lenny
1st August 2005, 05:16 PM
My wife and I spent March this year trekking the various Annapurna routes, it was straight after the Coup when all was very tense and extremely quiet on the trails.
We have seen first hand the effect the current situation is having on Nepal, and the Nepalese need you to go there, it’s a hard decision to make, to go, when you read all the press about the Moaists etc, but the reality is this, where in the world can you go and not be actively targeted in the current climate, the Moaists specifically say they will not harm tourists, I thought ‘whatever’ you must be having a laugh, trying to keep the situation looking rosy are we?
We met the Maoists first hand, yeah it was a tad tense, but we knew it was coming, they don’t muck about, you’re on their territory, and you must comply, and that means cash, about £10 ish. Is it right? probably not, are they angels? No, are they going to shoot you? No, if you cough up and ‘don’t’ act the American hero what reason do they have. Their reasoning for taking the money is this, you pay the government to walk the trails, so the Maoists ‘ask’ you to pay the same to them, your on their land. Just carry the extra cash!
So is it safe out there, yes. You have to be sensible, like any where in the world, travelling alone is always a risk and travelling alone as a women is always something to think twice about and not recommended.
After the coup my wife and I decided to take a guide, just in case we needed to get out of a sticky situation, the mountains are amazing, but they always throw up surprises, and experience takes over. It turned out the Moaist group we met(and travelled with for 3 days) couldn’t/wouldn’t speak English, and our Nepalese wasn’t the best when dealing with the local dialect.
Our guide ‘Jagat Lama’ was just fantastic, very calm, sensible, and dealt with what ever cropped up. He showed us the true heart of Nepal and seemed to know just about everyone in the mountains, including the village leaders. As a musician he was the born entertainer, and where ever we went the locals would come out and greet us because they knew how much of an entertainer Jagat was.
We didn’t know this about him when we contacted him through this site(he’s one of the recommended guides), and never thought we would spend our time in the mountains with such a great man. Nepalese folk music at its best, and wow, the locals love to dance and sing! As soon as the music starts they let their guards down, the smiles you thought were beaming before, just get bigger, and bigger. Generousity like no other.
Are we going again? Yes, tomorrow if we could.
Our guide was Jagat Lama, please feel free to contact him through this sites recommended guides, he can arrange everything, some, or just go with what ever you feel like on the day, it’s your trek:
http://www.geocities.com/porterguides/contact.htm
Jagat’s own website:
http://www.independent-trekkingguide-nepal.com
A little promo film we made for him can be viewed as a quick time movie in various sizes from:
http://www.radiationmonkeys.com/movie
Or feel free to contact us for a natter about Jagat through our site:
http://www.findareflexologist.com
Enjoy your trip, it’s unforgettable!
Lenny
:)
We have seen first hand the effect the current situation is having on Nepal, and the Nepalese need you to go there, it’s a hard decision to make, to go, when you read all the press about the Moaists etc, but the reality is this, where in the world can you go and not be actively targeted in the current climate, the Moaists specifically say they will not harm tourists, I thought ‘whatever’ you must be having a laugh, trying to keep the situation looking rosy are we?
We met the Maoists first hand, yeah it was a tad tense, but we knew it was coming, they don’t muck about, you’re on their territory, and you must comply, and that means cash, about £10 ish. Is it right? probably not, are they angels? No, are they going to shoot you? No, if you cough up and ‘don’t’ act the American hero what reason do they have. Their reasoning for taking the money is this, you pay the government to walk the trails, so the Maoists ‘ask’ you to pay the same to them, your on their land. Just carry the extra cash!
So is it safe out there, yes. You have to be sensible, like any where in the world, travelling alone is always a risk and travelling alone as a women is always something to think twice about and not recommended.
After the coup my wife and I decided to take a guide, just in case we needed to get out of a sticky situation, the mountains are amazing, but they always throw up surprises, and experience takes over. It turned out the Moaist group we met(and travelled with for 3 days) couldn’t/wouldn’t speak English, and our Nepalese wasn’t the best when dealing with the local dialect.
Our guide ‘Jagat Lama’ was just fantastic, very calm, sensible, and dealt with what ever cropped up. He showed us the true heart of Nepal and seemed to know just about everyone in the mountains, including the village leaders. As a musician he was the born entertainer, and where ever we went the locals would come out and greet us because they knew how much of an entertainer Jagat was.
We didn’t know this about him when we contacted him through this site(he’s one of the recommended guides), and never thought we would spend our time in the mountains with such a great man. Nepalese folk music at its best, and wow, the locals love to dance and sing! As soon as the music starts they let their guards down, the smiles you thought were beaming before, just get bigger, and bigger. Generousity like no other.
Are we going again? Yes, tomorrow if we could.
Our guide was Jagat Lama, please feel free to contact him through this sites recommended guides, he can arrange everything, some, or just go with what ever you feel like on the day, it’s your trek:
http://www.geocities.com/porterguides/contact.htm
Jagat’s own website:
http://www.independent-trekkingguide-nepal.com
A little promo film we made for him can be viewed as a quick time movie in various sizes from:
http://www.radiationmonkeys.com/movie
Or feel free to contact us for a natter about Jagat through our site:
http://www.findareflexologist.com
Enjoy your trip, it’s unforgettable!
Lenny
:)