Off to Pokhara we go

We ended up spending 2 days in Kathmandu, and I have to admit that it was more than enough for me. It's such a busy place with lots of noise, pollution, and the crazy traffic on the roads is like a death trap; I had a close call with a motorbike or so I thought. There seem to be no traffic rules except for the fact that you drive on the left hand side of the road, and I found the use pedestrian crossings quite funny as they just seem to be a waste of paint; the trick is to just walk out in to the road and pray that all the vehicles will just manoeuvre around you.

We decided to take the tourist bus to Pokhara which had air conditioning and was of a good standard. There were also other options such as either flying (too expensive), or taking the local micro bus which we had no idea what to expect, except for the fact that it would be cramped and bumpy which didn't seem too appealing for a 6-7hr journey. The route to Pokhara was simply stunning, or some may say scary if you don't like heights. The roads were quite narrow and windy, and run along the cliff edges from which you can see vast valleys and mountains filled with lush vegetation, streams, and terraced hills for farming; it makes you feel like an ant. I recommend that you don't look out the window or sleep through the whole journey if you get anxious at heights. Along the way you have breaks and you even stop for lunch at a roadside restaurant with great views and pretty good dahl baht (the main Nepalese dish).

Pokhara is the second biggest city in Nepal, and is rather tourist orientated as it's mainly a place where the adventurous come to rest before trekking the Annapurna mountain ranges of the Himalayas. It is laden with tourist shops selling an array of things- handmade clothes, ornate jewellery, hiking gear, travel and sport agencies all trying to make you go trekking/white water rafting/paragliding... with them them. In addition there are soo many restaurants catering to all types of cuisine other than dahl baht. There is one main road lined with these shops and it runs parallel to Phewa lake, hence it's name 'Lakeside'.

The guest house that we are staying at, Karma guest house, is a 5-10min walk from the lake, and is perfectly located as it is near to all the action yet far enough away that you don't get caught up in all the bustle. Also the best bit about Karma is that it feels like I'm living at home; the family who run it are so friendly, warm and welcoming, and that includes their very adorable dog named Muno. Our room is simple but nice and I can't fault it for the price we are paying.

On the first day in Pokhara we went to visit Phewa lake (what the photo is of) but it took us over 2 hours to get to as we were enticed into every shop along the way. You can't visit Pokhara and not go see the lake- it's soo stunning, especially during sunset when the sky has warm orange and yellow hues and you can see rays of sunshine through the clouds. I could spend hours by the lake just watching ripples on the water, seeing the boats go by and capturing the views of the hills it's enclosed by. I'm so glad that I decided to do my elective placement in Pokhara as opposed to chaotic Kathmandu which I would get fed up of in a few days. Pokhara is pretty green an on good days you can see the peaks of the Himalayas as you stroll along Lakeside and even right behind the hospital I work at; nature
at its best.

p.s. I've been posting these travel updates on my iphone when I get time and wifi so bear with the delays in updates. There is soo much I want to share but just havn't got time to write it, so watch this space.

A post from Fullest of Life

The Adventure Begins

It's been just a week since I have started my holiday or I should really be saying 'elective'. I somehow ended up in Nepal. At the beginning when I was told that I could go anywhere in the world to do a medical placement in what ever department I wanted, I was stuck for choice as I wanted to literally travel the whole world. I tried sorting out placements in places around the world but they didn't work out, so when my Nepalese friend suggested going to Nepal I thought to my self 'why not?!'. I've never been there and I've always loved the idea of visiting the Himalayas. We managed to get another friend on board after mentioning the idea to her; we'd be the 3 musketeers. So after a few days of planning the trip together spaced over several weeks, we ended up here.

We arrived in Kathmandu not knowing what to expect, and of course we were greeted with a power-cut; the start of many yet to come. The first thing we did was to get a local sim card at the airport. Did you know that they require a passport photo, a photocopy of your passport, your parents' and even your grand father's name, topped of with fingerprints?! I felt like I was signing my life away with all that information, and I found it rather funny how it was soo much easier and quicker to get the Nepalese visa than a plain old sim card. I would highly recommend a hotel pickup at the airport to avoid all the taxi drivers bombarding you, and it's also really nice when someone is there expecting and waiting for you. The first thought that ran through my head as I sat on the car ride to the hotel was how much like India Nepal looked, just with Nepalese looking people instead.

We stayed in a budget guest house and you could tell; I learnt my lesson of not sticking my hand into a tap before letting the water run, as the water can come out brown. Other than that I not really one to complain of petty things and the place wasn't that bad for the price we payed.

We ventured the streets of Thamel (the tourist and backpacker district) on the first night. I absolutely loved the buzz in the air, the narrow streets crammed with little shops, the vibrant colours of all the knick knacks and clothes being sold, and how everything was alive with lights amidst the darkness of the evening. It definitely felt like the beginning of an adventure. We found a little hotel restaurant to have our dinner, and just as we were sitting outside to eat, it started raining accompanied with lightning and another power-cut. However this didn't ruin the meal, as I loved the fact that we had a candle lit dinner in a little thatched hut; it felt so far from home but in a good exotic way. Our first meal was the highly recommended chicken momos, which were basically like wontons with a tomato dipping sauce; you can't leave Nepal without eating a momo.

