Pokhara and the peaks

You will hear this story from many elderly locals when you visit Pokhara, a dream destination 200 kilometres northwest of Kathmandu that has been drawing visitors, more in numbers than the nation’s capital, since 1950 when Nepal come out of its “Shangrilaesque” magic and instituted tourism as its third religion alongside Hinduism and Buddhism.

It’s universally known that New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and his Nepalese companion Tensing Norgay added this tiny Himalayan kingdom to the world map in 1953 after conquering Mount Everest, the planet’s highest mountain peak, but locals believe that Dev Anand and his film Hare Ram Hare Krishna made their patch a popular place for Indians to visit.

“So what’s the cliché behind Pokhara?”

“Imagine a perfect triangular mountain, capped by snow and buffeted by the icy winds of The Himalayas. Imagine a millpond calm lake, perfectly reflecting the snowy peaks. Now imagine a village on the lake shore, thronged by travellers and reverberating to the sound of ‘om mani padme hum’ from a hundred shops selling prayer flags, carpets, masks, singing bowls, and CDs 
of Buddhist mantras.” That’s Pokhara as described in the Lonely Planet travel book, to seduce anyone with wanderlust.

The referred triangle shaped mountain, resembling a fishtail, is the famous Machapuchare peak, which along with the peaks of Annapurna and Dhaulagiri, dominate the skyline of the little town — and the lake is Phewa Tal, sitting on the still waters of which the majestic mountains mirror their images on a sunny and calm day. It is this heavenly scenery that creates an irresistible itch to visit Pokhara and the best way to head up there from Kathmandu is by road experiencing rural and real Nepal, instead of taking a short thirty minute flight.

The travel along the famous Prithvi Rajmarg is as equally dramatic as the destination. As we rushed out of crowded Kathmandu and its outer suburbs and started winding up, the landscape initially was uninspiring, but distant mountain views, though blocked by layers of sluggish low clouds, carried the promise of better things to come. We were not disappointed; the panorama came out as breathtaking when driving alongside the forcefully streaming Trisuli and Marsyangdi Rivers.

We went past villages with thatched homes and tiny terraces of verdant and fertile land where men and women were working to grow mainly rice and vegetables. Women in Nepal appeared to be doing more work than the men; we saw several of them carrying on their backs large cane baskets full of foliage for their cattle; its heavy weight forcing their bodies to bend almost 90 degrees. There are a series of restaurants along the way, modern enough for a comfort break and a quick meal for Western visitors; we preferred to stop at village bazaars where we spotted an air of intimacy with the locals while having a freshly fried samosa and a hot cup of tea.

Halfway between Kathmandu and Pokhara is the famous temple of Manakamana Devi, widely venerated all over Nepal because of the belief that she fulfills her devotee’s wishes. It’s located at the top of a hill that can now be reached in 15 minutes by cable car replacing the arduous six hour climbs of the past. The exhilarating ascent of over a kilometre offers spectacular views of deep valleys, terraced foothills, unfurling rivers and distant peaks; Pujas are performed following tantric rituals and almost every family we saw came with an animal — either a goat, chicken or a duck, to sacrifice.

Undoubtedly the key attraction of Pokhara is its serene natural beauty. A close glimpse of the of the snow-capped peaks, particularly at sunrise when the first rays of the morning sun throw a splash of colour on the white of the peaks, is expressively blissful.

The best view is from the nearby Sarangkot Hill, 1600 metres high. When we arrived there it was still dark. Standing squeezed among a crowd of diverse ethnicity, all gazing attentively at the horizon in front and hearing dialogues such as — “Is it on schedule today?”, “Did it come on time yesterday?”, I felt I was on the balcony of an airport, anxiously waiting for the arriving aircraft to be glimpsed before touching ground.

As clouds delayed the arrival, the crowd got restless. A group of tourists from China started singing; Sanjay and Nina, a newly married couple from Delhi, began arguing if it was a good decision to come out of bed, and a sadhu kept smiling at me, as if he knew what was happening behind the scenes. Then suddenly I heard the roar. “Look, it’s there. Can you see it? Wow.”

The clouds broke, and the peaks, soaked in yellow-red colours, loomed out of the lifting darkness. They came out so close, that I wished I had wings to cross the valley and hug them.

Apart from the natural splendour, there are several other sites in Pokahara to keep visitors in sightseeing mode — the Japanese built World Peace Pagoda, the three hundred-year-old Bindya Bashini Temple dedicated to goddess Durga, the rolling Devi Falls and the Gurkha Museum, where the history and legacy of the internationally-lauded gallantry of the Gurkha Regiment has been kept alive.

The town’s laid-back ambience is something that always impresses visitors. You may cherish that by lazing in a boat on the placid waters of the lake or by trundling along the lakeside that accommodates most of the hotels, restaurants and hundreds of shops selling everything you need for trekking, as Pokhara is the place from where you commence some of the popular mountain hikes.

The last election in Nepal has revolutionised the fate of the nation by wiping off its centuries old regime of monarchy. Over time, perhaps other changes will surface, but Machapuchare , Dhaulgiri and Annapurna will always remain, mirroring their images on the tranquil waters, no way eroding Pokhara’s attraction to all.

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