Aug 31 – Repetition and Routine
Sleep ok, pretty comfy. Rise 9am, find free hot water and instacafe on 2nd fl. Pay another night using Visa card, no extra charge, first time using credit in Nepal, 1000r only. Chill morn. 11a walk around old town, get veg dal bat faster 300r decent. Try to find laund, only place said 300npr per kg. Hike up past Sunset VP to place of worship stairs >300m ascension 3km out, pray for Noah. Hike back thru Sunset VP yesterday. Shwr, rest bit. 350 grab cheap chk thali spot 350r slow af >45min. Chill in room, rest more, relax day, listen to Finance w Nick. Jaw ex in bed. Listen to music, do back neck bridge 3x25. 810 head back to same place as last night 400r chk khana. Stupid kids smoking on 2nd fl hotel, smells—unwanted intrusion.
Sep 1 – Logistics and Deep Cleaning
Dog barking most of night. Rise 810, diarrhea upon waking—the body rebels. Make cafe, sit in restaurant. 930 go back to first day original GH, negotiate 1500r for room and DIY laund. Try new spot buff momo 200r. Checkout Kauji at 1115, decent place needs more table desks. Walk back to Samira Inn by pedestrian entrance, chill on balcony, use washing machine. Pay 1545 on card for 1n and laundry. Chill bit, wait 1hr for laund to finish. Hang on terrace, hope for no rain. 140 hungie, try new nicer spot 490r chk kana, pay w card again 3%. Collect laund from terrace. Hike twd Siddharth Cave, hike up cool cliff to no name VP, trail not on map. Hike down to Siddharth Cave, no entrance, cave dark and hard to walk. Hike back bit wiped. Grab lassi and fried chk 450r, faranged for 30r. Shwr, rest. 9p go out for more food, get veg khana 320r gud spot.
Sep 2 – Transit and The Quiet Lake
Dog barking at night again. Rise 9am. Make packet insta cafe w free hot water. 1030 grab new spot chk fried rice 250r. Kick barking dog running past pretty hard. Clean up, GTG at 1125, wait for bus to show on, can see from hotel rest. Todo in Pokhara: TIMS/Permit, ATM x2, Pants, MJ, HC, Laund. Bus arrive at 1155, run down, driver said other bus, catch 12pm bus to Dumre, lucky 2nd bus came just b4. 100r to hwy, catch Pokhara bus right away to Begnas Laknath, stop for food momos n samosa 195r, pay 300r bus. Arrive Lkhnath 230, catch chk bus right away 20r to Begnas Tal bus park. Walk along lake trail past trail on OrgMaps, rough trail eventually find stairs. Find Eddis Place Dinesh under construction. Finally reach main road, find Little Buddha GH only 500r for room ez checkin. Bird bath and walk around, VP tower paid 25r. Chowmein overlooking lake 200r. Walk to peninsular area, GHs 1000-3000r, feel like too good deal. Chill bit on terrace nice breeze, wifi went out power outage maybe—the calm fails. Shwr, rest, kill couple moskies w blood. Smoke mj in room. Tell woman will buy food chipati w veg n daal ready at 8. Nice veg meal, might need more protein later, pay 300r convenient. Chill on terrace, another power outage, finally no tech, do lite Tai Chi.
Sep 3 – Handstands and The Dog Friend
Sleep ok early, dog next door barking early morn around 5am. Rise 9am. Take instacafe upstairs, pay woman 500r another night gr8 deal.. albeit dog next door. 1030 grab chowmein again by VP tower 200r. Handstand prac: yoga warrior 1xx5. Full warmup w arm circles, HS press walks—push backwards longer. Free HS got it after 5 attempts. Hike to suspension bridge over Rupa Lake, trail not on map, use trace on OrgMaps. No food around. Befriend golden dog. Ask woman for food again, said chk curry rice for 400. Shwr, wash shoes, rest bit. 3p eat chk currry w potatoes pretty good, paid 500r since taking water. Nap lite. Smoke bit in room to ward moskies. 7p go out for food, only 2 spots, try new spot chk momos 170r, grab chk chow mein again 200r. Sit on terrace enjoy the breeze and lightning.
