Visit to Pokhara Nepal and Wheelchair Distribution

One of the highlights of our visit to Nepal was a three day trip to Pokhara, a city 125 miles west of Kathmandu. Three couples and Rakesh Hamal made the trip in this nine passenger van. The road is two lane and goes through 70 miles of winding mountain roads. It is a major thoroughfare between India and Nepal, so all trucks and buses going to Kathmandu from the West take this road. The main purpose of the trip was to attend a wheelchair distribution ceremony arranged by Rakesh with a local rehabilitation organization. Pokhara is a hub for tourists coming to hike in the Himalaya Mountains. The Annapurna Circuit trails include several mountains over 24,000 feet high. The circuit winds around the valleys below the mountains showing spectacular views. A high point near the town allows tourists to watch a sunrise that casts beautiful lights on the mountain tops. This time of year the valley haze is thick, but we were still able to see the mountains in the distance and watch the sun come up. A lake near the city is a popular place to rent a canoe and enjoy the scenery. We saw many beautiful valleys on the trip with terraced gardens, water buffalos helping the farmers, acres of rice fields, and lots of traffic. We enjoyed our visit. The beneficiaries of the wheelchairs were very grateful for the gift of movement for them. We give 750 wheelchairs to the Nepalese each year in about 30 different distributions.


This air conditioned large van made the trip very pleasant.

Representative of the country side we went through.

Goats and cows grazing together.

A farmer with his water buffalo working the fields

This fiddler entertained us as we made a rest stop. He appreciated the money I gave him to thank him for entertaining us. Listen to his music on the video below.

The fiddler makes beautiful Nepalese music.

The farmers plant their crops in terraces carved into the hills.

The farmers grow all kinds of vegatables in the terraces: corn, cabbage, broccoli etc

The water buffalo or "buff" as it is called is not considered sacred, so it can be eaten by the natives. It also works the fields.

Phewa lake in Pokhara. A Buddhist shrine is on the island and the monks will show you their buildings. Accessible by canoes. Our time schedule precluded a visit.

Enlarge so you can read a history of Phewa Lake

We walked to the lake early on a morning. I'm wearing one of the shirts I purchased with pictures of the peaks.

The sun cast light on the mountains several minutes before it came up. Mountains are surrounding the sun, though they are hard to see.

This is a picture of the range taken in the early winter when the haze is less, and from a village closer to the range.

This shirt outlines the circuit trail that many trekkers take. Several days are required for the trip.

A colorful shirt I'm bringing home.

This picture does not capture the mountains as clear as we saw them, but it gives you an idea.

Enlarge for a better view of the range.

We were helped by a native Nepalese, Sopie, who lives with his wife, son, sister and parents in a house on the mountain near the top. He comes most mornings to help the older tourists traverse the steps. He was very solicitous of Sister Smith. He spoke very good English as well as five other languages. He is now studying Japanese.

This is Sopie's sister who weaves beautiful spreads and table runners. We bought one of her creations to bring home.

Some of the hand woven products.

The banner announcing the wheelchair distribution and LDSC's role in it.

Beneficiaries and their families attend the distribution. It was held in the early afternoon under a plastic top. It was very warm.

A pitcher given to us in memory of our visit. Enlarge it to see our names engraven on it.

A beneficiary being fitted to a special chair.

Even a small child is given a better life with a wheelchair.

This man contracted a diseaser similar to polio while he was a child. He has been in a wheelchair for many years. He works for the local rehabilitation center. He thanked us in English for our contribution.

Each recipient receives a laminated sheet which describes how to use a wheelchair.

Mothers helping their children go to school. Notice the school bus.

We saw many fields of rice with water covering the earth.

Women working in the rice fields.

This truck didn't make one of the turns. If protestors want to disrupt things, they can pull something like this onto the highway and stop all flow either way.

We hit a one hour delay on our return to Kathmandu. All you can do is wait. The line stretches for miles.

A view of the road and valley. Traffic is builiding up.

This is a backpack that advertises Nepal.

A local member carves these nativity sets. We will add it to our Laos set that we purchased there. This sets fits into the box for storage.

A shot of some of the things we brought back. The blue cover was give to us by the staff of the English Training Center. We will long remember the sights and people of Nepal. We hope that politically they can bring unity and democracy to their country.