From Myanmar to Sierra Leone to Belarus: Insights to my life as a travelling journalist

Posted on 21. March 2019 by Eva Hirschi

Even though I know that my current lifestyle may seem a bit extreme for some people, these past weeks have reached a new level – even for me. Usually, it’s easy to follow my travels more or less on social media, but for the past three months I’ve been less active in the online world. On the one hand, it’s all been trips focussed much more on journalism than on travelling per se, while on the other hand, I got a bit tired of trying to keep up with everything on social media.

Meanwhile, I absolutely agree that keeping a neat social media profile (whether it’s just for fun or as a tool for self-promotion/marketing) is to some extent a job on its own as well. And even though journalists like to claim a blog is a good tool for self-promotion too, in my case it’s probably more a way of procrastinating really, so since some of my friends (and even my mum…) desperately lost track of where I am and what I’m doing, I thought I’d write a little update.

Impression from my work in Myanmar.

After my three and a half months in Myanmar where I was working at the local magazine “Frontier” as part of a programme of the Department of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland, together with the biggest journalism school in Switzerland (which I didn’t attend), I came back home in December for… one week!

My brother had offered our family a trip to Ireland for Christmas, which was a great idea since I’d rather use the time over Christmas to discover something new with my family than going through the same procedures at home as every year. No articles from Ireland though, just leisure time.

Hiking in Ireland.

This time, I got back to Switzerland for… two weeks. One of the problems, if you not only study international relations but also have international relations, is that your friends are scattered all around the world. So occasionally it might occur that you get an invitation for the 30th birthday of a friend in… Finland. But since it was during the rare periods I was actually in Europe, and since I work independently, there was no reason not to go and I was absolutely happy to meet my friend and another good friend from Stockholm in Helsinki.

We’ve all been studying together in Stockholm in 2013 and still keep in touch today. As I (obviously) like to work from different places, I stayed a few days longer and while my Finnish friend, also a journalist, was at the office, I worked from different cafés in Helsinki, finishing my last pieces about Myanmar and starting to prepare my next trip to Sierra Leone.

Frozen sea in Helsinki.

Yes, back to Africa! The reason: There is a student’s organization in Switzerland called IFIL – Initiative for Intercultural Learning – which organizes study trips to interesting countries once a year. The organizers are usually students or young graduates who have a special link to the country. As a student, I’ve been on one of their trips to Tanzania back in 2014 and absolutely loved this mix of meetings with officials (for example from the African Court of Human Rights, the Department for Youth and Sports, the Swiss embassy etc.) or people from civil society (for example from NGOs, orphanages or the university).

This year, there was a trip to Sierra Leone – a country I didn’t know much about, but which had somehow caught my curiosity. My plan of course: First the ten-day study trip with the group, and then staying another ten days on my own to do some research for articles.

Travelling through Sierra Leone with a backpack.

Backpacking in Sierra Leone.

If you’re the only journalist in the group and there is a blog that needs to be written, you know whose task it’s going to be. So I won’t write about our experiences here again, but will point you to the link to the blog (which is in English too): Sierra Leone travel blog for IFIL.

After this fun trip with a fantastic group, I researched on various topics such as the catastrophic landslide that occurred in 2017, the role of radio during the Ebola crisis, the problem with bushmeat and endangered chimpanzees, and the role of telecommunication companies as bank substitutes for money transfers. I also spontaneously climbed the highest mountain in West Africa, Mount Bintumani (1945m), which was definitely worth it even though I managed to hurt my foot.

Hiking through the jungle.

Back in Switzerland, I only had one week before my next trip to Belarus. This one was a press trip, meaning a Swiss NGO working on human rights in Belarus and Ukraine had organized a trip for journalists around the topic of human rights and repression, with a focus on the situation of homeless people.

I was curious to discover the probably least-known country of Europe, and especially topics related to human rights. It was a very intense time full of meetings with highly interesting people, projects and organisations and we also visited cities in the east and the west of the country.

Research in Belarus with a group of journalists. Photo: Marco Fieber.

While I usually don’t buy a return ticket if I don’t need to, for this trip I’ve booked the return ticket even before I booked the ticket to go to Minsk. The reason: I’ve received an invitation to speak at a journalism conference, with the aim to share my experience as a freelance journalist in Myanmar.

It was not the first time I was invited as a speaker, but usually, it was for smaller organisations in a more informal way – this time, I was going to get paid for it and they would even print my face on flyers, wow! Of course, I didn’t do it for this reason – as you might imagine, such conferences are always a great opportunity to network, which in journalism – especially as a freelancer – is very important.

