Not much to do today but pack up and wait for the bus to take us back to Kathmandu. Having never been on a group trip like this before, I was a bit apprehensive of whether it would be for me or not. I had half expected a group of people who needed everything done for them and were looking for a trip of luxury in a rugged environment. But what I found was very much the opposite, everyone put in at the school and the group was always willing to get their hands dirty.
Being here as an observor in part, it’s been great to watch the members of the group choose thius adventure as their holiday . It would have been easy for them to have taken a holiday sitting on the beach sipping pina coladas. To choose this trip is an admirable and I’m sure ultimately more rewarding and memorable option.
The great thing about this group trip was that it was the only way that we could do it – as a group.
Apart from there being no teahouses to stay in and no clearly defined track to follow along the way it was only possible to get the work done at the school in a group of our size. So yes I would highly recommend a trip like this for those who generally feel adverse to travelling in a group situation. I never felt that I was part of a tourist group gawking at locals with cameras blazing which is something i had feared at the outset.
We arrive back in Kathmandu in the late afternoon, giving us the much needed hours to clean before dinner, included a 50cent cut-throat shave at the local barber.
It’s been a fantastic trip and of my three trips to Nepal this one definitely stands out. Being away from the well worn routes of the Annapurnas and the Everest region has been a glance at a different side of Nepal.
Seeing the local villages and being involved (albeit briefly) with the Phalunga Khola village and the Saramthali school has given me a glimpse of Nepal that feels infinitely more genuine then the ‘coca-cola, pizza and crowded tea houses’ trekking I’ve experienced elsewhere. Even without the feeling of giving something to a local community the trek to the Saramathali school was an experience unrivalled in my travels.
I couldn't reccommend this experience enough.
