Nepal: An overnight stay in Bandipur

Bandipur is a hilltop settlement in Tanahun District in Gandaki province of Nepal. Bandipur was established as a point of trade by Newar traders from Bhaktapur and became an important stop along the India-Tibet trade route. I wanted to break up the long bumpy bus ride (7.5-8 hours) from Pokhara to Kathmandu, so I decided to spend a night in Bandipur. Bandipur is not along the main road between Kathmandu and Pokhara so a transfer is needed at a town called Dumre. 

Getting to Prithivi Chwok Bus Station

Bus fare: NPR 30

The bus station departing to Kathmandu from Pokhara is Prithivi Chowk. If you are staying at the Lakeside area like I did, walk to the nearest bus stop and get on a bus that goes to Prithivi Chowk. There were a lot of practising on how to pronounce the word correctly so I can asked. 

Taken from the bus to Dumre from Pokhara

Getting to Dumre from Pokhara by public bus

Bus fare: NPR 300

Prithivi Chowk is like a big intersection and buses were grouped by where they were heading to. Then there were more asking where to find buses to Dumre. I tried to pay the exact fare when possible to avoid change. When unavoidable and the bus conductor didn't have the change with him/her at the time, he/she would return the change when one gets off the bus. I was the only foreigner in the bus and the bus conductor came to let me know when the bus approached Dumre. 

Getting to Bandipur from Dumre

Bus fare: NPR 100, duration about 30 minutes (plus waiting time for bus departure)

Taxi cost: NPR 600 and takes about 15 minutes. 

As the bus I was on went to Kathmandu from Pokhara, the public bus or taxi to Bandipur was on the right side of the road. i.e. I had to cross the road to the opposite side. The buses and taxis stopped in front of a shop named Just Chill. 

Getting to Dumre from Bandipur

Bus fare: NPR 100

To get back to Dumre, the earliest public bus departs from the bus stop just outside the village at 8:30 am, on hourly basis. 

Getting from Dumre to Kathmandu

Bus fare: Between NPR 600 to NPR 900 depending on haggling skill, duration about 4.5 hours

Once I got off the bus, 3 touts approached me. They followed even though I tried to move away. They even flagged down a minivan to Kathmandu and told me that it cost NPR 850. The staff at the guesthouse in Bandipur told me that the price is NPR 600. I knew that as a foreigner I would be charged more and I would not be able to haggle down to the same price of NPR 600. I agreed to NPR 850 and got on the minivan. This minivan I got on took about 4.5 hours to get to Kathmandu, inclusive of 2 food and toilet breaks. 

I paid NPR 1000 and the conductor gave me a change of NPR 100 on arrival in Kathmandu. I was expecting a change of NPR 150. When I told the conductor that the change wasn't enough, he ended up giving me an additional NPR 250. It turned out that the touts told the conductor to charge me NPR 900, told me the fare was NPR 850 but the actual fare was NPR 650. 

I got on a random bus that brought me closer to Thamel on arrival in Kathmandu, then walked the balance of the way back to the guesthouse.

Bandipur is free of traffic so the bus would stop at the entrance of the village. 

The bus arrived at Bandipur in the afternoon. After checking in and lunch, I started my wander around. I have at least half a day and felt that I could made it to at least Tundhikhel, Mini Great Wall Bandipur, Thani Mai temple and walk around the village. 

Bandipur Main Street

There are many restaurants and shops along the main street. Kind of like old city square. 

Tundhikhel

This is a sprawling open ground offering panoramic views of the surrounding hills. During my visit, there were many students visiting as well as locals having picnic. 

Random building between Bandipur village and Tundikhel

View near Tundikhel #1

View near Tundikhel #2

I managed to visit all these places I wanted to but I also spent a lot of time going in circles between the Mini Great Wall and Thani Mai temple. Here's the story how I kept going in circles between these 2 places, so please don't be dumb like me. 

Mini Great Wall

It started off well, I looked up Mini Great Wall of Bandipur on Google Map and followed through. The trail was nice to walk, I passed by many animals and some humans. 

I continued walking till I was told I have reached. It wasn't as clear as the below map when I was in Bandipur. The location point marked as 'Mini Great Wall Bandipur' overlapped with the 'X' mark - which was where I stood. 

