III.II.V CITY OF LAKES The second leg of our journey involved a super bumpy eight-hour bus ride that took us straight to Pokhara; the City of Lakes. Aptly known as the tourism capital of Nepal, Pokhara is a destination for many avid adventurers seeking to brave the Annapurna Circuit. Though we wouldn’t get to do that, the scenic drive there already […]
III.II.IV – Difference
III.II.IV DIFFERENCE Keep in mind that the universe loves to prove me wrong. Much to my surprise and as busy as we were, we still had plenty of time to roam about and discover the city. And when we were done with orientation, it was finally time for us to roll our sleeves and start our volunteering. After being introduced […]
III.II.III – The Great Divide
III.II.III THE GREAT DIVIDE Over the first week in Nepal, we were kept busy with the orientation program. We were taught some basic Nepali, informed about their customs and told what we were to do. We parted ways with the rest of the group who’d be participating in other programs; mainly construction, female empowerment and teaching, and, as the only […]
III.II.II – Land of the Gods
III.II.II LAND OF THE GODS I might be in love with travelling, but if there’s one thing I hate, it’s long-haul flights. Seriously, hate them with a passion. My nose alternates between being as dry as a fistful of Martian soil and bleeding like a stuck pig, my joints and muscles age by fifty years and my hypothalamus suddenly decides […]
III.II.I – Gearing Up
III.II.I GEARING UP Islander lifestyle be damned. Something much better was in store for me. Something my friends and I had been planning for months on end was now just around the corner. Something… Okay, I’m done with all the suspense. As soon as exams were done and dusted, we were gonna fly off to Nepal! But it wasn’t just […]
II.III.IX – Home
II.III.IX HOME Constantly moving on from adventure to another, I failed to notice my time in Colombia was almost up. On my last day, I opened my eyes and I was wide awake. I wanted to keep them closed, to go back to sleep. I wanted to stay in that moment right before you wake up – when things are […]
II.III.VIII – Wandering
II.III.VIII WANDERING Just before we’d get to enjoy the city of Bogotá, we had one final road trip planned in order to cover as much ground as possible. Luckily, Pedro’s father offered his car for that. Our first stop was the Catedral de Sal de Zipaquirá which are salt mines extending some 650 feet underground with a church at their epicentre. Apart from being […]
II.III.V – Reconnected
II.III.V RECONNECTED read on the doe The long-awaited third day was finally upon us. The day we’d get to see the Lost City. I couldn’t believe we were almost there. All battered, bruised and blistered I had persevered. It would still be a long way to go and really, we had only covered half the trek so far. But I […]
II.III.IIII – Tairona
II.III.IIII TAIRONA Somehow, against all odds, I woke up feeling better than ever. We got up, shook off our boots in case of spiders and scorpions (because apparently these things happen), and headed out before dawn in order to get a head start on what was to be the most challenging of days. We trekked along the riverside of the […]