OJM Travel Blog

This is taken in Dunche, Nepal where we started our Gosainkunda trek. These are two of the assistant guides that accompanied us on our expedition, Laxman Rai and Khem Rai , it was a pleasure to get to know them and their help was invaluable.

Without them, or people like them, trekking groups like ours would never get up the Himalayas, (or if we were to get up, we’d likely be very lost, tired and hungry!) They also made sure we all returned safely, their knowledge and fitness was incredible.

Whilst we were coming back down through the Helambu region I hurt my big toe by kicking a rock when I was preoccupied with the view. I had to go a little slower, also my boyfriend had pulled muscles in his knee and we were split from the main group, Laxman and the head Sherpa Tshering stayed behind and found us places to sleep with local families and made sure we were watered, safe and foot sure.

They kept offering to carry our bags and finally near the end of one day I gracefully gave my bag to Laxman  who carried it to the next place to sleep without even breaking a sweat!

The Sherpa Guides have had some tough times with tourists in the past, and it is really good to see that there are appropriate organisations now that make sure pay is fair and also what is expected of them is realistic. The International Mountain Explorers Connection (IMEC) has a good porter guide i can recommend and worth taking into account when planning your trek.

We invited all the staff to come and eat with us on our last night in Nepal and this was really nice to sit together and eat. I hope to be able to work with some of this team again next year, great company and the dal bhat (the local staple food) was amazing!

Here at this tea house I met this friendly couple and helped them sort through their sacred tea.  I was helping pick through the sacred flowers from the plant, and taking out the stamen/stigma, as this makes the tea bitter.The tea in Nepal is beautiful, it is very similar to Darjeeling tea in India.

There are four flushes of tea in Nepal:

• First flush – light and delicate
• Second flush – more flavour but still delicate
• Monsoon flush - very intense and dark
• Autumn flush – strong

A flush is the first picking season of the year

The tea in Langtang National park is grown only for consumption in the park and is for locals and teahouse use, what a great example of subsistence farming. The tea plant is also a used as a traditional  Buddhist  blessing.

I t was such a privilege to and drink some of the highest tea in the world, my recommended best cuppa is at 4,500m (14,400ft).

If you want to find out more about Nepalese tea click here.

Sanu is the latest recruit to Himalayan Footsteps and the OJM team. A young Nepali student passionate about tourism, her country, and all the good things tourism can do for Nepal.

Sanu is currently studying for a bachelors degree in Travel & Tourism Studies at Kathmandu Academy of Tourism & Hospitatlity. Her part time work with us compliments her studies and gives a great opportunity for work experience. She works closely with our senior guides and UK team to learn about the business with a view to taking a more senior role when she graduates.

Personaly speaking I am excited about the energy and ideas Sanu brings to my company, in my meetings with her she shows competence and a keen mind.

Listening to the views of young Nepalis, like Sanu, about where they think the direction of tourism should go is key to innovation and responsible tourism.

Welcome to the team!

We are delighted to approve your application to use the 2009 logo.. The logo has been approved on the basis of you supporting the principles of the Cape Town Declaration outlined in the online application form and in our Action pack.

We look forward to you playing an important role in showing what the travel and tourism industry can achieve in making the world a more responsible place to live and travel.

May I wish you a productive and successful 2009.

Best wishes to you and your team,

Yours sincerely,
Araminta Sugden
WRTD Co-ordinator

WTM World Responsible Tourism Day.
Tel: 01892 535943
Fax: 01892 535943
Email: wtmwrtd@janelarcombecommunications.com’

It is so funny but do you still want to know the reason why?

I was born and bought up in the New Road area at the heart of Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. After I finished my schooling, I choose the faculty of business administartion for my further studies. 

The accounts module was the most difficult subject for me, so I decided to go for extra classes at Asan Chok which is hardly 10 minutes walk from New Road. I used to take the straight way to Asan Chok via Indrachok but few times I also took the short cut when I went with my friends. There are so many small and narrow streets in Kathmandu, it is very confusing.

And that was the day when I was alone, still decided to take the short way… I got lost and was late for my class, oops!

