I had a bit of an adventure today and there was nothing better to do it in than my Indiana Jones T-shirt. In retrospect I would have probably been better off doing it in thongs over the trekking boots, even if I had to carry them.
Waking early, I scooted up to the viewpoint, which is a smally army camp of sorts. There was just me and a pom at the top, but you could see a small trail of headlights that were bringing up the earlyrisers.
The view was awesome. Could see every mountain peak and there was virtually no dust at all due to the rain. I just kicked back and took time to appreciate it, whilst all the others were panting up the long trail! I felt glad to be clad in footy socks and thongs whilst they all had the full kit on. The sunrise was one of the best I'd ever seen, with snap-happy tourists getting every angle. I admit I took my fair share of photos, but the pom and I were the only ones that actually sat down and had a good look outside of a camera lens. Somehow we knew that there was no way you'd capture the whole experience, so we savoured the moment.
After a leisurely breakfast overlooking the lake, I set off down the mountain ridge. I followed the road but used every short-cut I could between it! Kids were heading to school and most of them would demand chocolate or money. It was annoying, especially as they niftly climbed the trails I was panting down but it was comforting to know that they were using the same trails as I! I have to argue that even though you exert twice as much going uphill, it is still just as painfull on the down as your knees and ankles cop it bad!
I saved a lot of time and reached the bottom by about 10am. I continued on to the nearby Gurkha museum, which was quite ordinary. There were some army clothes and a lot of pictures but I can't say I was too captivated. The park across the road hid a good view of the Seti River Gorge, which was nice.
Chilling out at a restaurant, I managed to organise my bag being left there whilst I trekked to the caves. I told them I would be back for lunch. The waiter said to follow the road straight, so I did and what followed was an hour and a half of walking up then down. Totally pissed-off, I asked another guy for directions and he pointed at the road to the right. Glad to be on the right track, my feet were beginning to pain but not having the backpack was nice. When I finally reached Mahendra Gufa cave, it had a fancy path entrance and I was assured lights inside - no need to hire a torch. Well I was glad I had bought a little pocket light as the inside lights were three and far apart. It wasn't particularly bright for the big cavern but and progression was slow. The tunnel ended shortly and overall the cave was boring. Dismayed, I turned back towards the entrance light. Only it wasn't the fancy entrance, but a small hole which I crawled out of to be greeted by a few kids.
Tired and grumpy I headed back, considering not going to the bat caves. But as I walked past them I knew I would regret not going, so I hired my torch and crawled in. This cave was crazier - smaller path going into a huge cavern, with thousands of little bats clinging to the ceiling. A few Israeli tourists had joined me with my torch, scabbing the light I had paid for. It was good however as they were nice and helped me up the rather dangerous path to a narrow exit - I literally had to suck my breath! The whole experience reminded me of Durras North caves, without the beer and nudity.
Another long walk and a short taxi ride saw me back in Lakeside, savouring a lassi and Beef Teriyaki as the sun went down. My feet are blistered and I smelt pretty bad after 2 days of no showers, but it was definitely worth it! Plus with all the walking I saved about 20 bucks in taxis.
