Pokhara, Nepal

[Fewa Lake, in Pokhara]

It was my intention, as I planned my time in Nepal, to stay for six weeks in this city—a smaller and altogether less chaotic place than Kathmandu, about 200 miles to the west of the capital.  I found an apartment and looked into buying a scooter for the period of my stay here.  But I discovered something unexpected upon my arrival in Kathmandu a few weeks back:  Nepal is tropical, balmy and humid. Oh, sure, it’s comfortably alpine above 9000 feet, but the lower altitudes reflect the reality that the population centers of this country sit at about the same latitude as Tampa, Florida.  And I've done far too much time in Tampa, Florida.  So I've adjusted my plans and will move on from Nepal shortly.

[View of Fewa Lake and the Lakeside district of Pokhara from Anadu Hill]

[The Peace Stupa, on the ridge above the town]

Still, before I do move on to the next adventure, I’m delighted to have several days together in Pokhara.  It’s weirdly more touristy than Kathmandu*, for good and for ill.  The good includes so many great vegan restaurants that wash their vegetables in purified water, meaning that I can have a legit huge salad and also tofu for the first time in months.  The ill includes the throngs of willowy westerners in Lulu Lemon yoga pants sucking up all the air in those vegan restaurants. There’s a big lake and some fairly easily accessible hiking nearby and, on a clear day, staggering views of the Annapurna range a few miles north of town. 

[Pretty good view from my bedroom]

In addition to the nature things, Pokhara has some cool places to visit: the International Mountain Museum highlights the history of high-altitude climbing the world over.  The flourishing village of refugees from Tibet, first founded as a tent city in the 1950s and now a tidy Buddhist enclave within the larger Hindu welter of Pokhara, testifies to a history that the neighbors to the north wish to erase from western awareness.  And of course, I took a cooking class in the home of a lovely Nepali woman named Sarita, who with great patience for my clumsy slowness taught me to make momos.  Momo party at my house in 2025!

* Maybe it's not that Pokhara is more touristy but rather that it's a lot smaller than Kathmandu, and therefore unable to absorb the tourists as Kathmandu does.