PICKING UP THE RAFTERS AND A BIKE RIDE

WEATHER: Sunny and a beautiful 25C

HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: Feeling 100%

BUMMER OF THE DAY: Can’t think of a single thing

WORD OF THE DAY: Back on the bike

My notes on today seem a little on the basic side.  I am not sure why as we had quite a busy day, so I will be testing the memory of a week ago and hope that I can remember everything.

We were picking up the rafters today.  I wonder how they fared on their overnight excursion in a tent.  It was cold last night, so I hope that they had enough warm clothes.  Our departure time was scheduled for 9am and while we were having breakfast at 8.15am one of the hotel staff that would be accompanying us for a section of the way came and told us that we were leaving in 10 minutes.  Ummmm we were told 9am.  Luckily breakfast came out pretty fast and we ate and got our bags out just a little after 8.30am.  Not sure what the rush was as we weren’t meeting a public bus, and there was just us, but lucky the 4 of us were packed-so it was no biggie. 

We left the beautiful town of Bandipur for the 20 minute drive down the mountain.  We were in a jeep, with me in the front seat, the girls in the back and our bags, our staff member and 3 hanger-ons in the tray without bags.  The hanger-ons were just getting a ride to the small town at the bottom and then making their own arrangements.  I would HATE to travel like that.  Not knowing where the busses leave from, how much they cost, are they going the right way, when is the next one?  All for the sake of saving some money?  Maybe some do it for the thrill, like trekkers hiking a massive mountain-I see no fun in that, but thousands do it-so each to their own I guess.  We then transferred from the jeep to a waiting bus.  It was a local bus, a lovely bright PINK thing that was hired just for us and then the rest of the group when we collected them in a few hours.  The bags were loaded on the roof of the bus and then we were back on the Nepali roads again.  Every time we are on the roads I have this thing at the back of my head that we are travelling on some of the most dangerous roads in the world and I say a silent prayer that we are kept safe each time.  I don’t worry as such because there really is nothing you can do and if your time is up then it is up, but it doesn’t hurt to ask for safe passage just in case. 

We stopped once very quickly for the driver to get some credit for his phone and I used the opportunity to also get some more.  I had figured out that the internet hasn’t been free on my Nepali sim card but I topped up my card last week putting $4AUD on it and it has lasted me 8 days and that is with a lot of use, so I certainly don’t mind paying for my internet at $4 a pop.  It really has been the best value sim card from all the countries I have been to.  Well done Nepal-who would have thought you would have had such a great communication network and far superior than any South American country, especially based on your dated international airport you have.

We arrived at rafting camp at 10.45am.  It was pretty cool to be able to spread out in the bus and even with everyone on, we will all still be able to have 2 seats each this afternoon.  ‘Rafting Camp’ wasn’t much.  It had a small shop with some bench seats, a toilet where the rafters could change (not western) and a small shed thing that had wooden seats around a table and this was where lunch was served before hitting the road.  I used my time to boot up the computer and get some blog written while Ruby tried to keep an eye out for the group to try and see them as they come in so that she could get photos.  Well time passed and her enthusiasm waned and when we weren’t looking, the next thing we knew they were at the bus and her partner Aaron made a comment about thanks for the welcome!  Poor Ruby she had been watching out all morning and then we missed them when we weren’t looking for one minute, well maybe a little longer.  They were all drenched; they all looked tanner then when the left yesterday and can I say a little tired looking as well.  Jess, Rubes and I were firing questions at them all as soon as they arrived.  Was the water cold?  How was the food?  Was it scary?  Could we have done it?  Were you warm enough last night?  Did anyone fall in?  How long did you raft for?  Did you miss us?  We missed you-oh I guess that’s not a question!  So they all got changed out of their wet clothes we had a great lunch prepared by the rafting company and then we were back on the road again at 1.30pm.  Destination Chitwan National Park. 

For me, Chitwan National Park symbolizes the last few days of tour.  Once we finish our 3 nights there, we were back to Kathmandu and then I was pretty much on my way home.  I don’t think that part has sunk in yet, going home, as I am still having a great time on tour.  Everyone I think has shown some true colours in the last 10 days, and I don’t mean that in a bad way, as we are all still getting along famously, but it really is interesting how people do change from day one to day ten.  I think it would make a very interesting study on observing peoples behaviors.  Very interesting indeed.  We arrived into Chitwan National Park and our hotel at 2pm.  We were met by our guide who would be with us this afternoon for the bike ride and then for the next 2 days when we ventured further into the national park via canoe and by foot.  He ran through what we would need for it overnight stay tomorrow night at the tea house and instructions for our big bags that would be staying at the resort fir our return.  The accommodation here looked pretty cool.  It was a massive resort, with individual buildings scattered around the grounds.  There was an activities board with all the things you could do and the times a cultural dance at 6.30pm each evening and tea for our arrival.  The downside was they had Wi-Fi but it was slow as a snail, every man and his dog seemed to be on it and we were in a building with 9 ex-pat children on summer camp in our building.  They are teenagers and seem to be so full of life.  I wonder what their parents do for them to have to school in Kathmandu and that must be a great thing as a kid and can only help the kids with their confidence and appreciation for our world at that age right?

