where in the world: Pokhara

While in Nepal we took a side-trip to Pokhara, a highly visited backpacker destination northwest of Kathmandu. Everyone in Kathmandu asked us if we'd be going there and then would always proceed to tell us that it was "so clean and so nice" - two good reasons to check it out! We hopped on a horrible bus (actually quite nice compared to a local bus, but the fact that it - and about 30 others - existed for the sole purpose of shuttling tourists to Pokhara everyday made me feel gross) and landed in Pokhara 6 hours later. While the town definitely was heavily catered to tourism (and not particularly "clean"), it was definitely refreshing to see mountains and a lake.

We quickly got a sense of the shops and excellent restaurants on offer downtown, so were eager to get out and see some sites. We boated, hiked, and went to a hilarious Himalayan Mountaineering museum. I was itching for some off-the-beaten-path adventure, so opted for renting bikes and exploring the less touristy parts of the town. I love maps and navigating. I also apparently love throwing myself into the chaos of Nepali (same as Indian) traffic. Kate and I traveled down crazy traffic-jammed thoroughfares, small, narrow side streets, and wide-open scenic highways to reach a Tibetan settlement. It was fantastic.