I checked my two tickets again. The first one I had received when the public (and fixed-price) bus left Sonauli, after repeated reminders to the man distributing the bus tickets. I had found it very strange that I had only received a ticket to Gorakhpur, while I had paid to go all the way to Faizabad. Upon arrival in Gorakhpur, the same man handed me a ticket from Gorakhpur to Faizabad. There was just one minor problem: the price of both the tickets added up to only half the price I had paid. First minutes in India and already I had been ripped off… I spent much of the remaining bus ride insisting to the ticket guy that he should give me back my money, but evidently to no avail. I arrived in Faizabad in darkness, and was glad to find a reasonably priced room in a (rather run-down) hotel. After a rather mediocre meal, I went to bed…only to wake up at 330am with itching arms and legs - oh no, bedbugs… Day 1 in India was not a good day. On the bright side, I got to take an early start to visit the town of Ayodhya, one of the holiest towns for Hindus. It was a misty morning, which gave my visit to Ayodhya an even more mystical feel.
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Yes, I’ve been there, time and time again: a couple of days before Christmas and no idea what to buy as a Christmas present.
If the person you are buying the present for, likes to travel, search no more. Having travelled for quite a long time, I can suggest some great items of travel gear! Have you thought of the following? packing cubes Yes, it may sound dull as hell, but trust me, during travel they make the difference between (un)packing in 3 minutes, or in 30. Honestly, it is one of the most useful items on my travel gear list. headlamp You will need this piece of equipment time and time again: for a hike in the early of late hours of the day, for reading a book outside at night, for packing your stuff in a dorm room in the early hours of the day, etc. sleeping bag liner Having some doubts on the cleanliness of your guesthouse bedlinen? Just roll out your sleeping bag liner! Power bank Most travellers these days are making extensive use of their mobile phones on holidays. Personally, I consume about 2 battery loads per day. That means that a power bank is pretty much essential when travelling. It also comes in very handy if you have to recharge in a communal area: recharge your power bank instead of your smartphone, to reduce the risk of theft. Merino thermal T-shirts I love my merino T-shirts: on the one hand, they provide that bit of extra warmth when needed, on the other hand, it takes ages before they start smelling, so no need to pack 20 T-shirts anymore! I personally carry 1 short sleeve merino wool thermal T-shirt and 1 long sleeve merino wool thermal T-shirt. But probably, I’ll pack more of them next time! Still craving for more travel gear suggestions? Check out my Travel Gear page! Happy Holidays everyone! The last stop in Nepal was a spiritual one: Lumbini, the birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama, aka the Buddha. The small town had grown to be a base for buddhist monasteries from all over the world, all built one next to the other in a specific “development zone”. It could have been a wonderful zenlike experience were it not for the fact that half the site is still under construction, and for the hordes of (loud) (mostly local) tourists, including busloads of schoolchildren. The birthplace of the Buddha itself was complete craziness: a line of tourists as far as the eye could see, waiting to get a glimpse of the ruins of the building where the buddha would have been born. The entrance to the whole thing was manned by police, army and security firm, searching the bags of all tourists wanting to enter. Unfortunately, the pocket knife which I was not allowed to take with me into the complex for security reasons, was stolen from the security post by a 14-year old boy (who subsequently took the knife into the complex…). My first claim to my travel insurance ;-)
I was a man with a plan, and my plan was to go to China. Unfortunately, the flight tickets from Kathmandu to China were very expensive. But no need to despair: “nearby” India (Kolkata) could get me to China (Kunming) for about half the price! So I had set my sights on India, the Sonauli land border in particular. On the way to Sonauli lay Tansen, a small village where - according to my travel guide - one could do some great dayhikes, and get a great view of the Himalayas. The latter had been mostly missing in Pokhara, due to hazy winter weather. So I hopped on the local bus to Tansen, where I met many friendly Nepalis, including one who brought his goat. Tansen turned out to be a disappointment: the same hazy weather persisted, so no Himalaya views, and the short walks to the viewpoints turned out to be littered with garbage.
The grass on the hill looked worn and a sign stated “forbidden for beginners and not for teaching purposes”. Yet there I was, beginner by any means, nerves surprisingly well under control. The sky was steel blue, a couple of clouds but visibility would be great. “Are you Stephen?” asked the Nepali instructor in broken English? We exchanged some generalities, after which he made sure my safety harness was well tightened. “If I say WALK, you walk, if I say RUN, you run, ok?” He hooked my harness up to his, did some magic trick to lift the parachute from the ground, and then yelled “go!” After some initial confusion about whether “go” meant “walk” or “run”, I got his point, started running and a couple of seconds later, we were floating in the air. I took in the magnificent scenery: below me, Pokhara’s Fewa lake; at eye level, an amazing view of the Himalayas. A couple of minutes later, the instructor made some whirling acrobatics, and before I knew it, I was back on solid ground.
How to find a good paragliding company in Pokhara? There's tons of paragliding companies lining Lakeside, and you can just go and have a chat with them. Alledgedly, it would be best if your paraglide started from the Sarangkot location, so ask them where they start from. Also, enquire about the number of years of experience of the instructor that will accompany you (it is of not much use to know that most of the instructors have 12 years of experience, if the one accompanying you started yesterday...). I also suggest to ask about their insurance in case of accident (even better: make sure your own travel insurance covers you - paragliding is a high risk sport, so not all travel insurances will cover it by default!). If you have any physical problems, do tell the paragliding company about it: I had a lot of pain in my knees at the time, so they gave me an ace instructor who was able to land very softly! |
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