We just returned to Kathmandu from a peaceful weekend in Pokhara.
Pokahara is Nepal’s second largest city which appears to be a distant
second, as it is quite a bit smaller than the capital city.   We have
been in Nepal since the Maoist strike has pretty much shut down the
country, including Pokahara.  Luckily, this city is a great place to
relax even if nothing is open and there’s no way to get around other
than by foot or bike.  If you know someone who has a car or motorcycle,
you can’t catch a ride because they’re not allowed to drive either.
Luckily, the airports are open, so if your flying anywhere be prepared
to walk to catch your flight.The setting of Pokhara is downright gorgeous.  The city sits far below, in
fact, several climate zones below the mighty Annapurna range.  It’s a
unique feeling being in a lush, hot and humid place while gazing at the
windblown snowcapped mountains towering above.  Pokahara has served as
a starting and/or ending point for spectacular mountain treks, I have
added one of these to my lifetime to do list, maybe I can convince my
brother to go with me.  Along with the mountainous view there is also
the beauty of the lakes in the area engulfed in a dense green jungle.
The main tourist drag in town is called Lakeside, which is along Phewa
(Lake) Tal.  Here for a couple hundred Nepali Rupees you can rent a
little boat and row around for the afternoon.  A zen way to get away
from political unrest.  The rest of the lakeside area is packed with
restaurants, fair trade shops, guesthouses and little bars, which
luckily we got to enjoy for a night before the strike.

We
weren’t exactly sure what to expect with the strike and talking to the
locals, they didn’t really know what to expect either.  Once the strike
started everything shut down, everything.  Even if the business owners
want to remain open they could not in fear of retaliation from the
Maoists and particularly the YCL (Young Communist League) for not
supporting their cause.  Walking through the streets of Pokhara, every
thing seemed to be quite peaceful.  The police and military were at
every corner in riot gear while the local children played football and
learned to skate while the adults sat on the shop stoops and curbs
talking.  It was a strange seeing how relaxed people seemed to be even
if some were being coerced.  Update:  We did read in the newspaper
there was some violence in Pokhara.  A pharmacist was beaten for having
his business open.  This goes beyond my comprehension of why things
like this happen.  I need to be better informed on the situation,
before I really give an informed opinion, but violence should not be
the way.  On a lighter note, I managed to go on a flight on a
micro-light.  This is basically a hang glider with a couple of lawn
chair attached and a propeller.  I’m just kidding, they’re a little
more advanced than that and wow, what a way to see the Himalayas!  I
took some pretty rough video and some photos to share.  I hope to have
a post on this soon!