakeside town of Pokhara in central Nepal is a series of hillside-hanging "S"-shaped curves, one followed by another. Nonetheless, the scenery is utterly spectacular - terraced hillsides, green with baby rice seedlings, and below, a furiously flowing river of raging water browned with the monsoon run-off of hundreds of mountains streams.

A mist hangs low over the river valley as farmers weed their fields in the morning light. Cooks in roadship dhaabas (restuarants) prepare masala dishes for the crews that move an unending array of trucks between the industrial states of north India and the Kathmandu valley. The trucks, loaded with market goods, seem to ply the mountain road with their own form of aggression. As you see in the photo above, the pay-off is that some never complete the journey.

Kathmandu

The great Boudhanath Stupa dominates the skyline of this sector of Kathmandu, sitting on the ancient trade route that once connected Tibet and the Kathmandu valley. The 15th/16th century stupa, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is one of the holiest Buddhist sites in Nepal. With large migrations of Tibetans to Nepal, the stupa is surrounded by more than 50 temples and monasteries.

The majestic Himalayas overlook Kathmandu and Boudhanath, although the clouds of the seasonal monsoon occlude the view of mountain peaks during this visit.

Tomorrow I'll travel by bus through mountains and terraced fields to Pokhara in central Nepal where I'll begin to prepare for my planned trek in the Annapurna Sanctuary later this month.

Delhi's Lodi Garden

Delhi always draws more energy than one seemingly has to expend, but the city still does have its beauty. Last Friday, the number of people who traveled on the Metro exceeded 2 million for the first time ever. I waited out several trains at one station since there simply was no space to board. Do you wonder why they have separate coaches for women?

The photos are of Lodi Garden, an expansive inner-city park that is home to the mosques and tombs of 15th-16th century Mughal emperors of the Lodi dynasty.