I was at the location marked as 'X'

I thought I have arrived but it actual location looked like this - picture below. I initially foolishly thought this area was referred as mini Great Wall because of the few stones lining up at the side. It is unlikely that this place is popular if there were just a few stones along the path. I ended up standing around and started googling for pictures to match what I was seeing. 

The good news was Google Maps didn't really lie, I reached but it was along the hill next to it. 

So from those stones, continue walking till the trail branched out. This is what I saw and the path to the Mini Great Wall was opposite to this. There were also walls behind this big tree which I also thought that was the Mini Great Wall at that time. 

Spot the same little hut in the picture below.

I finally found the Mini Great Wall of Bandipur. 

I walked the whole of the wall and reached the building at the top. Spent some time there and then walked back to the village center. 

Thani Mai Temple

Thani Mai temple is a small Hindu temple located atop Gurungche Hill. The route to the Thani Mai Temple starts near where the bus stop earlier of the day. It was steps all the way up to the top with resting spots. 

There were a few people already there waiting for sunset. It was windy and got a little chilly as the evening progressed. 

When I saw this temple, I laughed to myself. This was the very temple that I got to at the end of the Mini Great Wall. The same place I left, walked back to the village and walked up many steps to come back to. I took a long time to find the Mini Great Wall, and then went on a merry-go-round to find out that I visited the Thani Mai temple 2 times, back to back. 

There are other places you can visit in Bandipur that I didn't get to - hike to Ramkot, visit the silk factory, hike and visit the Siddha Cave, visit some temples in Bandipur. 

Side note: If it is not obvious enough - the building at the end of the Mini Great Wall is Thani Mai temple. 

Nepal: Sunset and sunrise at Sarangkot

As mentioned in previous post, I took a cable car to Sarangkot. There are other ways to get there - hike, taxi, bus. I like the idea of cable car but possibly not the most popular because it was fairly quiet. I was the only one there to get in a cable car and got the whole cable car to myself. Maybe it wasn't the peak time yet, I don't know. 

Getting to upper station

Sarangkot is Ward 18 of Pokhara, Kaski District, Nepal, after it was merged into the city in 2015. It is a popular tourist destination for those who arrive in Pokhara and known for its panaromic Himalayan views of Dhaulagiri, Annapurna and Manaslu. 

As a village, the major reason why people visit Sarangkot is the view. The village is not big and there isn't much to do. 

Otherwise, Sarangkot is the launching site for paragliding or one can zipline or do some hikes. I was there to catch the sunset and sunrise that Sarangkot is famous for. 

Sunset from guesthouse rooftop

Night view from roof top

Sarangkot Hill Viewpoint

Entrance fee: NPR 50

I initially tried to just view the sunrise from the guesthouse rooftop again but not a great spot for getting Himalayan ranges, because well - a hill is kind of in the way. 

So I walked up to the view point soon after. On getting there, I realised I had a dumb moment and didn't bring enough money to pay for a ticket. The guesthouse wasn't far to walk back to get enough money but I was a little bummed that I needed to leave right away and return. 

I walked a little further away from the entrance to the view point and found a spot. It wasn't a high as the viewpoint but it was unblocked.

Fishtail Mountain

I made my walk back to the Sarangkot Cable Car terminal after breakfast at the guesthouse to go back to Pokhara. 

Side note: Interesting, I don't think there's an emoji for Rubik's cube.

Nepal: Walkabout Pokhara

I slotted in Pokhara sometime in the middle of the trip to have buffer between international flights. To cut down commuting time, I decided to fly one way to Pokhara and bus back to Kathmandu. I booked a flight with Yeti Air, the cheapest flight on the day and timing I want. I read that it is better to fly earlier in the morning due to potential flight cancellations or rescheduling. Also, right side of the plane to Pokhara gives a better view if you can get it. The guesthouse staff haggled with a taxi driver just outside the guesthouse entrance to bring me to the airport, NPR 600. 

I left my bigger backpack at the guesthouse in Kathmandu as I would return to the same guesthouse after Pokhara. So I only carried my daypack with me, which was really lucky because a lot of walking happened in Pokhara before checking into an accommodation. 