That night we also experienced our first ever cold candle-lit shower, again due to the power-cut; no surprises there. It's amazing to think just how normal it is to have power cuts, as life would pretty much come to a stand-still back at home if a power cut occurred and people would go into a panicked frenzy. One of the things I like about this part of the world is that people just accept obstacles that may occur, and life just goes on as normal around them.


A post by 'Fullest of Life'

'Christkindlmarkt' German Christmas Market

This weekend me and my mother went to the German Christmas market in Birmingham city centre. It was the first time that she had ever been to something like this and she was definitely surprised to say the least; surprised at the number and variety of stalls on offer, and also surprised at the crowds of people you had to fight your way through. Both of us slowly made our way through the stalls, which were in the shape of wooden huts laced with lights and colour, eating, browsing and more eating along the way. We found that there was so much on offer for our tummies, eyes and noses as the stalls were selling all kinds of things such as cakes, candy, trinkets, crêpes, doughnuts, pretzels, German sausages and even ostrich burgers.  There many things I loved about the market such as the mouth watering fumes from the German sausages being barbecued, the sparkle everywhere with curious knick knacks and ornaments lining the stalls, the festive songs playing, the feel of the crisp cold air as we ate out freshly roasted chestnuts, the bustle of people doing Christmas shopping, and the twinkling lights from the huts as nightfall approached. Another thing which was good is that most of the produce and goods sold were handmade and fresh. For example, it was great to see food made right before my eyes as I feel that's the best advertisement for it and I admire the artistry and skill involved;  it's fascinating seeing crêpes made as it takes a certain hand to get the perfect circular thin crepe you can't resist. After going to this market I realise that I would love to go to Germany and experience a real Christkindlmarkt one day, where it is done on a bigger scale and the food tastes even better since it's made in the homeland and is truly authentic. So, my 'Christmas spirit' for this year has been rekindled and I can admit that like a kid, I really can't wait for Christmas; please come soon!

 

A post from Fullest of Life

A Taste of India

I've not posted for a while, the reason is that I have been on a holiday to India and I just got back. India really is a 'colourful' place; bustling, lively and tropical. Whilst on the other side of the world I made sure that I enjoyed all the exotic treats on offer and boy was there a lot of it! Grandma's cooking is the best, and she made sure that she stuffed me with a years worth of food in the space of a week. Of course there was a lot of curry; not 'chicken tikka', 'rogan josh' or 'vindaloo' but instead the authentic and real thing. They use spices in everything, and even Western things like crisps, sandwiches are altered to satisfy the spice craving Indian taste buds. I didn't take any pictures of curries as they taste better than they look and there were just too many to keep a log of.

Indians also have a very sweet tooth, and I emphasise the 'very', most of the sweets are loaded with sugar, gee (clarified butter) and milk. There were piles and even bucketfuls of sweets, so I had more than my fair share. There were so many sweets that I ate that I can't name them all, but some of my favourites being basundi, jalebi, rasmalai and pala kova. I would like to attempt to make my own versions at some point, but I do know that it is more difficult than making cake.

Another delicacy in abundance were mangoes of all shapes and sizes. I just missed the mango season when I went so they were a bit rarer to come across, however my relatives managed to get hold of a few sackfuls straight from the fields; mangoes galore. These mangoes were the real thing- sweet, juicy and filled with flavour not the tasteless, 'fake' ones we get here in the supermarkets. I wish that we could get mangoes as readily and cheaply here as we get other fruit like apples, but I guess that it will have to be an exotic treat rather than an everyday indulgence of this golden fruit.

 

There are may exotic fruits which the Western world doesn't even know about, each flavour quite unique and hard to describe but if anyone does go to India I would recommend that they try them as you won't be able to taste these flavours elsewhere. Streets are filled with fruit stalls which vary on a seasonal basis and most of these fruits come straight from the fields, and it is only in the supermarkets you would find the imported stuff. Something which I absolutely love is fresh coconut water. I think that there is something special about the act of having the coconut cut open in front of you, drinking the refresing and sweet water straight out of the seed and finally spooning out the tender white flesh which is inside. Fresh coconuts are easily found in India from being grown in peoples' houses to being sold on the roadsides and the beaches. If I could I would probably replace coconut water for normal H2O, but I guess I can only do this on a tropical holiday.

I managed to smuggle back some of my favourite snacks, however I don't know why but food never tastes the same back at home, none the less these are 3 staples which I go on the hunt for every time I go to India since I was young: masala flavoured crisps, a chocolate bar called '5 Star' and badam (almond) milk. 

As well as being fed, fed and fed some more, I spent the rest of my time just relaxing with family. It was nice to be able to lay on a hammock or to go to the beach. One thing which was a lot of fun tough was having a fish pedicure done with my cousin; I have seen these in shopping malls in the UK however I have never actually tried it out. It was very ticklish at first that it took around 20 minutes to actually get used to the sensation and be able to place both feet in the tank. By that time most of the time we bought was over and we only had our feet in for another 10 minutes. I didn't really see any difference in my feet but the experience was worth it. I'm not in a rush to do it again tough, but I would recommend it to people who are less ticklish than me.

I also came across the Indian version of Barbie and Ken which made me smile. It made me realise how everything in India has that added 'Indian touch' to it.

All in all I had a lovely time in India and shall miss the atmosphere. However in the meanwhile I have been inspired to make some Indian themed recipes which I will try out and put op on the blog so keep your eyes peeled.

A post from Fullest of Life