I trekked the Langtang trek in Nepal to the Langshisha glacier, along the
Tibetan border. This is a traditional teahouse trek in Nepal.
On the way, I passed through many remote villages, most with no electricity
and stark living conditions. My travels started in Kathmandu, where my guide
Chudamani and I, caught an early morning bus for an all day ride to Dhunche.
The bus ride is very dramatic, slowly creeping its way higher and higher into
the Himalaya mountains on steep, cliff-hanging roads of huge boulders and deep
ruts.
Filled with locals, their animals and supplies, people jam together on the
inside and on the roof as well, filling literally every available space.
Heavily over-loaded, these buses lurch and sway only inches from sheer cliff.
I remember hoping and praying the bus driver was happy in his love life.
When coming down from over a rise, the brakes give a terrible screech. I
wondered how often the rickety old bus received maintenance.
After
the grueling 8 hour bus ride, we spent the night in Dhunche (1950m). The next
morning
we began our trek, spending many days hiking mountain trails to and through
Bharku (1860m), Syabru (2130m), Bamboo, Lama Hotel (2400m), Ghora Tabela (3000m)
, Langtang (3500m), Mundu, Sindum, and
the last of the villages habitable year-round in this part of the Himalayas of
Nepal -
Kyangjin Gompa (4000m). From Kyangjin Gompa, Chudamani and I made a long and
grueling
dayhike further, to the approach to Langshisa glacier at about 4300m elevation.
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Many
of the villages in the Himalayas have no electricity, whereas others have just
enough electricity to provide one or two light bulbs in the few "teahouses"
that house the trekkers. The teahouses in this part of Nepal are often little
more than a
stone hut with rooms furnished with only a wooden cot and a one inch pad for
sleeping and a candle for light. Most have only a stone outhouse, some also
have a
separate stone bathhouse with water provided from a sun-warmed tank mounted
on the roof. I always insisted on a teahouse with one of these crude,
solar-heated showers in
one of these stark bathhouses. Information on the trekking agency I used
for my Himalayan trek can be found in the link at the top of the page. I hope
you enjoy my photos of Nepal.
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Approaching Syabru in the Himalayan Mountains of Nepal
Villages in the Himalaya Mountains are usually built
along a strip of mountain crest. As a result, homes are not clustered or
situated facing one another along a street as our towns and villages are.
Indeed, there are no streets, the villages having only foot trails. Everyone
moves around here by foot. There are no motorized vehicles. I'd guess these
people
have never seen or heard one.
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A view of the terraced slopes of the
Himalaya Mountains in Nepal
The views from the trails that interconnect the Himalayan
villages in Nepal are beautiful. Syabru at an elevation of about 2200 meters
sits along a scenic ridge. |
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There seemed only to be young people and old people
here. Faces age rapidly in the ultraviolet rays of the sun, which are poorly
filtered at such high altitudes in the Himalayas. You might notice the hilt of
this man's khukuri knife, a kind of sword almost, similar to the type used by
Gurkha soldiers. All males in this part of Nepal carry one from the
time they are about 12 or so.
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| An Old Man Near Langtang
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