It's been a magical week of decompressing in Pokhara. I've heard many other travelers express a similar sentiment, coming here to just be after the madness of Kathmandu or the weariness of trekking. My companions and I believe ourselves to be he luckiest bunch in lakeside Pokhara having found a serene haven in the Peace Eye Guest House. When we arrived one week ago, Chiran, the cheery owner, showed us 2 spacious rooftop rooms attached to a quiet patio. At 500 rupees for a single and 600 for a double ($8 and $9 respectively), the rooms are extremely reasonable, clean, and safe. We've spent countless hours on our nearly private rooftop reading, writing, making music, and generally decompressing. The street side cafe is always lively with guests and diners looking for a chat or playing the guitar. Not to mention the friendliest server who greets you with a bright smile every morning and scrumptious food.
Pokhara is known for its lake and most tourists stay on the 'lakeside' of town. We're no exception, nor are our good friends from the trek. Our first morning we bumped into the jovial Israelis and that afternoon had coffee and cake with 2 Spaniards who were on our bus that first day out of Kathmandu. Today we met a lovely kiwi couple who we had chatted up in the capital waiting to use an ATM. And an American yogi/aspiring travel writer and I bonded over a few days by the lake. October 4th was Avner's - the jovialist of Israelis - birthday and we celebrated at a Korean restaurant (surprisingly good!) and then over pool, beer, and live music.
Perhaps the best friendship nurtured in this tourist town has been with Alberto and Stacy. Alberto has been traveling from his home of Spain roughly 2 years with his dog and guitar, busking from town to town, country to country, playing tasty Spanish guitar tunes solo or with fellow musicians met along the road. Jeju was blessed with his presence last year when he stayed with good friends of Mike and Emma for some weeks and played music with Jeju's many quality musicians. Since then, Alberto met Stacy traveling through the Philippines and she decided to leave her life and join him on the road, teaching yoga wherever she can. I've spent the week studying with Stacy at the Nepal Women's Empowerment Center where she teaches daily Ashtanga yoga, free to girls studying at the center and for a fee to other drop-in students. An inspiring and challenging teacher, Stacy has brought me back to a practice I turned away from years ago with grace and love. This amazing couple is an inspiration to me, myself being a world traveling musician and yoga teacher. Certainly their presence has been a big contributor in this week's serenity.
My daily schedule since our arrival has been as follows:
- a peaceful 20 min walk by the lake munching a fresh baked good
- 1 1/2 hours Ashtanga yoga with Stacy
- breakfast and coffee at a sidewalk cafe or my guest house
- reading or writing
- chat with travelers or friends
- nap or book
- afternoon coffee/tea and cake at the organic vegetarian bakery a few doors down
- reading or writing
- dinner with Emma and Mike or other friends
- live music or a walk in town in the evening
I realized today I've yet to take a single picture in Pokhara. As tomorrow is our last day here, I'll equip myself with camera on the walk to yoga and back. I also might pick-up a skirt or pair of pants which is a little pricier in Nepal than I suspect will be in India, but the shopping is so hassle-free and laid-back it'll no doubt be just easier here. I've only bought 1 pair of earrings, 1 wool hat, and 1 blouse to take with me. And a yak's wool shawl on the trail which kept me warm in the mountains. I've stuck pretty fast to my estimated budget for this leg of he journey which will prove to be very important as I travel on. As I continue to find peace in the financial realm, my daily practice reminds me to be present and positively manifest what I need.
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