[The following post is from the archives of my In Search Of Incredible blog, originally published on 13 April 2013. Minor edits have since been made from the original post to update some links and info.]
25 March 2012, Sunday
Morning Call: 6:00am
It was our last day in Nepal today, and XY and I would be going separate ways – I would be catching the 9:30am Jet Airways flight to Bangkok while XY would be returning to Singapore on the 1:05pm Singapore Airlines flight. So I said goodbye to her and left first. At 6:53am, I got on a taxi and headed to the airport, arriving at 7:07am (fare: Rs 300).
At the check-in counter, I was informed that my Jet Airways flight had been delayed due to bad weather. The flight was supposed to have transited at Delhi before heading to Bangkok, but because of the delay of the first flight, I would miss the connecting flight. So the lady at the counter said that they were in the process of making arrangements to put me on another flight, possibly a direct one to Bangkok on Thai Airways, departing at 1:50pm.
When I first planned my trip a few months back, I had wanted to book this Thai Airways direct flight, but it was more expensive than the Jet Airways one, so I didn’t. By a twist of fate, I would be taking it in the end, and I didn’t have to pay more for it. Strange how things work out sometimes. The only downside is that the flight was scheduled for 1:50pm, and I was already at the airport at 7am, so there was seven hours to kill at the tiny Tribhuvan International Airport. And mind you, it’s a really small airport, still stuck in the 80’s, with garish décor and minimal facilities.
In the end, this Thai Airways flight got delayed as well, due to late arrival of the aircraft from Bangkok, and the final departure time was 2:40pm – so I spent an agonising 7.5 hours at the airport! I met XY again, and she was surprised to see me there of course. To think I could have woken up later, spent the morning having a nice breakfast and doing some more last-minute shopping in Thamel, before coming to the airport together with XY (thus saving on taxi fare). Oh well, the unexpected happens sometimes.
In any case, I wasn’t the only one affected by the change of plans. There was a bunch of other backpackers caught in the same situation as well. I met a Dutch girl, M, who was travelling alone and I struck up a conversation with her. She works for the government and her job involves responding to members of the public appealing their traffic fines, so she gets to decide whether or not to approve the appeal or let the fine stand. Needless to say, she deals with a lot of nasty people on the phone everyday. But she’s real nice.
M came to Nepal because she loves the mountains and went trekking to the Annapurna Base Camp (ABC). She took four months off work to travel and would be going to Bangkok next, like me, but she was on a flexible schedule, booking her flights and planning her itinerary as she went along. It is way cool, and this is what a lot of other backpackers do. I’d love to be able to do it as well, but I’m a control freak and I like to plan way ahead. Maybe if I had four months and the luxury of time, I could do that, but for a 30-day trip, I needed to plan everything out beforehand.
I told her that it was quite common for Westerners to go on these long backpacking trips, but not so common for Asians like me. Especially for females, the idea of backpacking alone halfway across the world is almost unheard of. I can only think of a few of my female friends who would do that. Actually even for guys, it’s quite uncommon too. She said it’s probably because Westerners are more independent from an earlier age and move out of their parents’ home when they reach adulthood. So for them to go on a solo backpacking trip, it is not that unusual. I think for Asians, it is more difficult to accept the need for independence. It’s our culture.
We also met up with an American guy who works as a driver/guide in Yosemite National Park in California. He’s maybe 50 years old, and has visited Nepal about 15-20 times in the past 30 years. As his job is seasonal, he works for about six months a year and spends around five months travelling around the world, mostly in Asia. He’s visited all the touristy places and seen all the sights, so these days, he just takes it slow. He returns to his favourite places, stays at his favourite guest houses, hangs out at his favourite beaches. It’s quite the perfect lifestyle.
But the thing that struck me most is when he said “It’s your choice”. He chose not to get married, he chose to do this job, he chose to travel instead of staying at home, and he chose to lead a lifestyle where he spends what he earns. He earns about enough to allow him to travel, and he loves his job at Yosemite National Park (who wouldn’t?). It’s really cool to meet all these people and learn that there is really no fixed way to live your life. It’s your choice.
Having been to Nepal so many times over the past few decades, he told us that it hasn’t changed that much, at least not for the better – the airport is still the same (it’s like a time warp), the air has gotten worse, there’s much more pollution and the population has increased. And he doesn’t think Nepal will ever get out of the rut it is in, because there is simply too much corruption around, and Nepal doesn’t have any natural resources like coal, or a port like Singapore.