Sep 4 – Return to Pokhara and The Permit Win
Sleep bit better, less barking. Rise 9am, intermittent power annoying when perfectly sunny. Grab food at 1040, same area, place in btw 2 other spots 200r momos. Checkout Little Buddha 1140, nice ppl. Start walking to bus park, catch bus within 2min 100r to Pokhara, change bus at bus park. 1pm arrive Pokhara, get off at roundabout just past bus park. Walk twd Om Sweet Home, slight detour. View Hotel Aarjan bit cheaper, book double room Booking 5usd, pay 700r cash ez checkin. Walk twd ACAP TIMS counter, get chowmein local 130r. Arrive counter, fill form, realize don't have photos, get 2 passport photos 150r, pay at counter 3000r cash for permit, woman said don't need TIMS starting last yr! Walk thru park to Nabil bank, withdraw 35k cost 364cad. Chill bit at hostel: new todo: Pants, ATM again, HC, MJ, Iodine/Chlorine tabs, Laund. 440 go out for pants, find barbers 300-400. Walk to main tourist st, lotsa knockoff stores North Face/Arc'teryx/Columbia, small shot got North Face knockoffs for 1340r. Grab chk thali only 200r no refills. HC 300r better than Thailand. Shwr, rest, listen to music, meditate bit. 9p head to nearby corner for food, confront couple feeding barking stray dog. Grab nicer spot in gringo area lassi+ chk masala + roti 630r splurgy meal for productive day. Chill in lobby, no terrace seating, dogs still barking. Hotel locked up around 10, can't leave.
Sep 5 – Technical Glitches and Physical Gains
Sleep ok, bit of smell. Rise 9am. Make cafe in lobby ez w kettle and free water, pay another night 700r cheap. TSX n total port ATH over 2M first time over 2005k—financial milestone. Make kettle stop working. 1030 go out to drop laund at 100r kg place. Grab chk thali at random small spot 300r. Checkout the Gurkha training gym, chat w tall guy from Vanc in Nepal 9yrs, had GH in KTM, now Pokhara rent building. Walk along main st for water purif caps 50x 300-400r. Drop by Om Sweet Home on way back, get 1000r MJ 2 small baggies. Shit again, shwr, rest, more relaxed, feel prod. Terrace HS prac bit cramped with clotheslines. Yoga warrior 1xx5, frog stand lifted right leg 1sec. Handstand walk 2x3, woman hanging laund, free HS fail 5x, got 20 nasal breath hold. Shoulder mobility routine, try other side can't resist fail 6x, got 15 nasal free hold, decent prac. Chill bit downstairs. 3p go out for food n more errands, local spot south chk chowmein n potato roti 210r cheap. Walk to main st Nabil ATM, withdraw another 35k (4th) cost 364cad, slightly worse than yday despite cad/npr up slightly—exchange rate friction. Walk around pharmacy closed, stock up on cafe pax 5r each, got 36 tot, sunny af. Chill in lobby, chat w GPT about ABC and AC directions. Shwr, rest at 615, forgot about laund. Meditate bit on bed. 640 grab laund, lively streets. Rest n meditate bit more. 8p last nite in Pokhara, walk down to lakeside, lotsa ppl, vibrant, try Mediterranean place hummus and chk fried rice 500r. Pressure bot slice pina might have plastic. Pastry from baker 150r. Chill in GH lobby nice breeze.
Sep 6 – Ghandruk Ascent: New Beginnings
Sleep ok, no moskies from MJ. Rise earlier 740, kettle still busted, make cold cafe, chill downstairs TSX ATH. Grab small spot again twd ACAP 3rd time, chk momos and chk chowmein 300r fuel up. Checkout Aarjan 1010, decent place might use tap water for drinking tho. Walk to Zero Km junction, find van to Nayapul only 250r, wait 30min do lite mobility prep for hiking. 1105 van to Nayapul ok ride, stop 10km before Nayapul for food, 350r veg dal bat w egg. Reach Nayapul 1250, walk thru village bit confusing, find checkpoint w woman, realize receipt not pass, miss tourist bus, start walking to Gandruk, cath ride on big bus to stairs free. Finally start trail at a Ky Danda hamlet. Rest at GH w friendly dog, get cafe from old man w knee problem 130r, real friendly dog. Rain start bit hard, meditate on table with overhead cover, 20min while guy living there waiting beside me. Keep hiking 15min, rain start harder, find real small GH w tables and chairs for cover, rest bit but couple looking at me. Rain hard; leg swing, kix: front side, spin heel lite volume. Frog pose press 1x6, handstand attempts got 3/5 best practice so far! Old man said room only 200r no wifi. Do more mobility while raining, manual back neck and jaw; fairly productive. Pay 100r for water. Wear jacked, keep trekn lite drizzle. Arrive Gandruk around 540, cheap GH 500r, dorm 250npr. Walk around whole village w bag, prices up to 3000npr. Checkin Annapurna GH, pay 1000r double room w bano lotsa space. Chill bit in lobby restaurant big place. Cold shwr, rest bit. Order chk thali at hotel 700r pricey.