At home I spoke with my sister and told her what happened - she immediately gave me a new name called “KATHMANDU KO PAKHEY” which means a “Pakhey of Kathmandu”. Pakhey, is actually a villager from a completely Remote Area, who doesn’t even know how to cross the road as he might not have seen a car in his life. It was actually very embarrassing as she just didn’t care and called me with this name infront of anyone and teasing me all the time. The limit is there for everything. I challenged her “ONE DAY I WILL TAKE HER AND SHOW HER EVERY PART OF NEPAL, JUST NOT KATHMANDU”.

After graduation, I took training for Tourist Guide and did a diploma in Tourism Management & Ticketing, as well and further studies on Tourism Trade and destination management .

So the day came to prove, I am not “PAKHEY” at all.

I was out for a walk with my dear sister and I asked her pointing different temples, monuments, if she knew anything about it?  She replied “Nooo”. I explained to her even about who and when it was built. And without losing a second I said “You don’t know because you are a “KATHMANDU KO PAKHEY”. WOW, THAT WAS ACTUALLY A GREAT MOMENT. AAAHHHH, I was so relieved.

And till now I am involved with tourism, with work experience in different countries in tourism, now working for OJM Travel & Himalayan Footsteps.

I would like to congratulate the people of Bundanoon, 100 miles south of Sydney, Australia, for banning the use of bottled water.

I would like more people, especially tourists to start purifying and filtering their own water for drinking.

The amount of waste produced by bottled water is just out of control. Even here in the U.K people have been conned into buying bottled water, even though we have some of the safest cleanest drinking water in the world.

I suggest for travellers to get a recyclable reusable drinking bottles and go online or to your local camping shop to get your purifying kits before you go. You can also get good advice from all good travel clinics

Please check out this link for more water facts…..

http://www.traveldoctor.co.uk/sundries.html
http://www.allaboutwater.org/environment.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bottled_water#Waste

I have arrived safely back after having a spectacular experience.

I most enjoyed meeting my colleagues in Nepal and it was a great chance for me to see how they worked. They helped me enhance my knowledge of the culture and language, I had great fun trying out phrases and asking for translations. I highly recommend that when you travel to put shyness out the window and get stuck into those phrase books!!! It really makes some memorable times …especially when trying haggle for a bargain!!

It was amazing going to Gosaikunda  “Shiva’s sacred lakes”, the Sherpa’s who helped us all trek up there, were fantastic and we were welcomed into tea houses and local sherpa/ Tamang homes along the way , which really made me humbled to be so well looked after .

I also enjoyed being accepted by such a lively student group, for many it was the first time travelling without parents and their first time out of the E.U. I hope that this has opened them to travel the world as Responsible Tourists.

They were fantastic with the children from the Rainbow and Ratnamaya  orphanages. I loved meeting all the children and Goma (the house mother) a beautiful bright gaggle of children, who I am looking forward to be working with to help improve their education and living standards.

I really enjoyed helping the students enhance their time in Nepal. After this experience am looking forward to Organising the next expedition!!!

I am putting together a full diary of my trip.. I don’t want to miss anyone out that I met or the hotels I reviewed, so keep an eye out for this.

A fantastic chance to see 3 short films about very entertaining stories from Nepal made by Nepali’s. This is a second showing after a very successful debut in May at Edinburgh’s Filmhouse – read earlier blog.

I have seen these films before, they are very good, I will be at this event too, hope to see you there as guests of Himalayan Footsteps.

The details are below:

NEPAL CHAUTARI EVENING FILM PROGRAMME with Aman Adhikary

Where? Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh
When? Thursday, 23rd July

18.30 Drinks and snacks RBGE conference room.

19.00 film 1: SUK BAHADUR ADHIKARI, CLASS IV: a quest of a 79 year old man for education. Duration: 23 minutes, Lecture Theatre.

19.30 Food and drink – “Pot Luck” in the conference room.

20.15 film 2: …AND THIS IS MY STORY: a deaf girl’s struggle in the real world. Duration : 7 mins, Lecture Theatre.

20.25 film 3: A DAY IN THE LIFE OF JOONGEY DAI: the one with the moustache. Duration : 15 mins, Lecture Theatre.

21.15 Depart