On arrival in Pokhara, I got a taxi to bring me to World Peace Pagoda. The driver also offered a full day tour but I didn't take it up. I read that taxi charges NPR 1200 to World Peace Pagoda for one way, and NPR 1500 for return trip. I am not sure if the price had gone up or I paid too much but I only managed to negotiate to NPR 1500 for a one way trip from Pokhara Airport. I ended up walking everywhere in Pokhara the whole day after leaving the World Peace Pagoda. 

World Peace Pagoda

Entrance fee: Free

World Peace Pagoda or Shanti Stupa is located on Anadu Hill overlooking Phewa Lake with Annapurna Mountain range in the background. The first of these pagodas were built in Japan, and the aim is to build 100 World Peace Pagodas throughout the world to convey the message of peace. 

From what I read, there are 2 popular ways if you want a hike up to the pagoda. One is to take a boat trip across Phewa Lake and then walk up from where the boat drops you off. The other less steep but longer way is to walk through Damside. Damside is said to be the stomping ground of muggers and thieves and people are warned from solo hiking. There are posts online to warn on danger on both trails albeit dated quite a few years back. 

After considering all factors, I chose to go there directly from Pokhara Airport by a taxi but walked down via the main road. The taxi dropped me off at the base of a flight of rock steps. I was told to climb those steps to reach the pagoda. Along the way to the pagoda, there are some small shops and eateries. 

As the pagoda is on top of a hill, it's a good spot to view Pokhara from above ground level. 

From World Peace Pagoda, you can see what I think is Pumdikot Shiva Statue. 

Patale Chhango / Davis Fall / Devi's Fall

Entrance fee: NPR 100

Locally known as Patale Chhango, this is the most famous waterfall in Pokhara. It was said that the fall was named as Davis Fall following the death of a Swiss citizen known as Mrs. Davis. Allegedly, Mrs. Davis and her husband visited the area and she died while taking a bath a few meters away from the fall, presumably due to an accident.

The introduction board mentioned that the best time to watch the falls is from June to September. I visited at end of March. 

There is a couple of resting area around the grounds and wishing well but overall place is not big. 

 

Gupteshwar Mahadev Cave

Entrance fee: NPR 100

Right across the road from Davis Fall is a limestone cave - Gupteshwar Mahadev Cave. It is said that the water from Davis Fall passes through this cave. It was crowded with Indian visitors at the time of my visit. From memory, photography is not allowed except at the site where the below photo was taken. This is because the cave is a sacred site with shrines including a Shiva temple and statues of Hindu deities. 

Outside of the cave though is this round concrete balcony looking structure. An entrance ticket will allow you to enter the cave via a large spiral staircase. 

Phewa Tal

The second largest lake in Nepal, and the biggest in Pokhara boasted with Annapurna range as its backdrop. This is the where most travellers to Pokhara stay. The lake is free but you can pay for boating around the lake, or across it to the starting point to hike up to the World Peace Pagoda, or to the small island within the lake where Tal Barahi temple is located. 

I was thwarted by the crowd and queue to get a boat to Tal Barahi, as well as article that I read the temple is under construction. So I didn't end up getting there. The return ticket price of the communal boat to Tal Barahi quoted to me was NPR 110. Apparently I read that to get back, you will need to find a vacant spot with any barge with your return ticket. 

Annapurna Cable Car

Return ticket: NPR 1,590 / USD 12 (I paid in Nepalese rupee)

Lower station: Sedibagar

I visited World Peace Pagoda, Davis Fall and Gupteshwar Mahadev Cave on the same day before walking to the Annapurna Cable Car bottom station/terminal at Sedibagar. A poster at the ticketing office at the time of my visit mentioned of shuttle running at 8:30 am, 11:30 am, 2:30 pm and 5:30 pm. From online sources, there are free shuttle from different pick up points to Sedibagar terminal to catch the first service in time for sunrise. 

I am quite sure there must be fare paying buses to get to Lakeside at the very least but when I asked, I was told there wasn't any. So I ended up walking everywhere in Pokhara except when I arrived in Pokhara (taxi from airport to World Peace Pagoda) and on departure (bus from near guesthouse to main bus park, Prithvi Chowk)

I decided I wanted to try to catch both sunset and sunrise from Sarangkot so I spent a night there. Return ticket is valid for 7 days including day of purchase. My ticket was issued on 31/03/2024, and valid until 06/04/2024. 

Side note: 🦥