Coffee and passion helped me through this day, after having slept only two hours since I’ve had to catch the earliest flight possible back to Zurich Switzerland, in order to be able to arrive at the conference in time. Nevertheless, the whole conference was very interesting and definitely worth it. A short conversation I had when I arrived and people looked at my luggage with the airport tag actually pretty well sums up my last few weeks:

“Oh, are you coming directly from Myanmar?”

Me: “No, no, from Belarus.”

Someone else, looking at the splint on my foot: “Oh, so did you hurt your foot in Belarus?”

Me: “No, no, in Sierra Leone.”

…my life as a travelling journalist in a nutshell.

Working at the beach in Sierra Leone.

The other side of Beijing

Posted on 5. March 2018 by Eva Hirschi

When we think about Beijing, famous landmarks like Tiananmen Square, Summer Palace or the Forbidden City come to our mind. But there is much more to see in Beijing, and it is relatively easy to discover the local life off the touristic path.

Imagine an industrial area with old warehouses and shacks made out of red bricks which now host galleries, museums, studios, bookstores, craft shops and cafés. Strolling along those buildings, you find artistic sculptures, charming patios and colourful flower pots, and you see fancy dressed women asking their husbands to take pictures of them in front of the graffiti walls. It feels like being in hipster Soho or Berlin Kreuzberg, but with an Asian touch. This is 798 Art District, my favourite part of Beijing.

Courtyard in the art district

It bears a certain irony though that the art scene decided to settle down in the former working area, in the old buildings of factories from the times of the Cultural Revolution when culture, art, creativity and individualism were oppressed. On some walls, you can still see the old Maoist slogans and some shops sell vintage Maoist junk and t-shirts making fun of the former chairman (but also Hitler or even Trump…).

798 Art District in Beijing

Hidden old town

Who is rather looking for traditional places in Beijing needs to know how to find them. While the centre of many European cities still lies around the carefully preserved old town, in Beijing and many other Asian countries this is rarely the case as old areas often got torn down in order to build a modern part of the city.

In Beijing, there are still some parts of what used to be the old town, but they are mostly hidden behind stylish buildings, cut off the main road. The government felt shameful for those less fancy and less shiny parts of the city and cleaned up big areas, which means either they renovated it or completely destroyed it so they could build a new neighbourhood.

A renovated hutong

To find the real old town in Beijing, you need to look for hutongs. Hutong is the name for the old, narrow alleys with traditional courtyard residences, formed by single-story, concrete buildings. In the past, there were more than 3000 hutongs around the Forbidden City, but today only about 1000 of those still exist.

But this is where the local life takes place, especially outside on the streets, since the buildings usually are very small. Walking through these neighbourhoods you might find kids running around, cats sleeping in the sun, families sharing meals and old men playing the traditional Chinese game Mah Jongg.

Daily life in hutongs

I was surprised by the large amount of (clean!) public toilets in those areas, but thanks to a Chinese girl I met through Couchsurfing, I learned that these toilets were not built for tourists – many of these old houses simply don’t have its own bathroom, so public restrooms and showers in the streets serve as common bathroom, still today.

Even though hutongs are becoming the more the more popular amongst tourists (national as well as international) it is still relatively easy to find some streets in which rarely a tourist passes by. Yet, some of these neighbourhoods seem to go with the time and get commercially oriented, opening rooftop bars and having cafés with patios and offering fancy hand drip coffee. No surprise that this is a place where mostly local hipsters and expats hang out.

Green lung

Another part I really liked in Beijing are the parks, like Beihai park or Jingshan park. From the latter you have a nice view on the Forbidden City and modern Beijing. Even though you don’t really escape the smog in those parks neither, it is at least a nice possibility to bypass the traffic and rumble on the main streets.

Green spaces in Beijing

The locals as well enjoy their green spaces, not only for a walk but as a multifunctional gathering place. Picnics with the multigenerational families seem to be the main activity here, couples rent small boats to row on the lake, and you will also find people doing exercises, Tai Chi or running, or groups singing and dancing together – something which wasn’t possible a few years back.

Dancing in a park in Beijing

#EvaMeetsWorld – Dawid: Holidays that changed his life

Posted on 27. September 2017 by Eva Hirschi

Dawid was looking for a new job when he found a volunteering trip to Nepal. While the data analyst was mixing cement for a new school on the top of a mountain during his holidays, he realised that this trip was about to change his life.

I met Dawid in a small town more than 140 km outside of Kathmandu. Dawid is a 29-years old Polish guy living in England. He was part of a project which aimed to rebuild a school that had been destroyed by the recent earthquake. My friend and I went to see their project and to give a hand for the day. Quickly I realised that for Dawid, this was not just an interesting way to spend his vacation, there was more to it.

