Oh, hello Mount Everest! My First few Adventures in Nepal

I made my way to Chitwan National Park in Nepal, in hopes of seeing a wild tiger. The tiger population in the park has been doing well over the last few years because of Nepal's zero tolerance policy on poaching, which is great news! But there are still only around 150 there, where there used to be thousands. My friends and I took a safari through the grasslands and forests to see what we could see...

 



This Rhino popped out of the forest to say hi... aka charge the jeep!!

 

The Rhinos here only have one horn, unlike the African ones which have two.

 

We also saw a few buffalo

 

Common Langur

 

 



Peacock in a tree

 

Mating dance!

There were no tiger sightings, but we saw 8 Rhinos in one day which was very lucky I think! We took a canoe through the park as well, mostly for birdwatching. But about 5 minutes into the trip, I looked down into the crystal clear shallow water, and my mouth dropped open in shock as I saw a giant crocodile swimming directly under our little wooden canoe! It couldn't have been more than 2 feet below us! We kind of forgot about the birds since we saw about 20 big fat crocodiles in the water and along the banks of the river on our hour long cruise!!

Linda in the back is really excited about the crocs!

There were actually tons of great birds around, like this stork

and this Grey headed fish eagle

The next stop was the foothills of the Himalayas. We woke up early, and made our way to watch the sunrise at the Annapurna range.

This view is worth a 5 am wake up call.

 

We had to have our chai tea!! (my new addiction!)

 

I even spotted a flock of those birds from Planet Earth that are the only ones able to fly over the Himalayas -
the Bar Headed Goose.

 

My wonderful group!

The next day we got up early again for a sunrise flight to see Mount Everest! We took a little Yeti Airlines plane to the highest point in the world.

Boarding time

Flight over the Himalayas from Kathmandu

 

My selfie with Mount Everest! Too bad you can't really see it... lol

 

This is Mount Everest! It was so cool that it was the only peak that had blowing snow at the top.
Can you imagine all the climbers up there?

 

Haha, they gave us a certificate for successfully viewing Mount Everest!!! I think that's pretty funny, but still, it was amazing to see it's peak popping out above the rest of the earth, highlighted by a cloud of blowing snow above all the other peaks. It was pretty magical.

 

 

India Part 2: Magic and Wishes On the Banks of the Ganges

One of my favourite places in India was Varanasi, the oldest continually inhabited city in human history. It has a magic about it because it is a bustling city full of colourful tuk-tuks, unique architectural touches, winding alleyways with hidden shops and ancient shrines hiding around each corner. Varanasi is right along the banks of the Ganges River, a holy place where millions of Hindu people make pilgrimages each year to worship, mourn and pray.

The Ganges River at Varanasi

We took a boat trip along the Ganges at sunrise and sunset. The river bank was a built up city on one side, but pretty natural on the opposite side, giving a wild contrast between concrete jungle and serene nature. I love nature, but the city side totally captured my attention and I was just enthralled watching all the activity. It was pretty much jam packed with people selling jewellery and nick naks, kids playing, people praying, random roaming cows and goats, meditating monks, people dunking themselves into the water fully clothed, and others lathering up with soap and washing themselves almost naked. There were also two sections of the riverbank reserved for funerals and cremations, where people's ashes were laid to rest directly into the river. This was all happening within the span of a kilometer or two. The full circle of life and death was all going on right in front of me as we sailed down that river... so powerful.

Bathers and city life

A shrine on the natural bank of the river across from the city
 

A heron shared the waters as well
 

Laundry was done in the river too

This is where the cremations take place
 

A prayer offering floating out to sea

Holy men make their homes on the steps

Others watch from above
 

It is a beautiful place for meditation and pondering life's great questions
 

 Nelson Mandela graffiti. Yes.

