OUR POKHARA EXPLORATION

POKHARA EXPLORATION 

                Looking for the  warp and weft of  Pokhara...now that house building  is done      


     Lakeside is a frenetic main street of Pokhara which parallels the  large attractive Phewa Lake.  Population is probably more than 200,000 and altitude is about  2500 feet. This is the where thousands of tourists from everywhere in the world hang out.

POKHARA STREET SCENE

LAKESIDE SINGERS

       Walking along this narrow street you can pass by oblivious grazing  water buffaloes, taxis,  old  noisy Chinese or Indian farm vehicles, Land  Rovers,  humongous luxury tourist busses,  rickety  local busses,  old bicycle rickshaws, fruit and vegetable  carts,  motorcycles, old dilapidated  bicycles,  crazypedestrians  trying  to avoid the piles of sand,  stones, torn-up pavement,  dogs, and salesmen touting the great merchandise available in  their store. 

 
     Handicrafts of every kind  fill  the storefronts and sidewalks.  Hiking supplies (jackets and cargo  pants,  most with  North Face labels, sleeping bags,   walking  poles,  sweaters,  Andean style hats,  gloves..)..abound.  Then there are shops  of pashmina  and  cashmere clothes, t-shirts of   ever   design   like the  Yak Yak Yak Yak  shirts,   jewelry shops with the region's  turquoise, lapiz-lasili, coral, amber, and  other  stones, guides for  paragliding,   para hawking, zip-line  operations,  message, yoga, and , of course, restaurants  to serve every nation's tastes. 

      Unbelievable how life seems to flow so well and NAMASTE  (hello or in traditional Hindu expression "I greet the divine inside of you" fills the air.


     We have been enjoying the Lakeside strolls and  shops,  visits to Old Pokhara where a few brick buildings of former days with carved wood windows and doors still stand  in their  sad glory, visit to the Regional  Museum with its story of Pokhara's early ethnic life with a few mannequins of regional  dress, and shopping  at Mahendra  Pol, the newer market for local  residents.

PHEWA LAKE

BUILDING IN OLD POKHARA

ARTISTIC HOME DESIGN

NEIGHBORHOOD NEAR LAKE

PARAGLIDING

     Here I found the famed  Nepalese  handwoven Dhaka fabric in many colors  and qualities.  Most  of the colors as you can  see  in the photo are  light orange, yellow, and  green.  Those  seem to be the preferred colors here.  It was hard finding deep purples, blues, and reds.   I  found out that all the  Dhaka  cloth  in these markets comes from  a weaving area  about 4 hours  south of Pokhara called Palpa.  I was so happy to buy a few lovely pieces to make into something  when I return  home.

     Lots of jewelry and beads everywhere.  My focus is the turquoise, coral, lapis lazuli, black beads, and dzi beads....My private jeweler is Kunjang,  a sweet woman from Mustang with a sad face.  Seems to offer me good deals!

     Another fascinating  journey was to a Tibetan Refugee Village north of  Pokhara.   Entering  the village we had to pass by all the old folks selling jewelry, pashmina shawls, carvings, and other tourist stuff.

     There  we found  a large attractive  monastic school and  a village with  a beautiful large temple filled with  monks, ranging in age from five to sixty-five  chanting their afternoon prayers accompanied by a great  drum, Tibetan horns, and  gongs.  It was a beautiful happening inside the temple.  But, I could not help thinking about the many poor oldTibetans praying and hanging  around  outside the elegant monastic world.

     Walking along the Phewa Lake path was a peaceful  experience with rice paddies, paragliders, parahawkers, the  Devi Maya lodge and restaurat located in Happy Village, and the daily life of rural Nepalese.