Looking for a job and finding a trip

Travelling has always been part of Dawid’s life, up to four times a year he tries to go somewhere he’s never been before and be it just a different town in the UK for a long weekend. He loves to discover new places, especially in his own way: «I don’t like to visit a city by taxi or rickshaw, I usually run», he says. He doesn’t use a precise map but just runs through different streets. «I love getting lost because then I find myself.»

But actually, Dawid was not looking for vacation when he found this trip to Nepal: «My main drive is knowledge», says Dawid. «In my job, I haven’t learned anything new in one year, so I was browsing for a new job, without any specific idea in mind, more a bit like window shopping…»

While looking for different job offers, he happened to stumble upon a Canadian organisation that was looking for volunteers for a school-building project in Nepal. The earthquake of April 2015 had destroyed many schools, one of them in a small town on a mountain close to Gorkha where the epicentre of the earthquake was. The plan was to work on the school for two weeks, and to do some sightseeing on a few days, to see the Himalaya and Kathmandu.

No fear of challenges

Dawid got interested. He liked the idea of combining travel with volunteering. This trip was quite expensive, even the flight itself. «But I wanted it really bad, so I made it happen.» This is a Leitmotiv he follows in his life in general. «I hate standing still.»

When he was 19, he left his home country Poland to go to the UK in search of work. He was not afraid of arriving in an unknown country, no, he was hungry for the unknown. He found a job, an apartment, friends. He realised he had managed to build himself a new life in a completely different environment. When the company proposed to send him to the branch in Singapore, he happily accepted this challenge, too.

So Nepal was his next big adventure. Used to work on a computer as a data analyst for a behavioural marketing company, he found himself in a sleeveless shirt mixing cement with water under the burning sun. And surprisingly, he felt satisfaction. «Volunteering for an NGO is much more rewarding than working for a company where you are just a small fish in a pond», he says.

Doing something good while travelling

This experience made Dawid discover that there was something in his mind that had been sleeping for years: «I don’t want to make money, I want to do something that matters.» His first decision was: «No more two-weeks-on-the-beach vacations: I want to do something good when I travel.» There are many NGOs who are in need of volunteers, and at the same time, it would allow him to discover a new place, a new culture. «Anyway, it is not possible to say which projects deserve more attention, so I just pick the ones which are in a region I’d love to discover.»

Soon, he realised that this would not satisfy him. Why only doing good when travelling? «I decided to quit my job and look for work in an NGO», Dawid says.

Meanwhile, he found a job in an NGO in Honduras and left the UK for good. A new life is awaiting him.

And he’s sure to go back to Nepal, too. A freshly made tattoo on his leg keeps a permanent reference mark of this experience on his skin: a volunteering-travel trip which had literally changed his life. His advice to other travellers: «Don’t think too much, but have an open heart.» And: «Don’t take a cab. Just walk.»

Solo travelling in India as a woman

Posted on 14. May 2017 by Eva Hirschi

There are many horror stories and prejudices about travelling in India as a woman. I travelled one month from the North to the South of India, most of the time on my own, and had an amazing time. So I thought I might share my experiences with you and give some recommendations.

When I told people I would travel to India alone, many were very surprised, sceptical or even shocked. «Alone, as a woman, really?», is a phrase I heard often. Many told me to be careful and talked about all the stories they had heard about girls getting robbed or raped, if not even killed.

After all those stories I thought I would better ask someone who definitely knows whether travelling through India as a blonde European girl was a big risk or not: My (female!) Indian friend who is living in Ahmedabad. Her answer: «It usually not a problem (given that you practice caution)»

Train rides in India.

So I started my journey in November. The first two weeks I travelled with her and her friends, then I visited the touristic part (Rajasthan, Agra and Delhi) on my own, spent another few days with her and then travelled alone down to Kochi. And I must say: It was absolutely fantastic! I had no bad experiences, neither with men nor with women (okay, one bad encounter was the one with a street dog who bit me, but I doubt it was because I am a blonde European girl travelling alone….).

Of course, I cannot tell whether I was just lucky or if I was just very careful. Also, I must say I travelled in touristic places only (on purpose, as it was my first time in India and on my own, I felt it would be more secure to go to places where they are used to see tourists). Anyhow, here are my few basic rules I followed during this trip:

Dress properly – as conservative as this may sound, it is important. I do not say that it is the ultimate protection and that only lightly dressed women get stared at or raped. You can be sure that as a (very) blonde woman I got a lot of attention anywhere anyhow. But it is important not to provoke either. And even if a girl does not mind having men staring at her, in my opinion, it is also a sign of respect to dress appropriately to the culture. In hot and not very clean India loose and wide pants or a long skirt are more comfy anyway than hotpants. Instead of tank tops, I wore long thin blouses which would also prevent me from getting sunburnt so there are several reasons which speak for such an outfit.

