Our next destination turned out to be the Gabar (Gavar) Valley. We hadn't planned on it. We just heard about it from someone in Bardia and thought - why not! It is in the Banke district near the Banke National Park. It encompasses the Chure range which is the southernmost and youngest of the Nepal Himalayas.
We travelled inland from Kohalpur by tuktuk to reach the homestay. The road left a lot to be desired and we were pleased to be here in the dry season. Our homestay was a visual feast.
It also doubled as a hotel where the bees come to stay during the winter months. A clever idea indeed.
There were a lot of these carvings about the place too.
We enjoyed a thali each evening with our own personal fire pit.
And made friends with the locals.
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| Nancy's mum and dad work at the homestay |
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| Grandma always happy to see us and proud to show us her coil basket making. Inspiring. |
Banke National Park is a relatively new National Park, established only in 2010. It covers and area of 550 square km and buffers Bardia National Park. We didn't get a chance to visit the park this time. Instead we went for a walk around the very rural district.
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| View from our room |
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| Agriculture. Everyone has a patch for growing their own food or for barter. |
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| Very new baby goat |
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| Plowing the field with buffalo and baby on shoulders. |
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| New build! |
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| Bringing the buffalo for a drink. |
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| We don't see a lot of sheep in Nepal |
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| Walking back through the park |
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| The park is sponsored by Lions International |
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We managed to find a very local stall for snack. |
We got invited to share a meal prepared by and for a group of young people studying Tourism. They were very excited to recieve us and learn about our own country.
We absolutely loved the feeling of this very rural area and felt like we fitted right into the quiet, industrious community. It is exactly the environment we feel most comfortable in.
Our next stop was also and unplanned one. You see, James likes to wear the traditional mens' topi - Dhaka Topi. Due to the fact he has a much bigger head than most Nepali men, he always had trouble buying one from the many outlets across the country that sell them. It was suggested to us that the main manufacturer of the fabric, and thus the topi itself, is in the hill town of Tansen in the district of Palpa, and if we went there we may be able to get a couple made to measure. Off we trotted to Butwal for a night. There is not much reason to stay in Butwal except that it is one the cross roads of many other places one may want to go.
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| In the very good company of these two cuties. |
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| Chat purchased out the bus window. |
Our hotel in Butwal was the most modern we have every experienced in Nepal. In fact, we are daily surprised by the level of improvements in infrastructure, hygiene and general living standards. Even since we were last here two years ago.
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| The thali did not disappoint! |
The jouney up to Tansen the next day was very picturesque. We took a micro bus as the road is a little sketchy. It reminded us of some of the roads in the mountains in NZ but there is a lot more traffic here. Everyone trying to edge past eachother in precarious spots on the mountainside!
When we got dropped off in Tansen we were a little suprised at the lack of tuktuks. There aren't ANY. The streets are too steep. So we asked a guy in a wee van to take us to our hostel. We were going to walk as it didn't look that far on the map. But yeah nah.
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| The view from our room |
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| The stairs up to our room. |
Tansen is about as close to the Himalayas as we ever wish to be. It was noticeably cooler here but very much worth it for the views. All of these views from our room at different times of the day.
The city was fascinating to walk around and VERY hilly. The perfect example of what goes up must also come down. We especially loved the old buildings.
However, the fabric factory was by far the most interesting thing about our journey here. There are 12 women (and two men) employed here. And although conditions by no means reach western standards, it is rare for women in rural areas to be able to work outside the home, least of all to earn a wage.
James was especially interested in the manual process still at play here. He has worked in a fabric factory in the UK and couldn't believe how quiet these manual weaving machines are in comparison to the machanical ones he worked with.
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| Some of the Topi displayed in the museum in town. |
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| Winding the bobbins |
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| Sporting his new topi along with the matching one belonging to our hostel owner! |
We visited the museum in town and learned a lot about the area and Tharu culture. The museum itself is built on the site of an historic palace built in 1927. Nepal was a monacy until 2008. The palace here was severely damaged in the 2006 Maoist insurgency and civil war which flagged the ending of the monarchs rule in 2008. This palace has been reconstructed and is now a musuem showcasing the history of Nepal.
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| Some of the debris from the uprising |
Musical Instruments
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| Traditional dress |
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| Weapons |
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| Traditional weavings |
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| Traditional kitchen layout |
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| Churning butter |
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| Cooking pots |
Below is a picture of the crown prince (guy in the middle) went mad in 2001 and shot 9 members of his family, including his parents, before turning the gun on himself. He became King on his deathbed but died three days later.
Shirpech, traditional Nepali crown
Another of our favourite activities was a fishing expedition. We hired a car and driver and, along with a French guy at our hostel we had become friendly with and the young woman who worked at the hostel, went off for the day to find a fishing spot. On the way, we managed our first glimpse of the Himalayas.
After about and hour on another dodgy road we found the perfect spot. The driver seemed to know about it.
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| View from the main road |
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| Easy track down, which likely means many others know this spot. |
James was in his happy place, but no bites, no fish. In fact, there was no sign of life at all. Well, save for a monkey who came down to see if we had left anything behind as we walked back up the hill!
On the way home we took a wee detour to Ranimahal Palace, the Taj Mahal of Nepal. Not quite as spectacular or popular perhaps, but a beautiful none-the-less. The palace represents a symbol of love to the Nepali people. Built on the banks of the Kali Gandaki River in 1893 by the General of the area in memory of his late wife.
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| As seen from the swing bridge |
We had a late lunch and of course were attracted to this litter of playful puppies. Fortunately their mother was also there so we didn't feel like they needed rescuing!
James and I took a look around the Palace. There wasn't a lot to see but he views were magnificent.
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| The General and his wife |
We loved our week here and could have stayed longer but we needed to get on with the real purpose of our visit to Nepal, which was to make our way to our family. Next stop, Bharatpur.
Just some other interesting things about the area .............
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| A coffee tree growing in the courtyard of the cafe/bakery in town |
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| Terraced gardens |
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| Just another beautiful view |