If Nepal hasn’t improved much over the past 30 years, it’s hard to see it change in the future. But in a way, that’s what I like about Nepal. There is still a rustic charm to it, especially in the mountainside villages, and it’s not that commercialised like the other cities. But I guess for the Nepalese, it’s quite sad for them. It’s like what Rabin (the young chap who joined Adrenaline Rush Nepal) said the other day, he feels sad that the country is not progressing despite their hard work. It makes me so much more grateful with what we have, how Singapore has progressed so rapidly from a third world country to a bustling metropolis in the past 50 years. You really need to travel to see what other countries are like before you can appreciate the goodness in your own country.
After waiting for over seven hours, we were finally ready to leave Nepal. I got a seat beside M and we continued chatting on the plane till we reached Bangkok. Thai Airways is a full-service flight, so we had food onboard, even though they had to “dabao” for us because we were last-minute additions. The air stewardesses were quite fierce though, and we both looked at each other in amazement when we saw how they snapped at the other guests. It was quite funny.
Closing thoughts on Nepal
In any case, I had plenty of time to reflect on my Nepal adventures while waiting for the flight, and I can say I’ve enjoyed my time in Nepal immensely. It was always a dream to climb one of the mountains in Nepal, even though it was just a short 3-day trek, it gave me a taste of what it feels like to scale one of nature’s peaks, with just your own pair of legs and steely determination. In actual fact, it was quite a comfortable climb because of the proper path and stone steps, so it wasn’t as tough as I imagined. I would love to return and do a longer trek next time, maybe to ABC or to Everest Base Camp.
I enjoyed the trekking experience a lot, especially when fellow backpackers greet each other with a “Namaste” whenever we meet each other walking from the opposite direction. It’s nice meeting other people from all over the world. Sometimes you run into them more than once, when you end up staying at the same guest houses along the way. There’s a shared spirit of adventure, and every traveller has their own stories and experiences to share. It’s a nice feeling.
River rafting was a little disappointing because of the low water levels at that time of the year, and I had high expectations beforehand. Nevertheless, the overnight camping session was fun and I got to see a shooting star for the first time.
I loved being in the mountains and away from the hustle and bustle of the city. The air was fresher, the sunrise more spectacular and the people more laid back. Maybe one day I will retreat and live in the mountains, run my own guest house and lead a simple life.
I think everyone should visit Nepal at least once in their lives and trek up the mountains, even if it’s just a short one. I won’t say that it will change your life, but it does make you appreciate the simple things in life more, and get closer to nature. Age is not really an issue – I’ve seen old people trekking, but try to do it while you’re still fit and able to walk.
It’s Day 17 of my trip now, more than halfway through, and I’m entering the last three legs of my journey – Bangkok, Hanoi and Cambodia. Bangkok is a short stopover (two nights), mainly because there is no direct flight from Nepal to Hanoi, so I had to make a stop here. And it’s the only country among the six that I’ve visited many times before, so I decided to make it a quick one.
Thailand: Bangkok
Time difference: Bangkok is 1 hour behind Singapore
Exchange rate: 100 Thai baht = S$4.15
We touched down at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport at 7:10pm. M and I were staying at different hotels, but we were both going to take the train, so we stuck together. We bought our train tickets (40 baht) and took the City Line train from the airport. After 30 minutes, I arrived at my stop, Rachaprarob station, and I bade farewell to M. It had been nice meeting her and talking to her. Till we meet again!
From Rachaprarob, I walked for about ten minutes and arrived at my hotel, Baiyoke Boutique Hotel. I decided on this hotel because my parents stayed here just two months prior and recommended it to me. It’s located very near to Platinum shopping mall, and easily accessible by train from the airport. It’s quite cheap as well – a Deluxe Room at 2,400 baht for two nights, roughly S$100 or S$50/night. It’s very popular with Singaporeans.
Baiyoke Boutique Hotel
http://baiyokeboutique.baiyokehotel.com
Address: 120/350 Ratchaprarop Road, Ratchathewi, Bangkok 10400
After dropping my stuff and freshening up, I took a taxi to Khao San Road (fare: 150 baht). I had stayed here once in 2007, and I liked it quite a lot, so I wanted to go back and check it out. However, once I stepped off the taxi, I was quite glad I didn’t choose to stay here this time. Khao San Road seemed to have become noisier and even more commercialised than before.
It was very lively with a lot going on at the same time, perhaps nice for a visit but not for a good night’s sleep. After Delhi and Kathmandu, I needed someplace more peaceful, and Khao San Road is not it. It’s full of bars, tattoo parlours, rowdy people drinking and loud music blaring from every corner. I guess it’s considered quite happening, especially for young Western backpackers, who seem to own the place.
I didn’t linger around for long. I wanted to find a nice place for dinner but was quite turned off because it was crowded everywhere, so I settled on McDonald’s. Yes I know, who goes to Bangkok to eat McDonald’s?? At 10:45pm, I decided to head back to the hotel to rest. After all, it had been a long day, even though I didn’t do much. Time to recharge and indulge in some retail therapy tomorrow!