Travelling to Taj Mahal

Hitting the bed early: I always tried to reach my accommodation before sunset, so I could see the surrounding area during daylight. If I felt secure I would maybe just go grab a bite close by, but not going out wandering the streets in the dark on my own. As a tourist, it is hard to know which areas are safe or not, so I preferred to stay in my room, read a bit and most of the time I would fall asleep early anyway, exhausted after a long day. And – theoretically not being a morning person – I started enjoying the early hours of the morning when the city just wakes up.

The thing with the ring: Many people recommend to wear a ring and to pretend to be married. Actually, an Indian guy I met on the street told me if someone annoys me, I should just tell this person that my husband would not allow me to talk to strangers. This seemed to be a good answer, especially coming from a local and male person. In the end, I did not wear a ring but I felt like every second person I was talking to would ask me anyway sooner or later whether I was married or not. It is not necessarily because I felt safer when I started replying with «yes», but because I actually got a bit annoyed by their surprised, even shocked reactions when I told them I was not. 26 years old seems to be rather «old» for getting married for some Indians, so I prefer to say «yes» anyway.

Indian marriage: The groom arrives on an elephant.

Taxi/Rickshaw drivers: When I would take a rickshaw or taxi, I would usually either write down or take a picture of the license plate of the vehicle (in a way the driver sees it) or call my hostel/guesthouse and hand over the phone so he could explain the way to the driver who rarely knew the small, cheap places I stayed in – and in this way he would also know there was someone waiting for me and knowing where I was. I also used Uber a lot, which made me feel more secure, too.

Look for female accomplice or families: In public transportation, I tried to sit next to women, old couples or families because I felt more secure that way. And not only foreigners risk getting stuff stolen from a train ride, so sometimes families showed me how I could tie my backpack to the metal pole underneath my seat to be sure it does not get stolen while I would be sleeping.

Women only waiting room in Goa at the train station

At the train station in Goa.

Special lines for women only – actually, not only foreign women take care in India but also local women. In train stations or at the subway, the lines for the security check were usually separated for men and women, which was a big advantage because fewer women than men take the subway in India, so the line was moving quicker for the girls – finally the opposite to the bathroom lines… Also, waiting rooms are separated by sex which was very comfortable. At the subway in Delhi, there is even one waggon reserved for women only at the very beginning of the subway. But do not think it is easier to get into this one than into the common ones – Indian women are really good at pushing their way through, too. 😉

At the subway in Delhi

So after travelling one month through India on my own, I can say it is an amazing country definitely worth a visit – also for the female solo traveller. I met many amazing people and had a great experience. Talking with many Indians I actually got the impression that Indians seemed to feel sorry for this bad image India has gotten, and they wanted to show that it is just a minority that treats women disrespectful or is only interested in your money.

The good side about this whole polemic is that it raised awareness for solo female travellers. It is not only important in India to be cautious when travelling alone, but also in other countries. I recommend being rather safe than sorry, stick to a few basic rules and also listen to intuition. With this mix, travelling in India – and in other countries – as a woman is definitely a great experience!

Travelling as a woman in India? No problem!

Mardi Himal Trek – a hidden beautiful trek in the Himalaya

Posted on 4. March 2017 by Eva Hirschi

For our hike in Nepal we chose a less popular trek in the Annapurna region, it was called the Mardi Himal trek – and it turned out to be the best decision we could have made. It was an authentic and beautiful hike up to 4500 meters with a fantastic view of the Himalayas!

(Find some valuable tips for your hike at the end of this blog post)

My friend and I had one common box we needed checked on our bucket list: completing a Himalayan trek. A Nepali friend of mine recommended the Mardi Himal trek – a short (five days) but beautiful trek up to 4500 meters above sea level with a fantastic view on the Annapurna mountains and Machhapuchchre.

Mardi Himal Trek – Photo: Eva Hirschi

Since it is a relatively new trek, opened officially in 2011 with tea houses in regular distances up to High Camp, it is not that famous yet (and not in Lonely Planet!) which means it’s less crowded and even cheaper than the popular ABC circuit, so we agreed it would be perfect for us – off the main touristic paths. Because of its length and simplicity, it allowed us to complete the trek without a guide.

Although guides can be very useful and important for longer treks, we felt more comfortable doing it our way, feeling confident enough coming from another mountain country, and hiking in a team of three, together with my friend and her adorable boyfriend.

