June
10 2006
Updated July 2006
Lahchok,
Nepal: A Trek in the Himalayas
If
you say you are traveling halfway around the world
to go walking in Nepal you will sound a bit retarded,
so the travel agent industry came up with a cool term
for walking called "trekking". ("Hiking"
is an intermediate term of description for walking,
but was deemed inadequate based on its association
with boy scouts and bifocal wearing vegetarian birdwatchers
groups.) Originally the term "Trekking"
was derived from the 60s sci-fi pop culture testosterone
inspired TV show 'Star Trek.' Trekking was "to
seek out new civilizations and go boldly where no
man has gone before." So, I was going to Pokhara,
Nepal to enter the soft furry underside of mother
nature with my big hard trek. Now that justifies buying
a plane ticket.
Pokhara
is the sleepy second city of Nepal that nestles itself
like a lazy housecat among the jagged snow capped
peaks and scattered medieval hamlets that dot the
verdant hillsides of Nepal. Pokhara is also the base
for trekking into the Himalayan Mountains and provides
an escape from the frenetic dysfunction and diesel
tinged air of the Nepali capitol, Kathmandu.
Trekking
can span from a few hours to several weeks. You can
buy a prepackaged plan and hire a guide, or you can
mix and match a series of trails and "go your
own way". My job allows me only 1 or 2 day treks,
but for me, it is better than another lost holiday
spent at home in front of a retina frying computer
monitor or cruising the local shopping mall peeking
up skirts on the escalator. For this trip, I went
to the village of Lahchok, a mini trek for busy people
on a schedule that begins with a taxi ride to Hyangja,
the home of a large Tibetan refugee community.
The
Tibetan refugee Commuity
Exiting
a dilapidated taxi, my eyes adjusted to the misty
haze that lingered form the early morning monsoon
drizzle. Jutting out from the mountainside was the
rust and ochre colored temple, resting on a laurel
of wispy clouds, like a cross between a Disneyland
attraction and an old university library building
smelling of old books and stale farts. The Tibetan
temple was like a huge electromagnetic alien spaceship,
drawing the masses of hardcore worshippers and causing
the crisp air to electrify with a feeling tranquility.
There
was a procession of Tibetan worshippers/refugees walking
clockwise around the perimeter of the temple gate.
They passed a separate, stationary group of worshippers
who stood at the entrance to temple grounds and as
each member of the procession passed the group standing
by the gate, the walkers would bop the stander on
the head with a rectangular shaped box covered in
cloth. It was like a parade or some silly children's
game.
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