Bus Ride To Pokhara

Hello!

I arrived in Pokhara yesterday afternoon after a 7 hour bus ride through the countryside. It was nice to take the bus because now I fully understand (well maybe not fully) how hilly Nepal really is. Outside the Kathmandu valley is alot different than I expected. There is absolutely no flat parts and people have their cottages and huts scattered throughout the hills. The road is windey and in some parts bumpy. The road was paved pretty recently by the Chinese, but this road has been in existence for hundreds (maybe thousands) or years as a trade route between India and The Valley. I can NOT even imagine what this road would be like unpaved. Tretcherous for sure. I took a tourist bus which was about 5 USD. The other option is to take the local buses which are about half the price and take twice the time. Also along the way, a few of these local buses were tipped over on their sides, probably due to erratic driving.

For the first 3 or 4 hours I sat by a man from Switzerland. He walked with a walking stick and had some kind of leg cripple. He said people here view him differently than they do in the West. They don't view his handicap as something weird. He is a self proclaimed "nomad" and does not have a home anywhere but just goes all over the world. I could not tell his age, could be anywhere from 40 - 60. He had a very interesting view on Nepal. He thought the foreign aid and money were completely useless. He said people here have become so used to people doing things for them that they won't do anything for themselves. He thinks the situation is completely hopeless from the attitudes of the people to the government corruption and there is not any point in helping. A morbid view I guess, but in someways I can see what he means. I guess it's the idea that nothing we do in our life will really matter in the long run so why try?
This man's name was Frederiqe and he left to walk the hills about halfway through the ride. Then another guy sat by me who was Nepali but had been living in the UK. He had just gone through a divorce and decided to cut out everything from his old life and start fresh. He has 2 sons 15 and 16 and he doesn't talk to them anymore. After I heard this I was annoyed with him and just tryed to look out the window.

There was a strike yesterday in Pokhara so getting into town was a bit difficult becasue they had stopped traffic. Finally we arrived at the bus park and once I left the bus I was attacked by touts trying to sell me their hotel. Literally attacked. It was quite annoying having 20 guys in your face trying to sell you a hotel.

I hitched a ride into town with the owner of Blue Heaven Guest House which is where I am staying now, paying 150 rupees per night.