Lots of stairs... perfect place for lots of laundry

Women gathering to pray

Garlands for sale

Cows trying to blend in with the crowd
 

Holy Man



Night time on the Ganges. Everyone is gathered to watch an elaborate prayer dance

Raghu, our guide, preparing for the candle flower ceremony

 

We were meant to make a wish and then send our flower candle off into the river, but I had a hard time actually thinking of something to wish for. I've got to admit I was a bit stumped. That's when I realized that I've never been happier, and I'm so content with where my life is at the moment. I couldn't help but smile. So as I released my candle into the water, I sent out a few silent prayers for some dear friends who are going through a rough time, and put one silent wish for my future out into the universe...

 

India Part 1: I Found Happiness. It Lives in a Little Kid in an Indian Village

After a 24 hour bus and plane journey from Cambodia, I finally made it to India! I was able to sleep a little bit on the plane, because of my newly discovered secret sleeping position that I'll share with you lucky people... put the table tray down, and rest your backpack on top. Then lay a sweater or the airline pillow on top, and lean down and rest your head on your super comfy headrest! Disclaimer *may not work for tall people, and may result in a head bash if the person in the seat in front of you decides to put their seat back*

Anyhow, when I arrived in Delhi, I had to find my way to Agra to meet up with my tour group that was already underway. (I missed the first few days of the tour because of the visa issues I had in Cambodia). After taking the subway to the train station, finding out that tourists can't buy tickets there, taking a tuk tuk to a travel agent, finding out the trains were all booked, booking a cab, driving in the cab for 5 hours with a driver who was creepy (asked me if I was married, and then pulled over to insist I move from the back seat to the front with him, then hired me a tour guide after I already told him I had a tour booked- eek!). I FINALLY made it to meet my group. I have never been so happy to finally arrive at a destination.

My amazing tour guide Raghu got me from the cab situation, and I met up with the other travellers, a mixed group of really cool, interesting and fun people from all over the world. We immediately went to our first destination, the Taj Mahal!!!!! As soon as I walked through the gates, I was greeted with this view:

The Taj Mahal was built by a king as a testament of love for his wife. Unfortunately she died in childbirth and never got to see it. She was buried inside, and later he was buried there as well, together for eternity.

The Taj Mahal is probably the best example of intense beauty and splendor in India. But I find India so hard to sum up and even describe because India is everything. It is beautiful, rich, colourful, decadent and holy, while at the same time it is chaotic, poor, dirty and busy. It is overwhelming, dizzying and intense, but also serene, peaceful and mindful. I loved it.

The train journeys were another highlight. The train stations were packed with people - people sleeping on the floor waiting for their train, people ready to sell you snacks, and of course travellers hustling to catch their trains. The trains were older, and yes, they were famously equipped with squat toilets that "flush" directly out of a hole in the floor to the tracks below!



The waiting platform

Fellow train travelers

 



Ready to board

Some of my group members on the day train from Agra to Orccha



My fellow traveler Dick on the sleeper train to Varanasi in the bottom bunk. Above him was a mother and her little boy who was talking to me in Hindi for about an hour. Our tour guide told him I couldn't speak Hindi, but the little boy was insisting that I could understand him! We had a connection beyond words obviously.

The train toilet...

One of the things that stood out to me the most was the friendliness of the people in India. Almost everyone we passed would say hello or wave. Some people would ask our names and where we were from as we walked down the street. Strangers would compliment my tattoo (well, it is pretty awesome :D), and sometimes people would even ask if they could take a photo with me or one of my friends. Many times, one of us would buy a trinket or souvenir from a little shop, and start chatting with the store owner and leave feeling like you made a new friend! One day we went to visit a small village on the outskirts of one of the bigger cities. It was amazing to see the absolute pure joy on the kids faces as we took pictures of them and then showed them their own images on the screen. Small joys!

One of the village homes

I am going to print this picture and look at it whenever I am sad for immediate cheering up!

This little boy had a perma-smile!

The village school

Happy school girls

Even this village calf is happy!

Even the doorways were gorgeous



The camera loves her (and so do I!)

All the people were so photogenic



Henna time!