We had free time from 2-4pm which gave us time to organize our bags for tomorrow for our overnight excursion and to just kick back and try and access the internet from our room that seemed to have a better connection than what we had at reception.  I wasn’t too worried as I still have access on my phone, but I did have 2 blogs to load and I did get them eventually up on the net.  At 4pm we met again at reception and there were 12 bikes all lined up for us to pick from for the 1.5 hour ride around some of the villages.  Now I haven’t been on a bike since I fell off one 5 weeks ago when I thought I was wonder woman and held onto a tuk tuk travelling at 25km an hour and fell off.  It looked bad and I really hurt my arm quite bad and it has only just started to come good this week actually and I would say I am 94% recovered (injury wise), pride will take a little longer, but it was fun and seemed a good idea at the time, like a lot of things that turn nasty!

So with us all saddled up, people having a practice ride, as some of the group hadn’t been on bikes in years we were ready to head off.  Our guide was certainly in no rush, keeping the speed to a cool 3km per hour I rekon.  I probably could have walked faster than what we were riding, but I wasn’t going to complain-this wasn’t the Tour de France after all.  The bonus was that there aren’t many hills in Chitwan; it was pretty flat going the whole way, so it was really a pleasant ride.  We passed villages doing their daily thing, the Himalaya’s were to our right (but clouded and not a great view) we crossed a bridge that did have a great view and then arrived at our destination.  We were shown how the local huts were made from clay and elephant dung and then inside some traditional music instruments, cooking utensils and other cultural bits and bobs.  We then walked around the village where the ‘tourist’ hut was and saw some farm animals including a pig, goats, kids herding a herd of cows and the village breathed and functioned as we walked through taking out photos.  By this time it was after 5pm and dinners were being cooked and the smell in the air was magic.  But it was time for us to leave before it got dark and after we navigated our way around a tractor that had a hay stack taller and wider than the actual tractor itself we rode home to a setting sun, passing busses and a few cars for good measure.  We went a different way on the way back and our timing couldn’t have been worse as we passed a sunset view point and the sun had just gone down and around 100 people started to move, and with us on bikes, wobbly already, we got off them to avoid a calamity and were back at 5.30pm on the dot.  So I made it without falling off.  It also helped that there were no tuk tuk’s to actually hold onto-take away the temptation and the crisis was averted. And I didn’t fall off.  I need to FB Indika to tell him, my guide from Sri Lanka.    

Some of the group were meeting at 6.30pm to watch the cultural dance, but I have to say I am just about cultural danced out.  Not just of Nepal, but I have seen some dancing in my time and without seeming biased, the Ethiopian national dance is pretty impressive to watch.  If you get a chance Google it, it is amazing and looks like they are double jointing there shoulders, and again the dance of the Hamer Tribe in Ethiopia is also a sight to behold.  But a lot of countries dancing tends to blur into another’s and based on this I decided to not go for the dance, and Jess, Jessica and Kalps also decided to not go and we were all going to meet at the restaurant at 7.30pm.  So Jessica and Kalps came to our room and we just chatted till it was dinner time.  It is so interesting talking to people about their passions, to travelers, to thinkers and to experience.  It makes for great conversations and I think this is why I love this group and it helps that I like Jessica and Kalps as well.  Kalps is doing some volunteer work in Pokhara after the trip and may have a contact for me in a Tanzania organization should I need something.  I also have a contact in Sudan (very loose) a contact in Cameroon and a contact in Kenya.  So it will certainly not be the end all if Ethiopia doesn’t work out.  And it is nice to know that I now don’t have to put all my balls in one basket (Ethiopia) and really, I am going to need a base of some sort when I am in Africa.  If I decide to travel more of the continent, gets jobs that take me out of Ethiopia, I am still going to need a place to have my stuff, why not Ethiopia where the rent is cheap, at least until I know where I am going to settle permanently and I am totally happy with this plan.  Rock it!!!  Bernie is BACK.

Welcome to Chitwan National Park.  We were leaving the hotel in the morning for our canoe ride and the walk in through the national park as we hunt (well not in the true sense of the work) for rhino, elephants and tigers.