We started our trek from a village called Dhampus, a one-hour jeep drive from Pokhara. We arrived in Pokhara from Kathmandu by a public bus, took the jeep our Nepali friend had booked for us, and spent the night in Dhampus at the lodge called «Paradise view» to get energy for the next days of hiking.

Hotel Paradise View in Dhampus before starting the Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

The view from our hotel in Dhampus – Photo: Johannes Nachbar

Day 1: From sunrise through the forest

The first day, we got up at 5:30am to see the night fading and the new day arriving.

Instead of having breakfast, we started our trek right away. Our Nepali friend recommended this so that we would have a nice view of the mountains for breakfast, and not start the trek with a full stomach. The beautiful sunrise itself gave us the strength and energy we needed to start our adventure anyway.

The first day of our trek led all the way through the forest. Even if I couldn’t wait to be close to the mountains, I enjoyed this part a lot since the forests in Nepal look so different from the forests in Switzerland. We saw many beautiful rhododendrons and other plants, and even discovered a small Buddhist temple with a nice view of the valley.

Buddhist temple in the forest – Photo: Eva Hirschi

We arrived at our breakfast spot roughly after 1.5 hours of hiking. Deurali (2100m) consists only of a few houses and you get a nice view of the mountains. Our recommendation for a tasty and strengthening breakfast: milk porridge with fresh fruits! With this energy, we reached our first accommodation, Forest Camp on 2600 meters, within a bit more than three hours from the breakfast place.

The first part of the trek was quite steep, but later on, there were some parts that were flat or even went downhill, so all in all it was well balanced. After this first five-hour hike with an elevation of around 1000m, we relaxed at the nice «Green view Hotel», playing with the owner’s kids who were spending their school holidays up here.

Hiking through the jungle on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

Hiking through the jungle – Photo: Johannes Nachbar

Hint: Take a shower (bucket shower but with warm water right from the fire) because later on, you won’t get a chance to…

Day 2: Passing the tree line and arriving… in the fog

After a good night of sleep, we continued our trek again early in the morning around 6 o’clock. Today’s hike should reach an elevation of again around 1000 meters in order to reach High Camp. Our goal was to get breakfast at a small teahouse on the way.

After half an hour, we reached a house from which we had a nice view on Machhapuchchre again. We continued straight through the forest and realised later that this must have been our breakfast place. But after two more hours, we already reached Low Camp so we could have a break there – there was a stunning view too!

Break at Low Camp on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

Not tired yet 😉 Breakfast break at Low Camp.

After the last part through the forest, we reached the tree line but instead of having a nice view of the surrounding mountains, we entered into a cloud of fog. Every few meters, the fog became thicker and thicker, adding some adventure and mystical flavours to the experience. We enjoyed it, knowing that in the next early morning, the sky would be clear again.

Head in the clouds on Mardi Himal Trek in the Annapurna Region of Nepal

Head in the clouds… – Photo: Johannes Nachbar

After two and a half more hours of hiking, we finally reached High Camp (3550m). At this point, we could only see a distance of three meters and there was a freezing cold wind. We went straight to our accommodation: the «Fishtail Guesthouse», where we warmed up in the fire oven, drinking hot milk tea.

Raj Kumar is the owner of this guesthouse and one of the most welcoming and nicest Nepali we met on our trip. For the next two days, he would make sure that we always got some nice hot tea or our beloved Dal Bhat – a Nepali meal consisting of rice, a lentils soup, some vegetables and pickles. On a trek, it is the best food to get energy, or as the Nepali say: «Dal Bhat power – 24 hours!»

Warming up next to the fire with milk tea at High Camp on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

Warming up next to the fire with milk tea – Photo: Johannes Nachbar

Day 3: Breathtaking experience – in two senses

The big day had come! Today, we wanted to hike as high as possible on Mardi Mountain. We got up before sunrise, but late enough so we wouldn’t need any torches. We knew that the foggy clouds would rise soon after 9 or 10 o’clock so we didn’t want to miss the clear view before.

The first part of the hike direction Mardi Himal Base Camp was very steep, at some point, we almost needed to climb the rocks. Soon, the sun rose above the mountains and it quickly became warmer (also because of the bigger physical effort for sure).

Beautiful hike – Photo: Eva Hirschi

We realized how the air was getting thinner with every meter we gained in altitude, and one friend had to deal with some effects of altitude sickness, feeling nauseous and having a headache, we took it slowly and made sure to drink enough water and to eat chocolate and nuts, to keep our blood sugar level up.

After two hours, we reached the first viewpoint. We were just in time to enjoy the last minutes of a clear sight on Machhapuchchre, before the clouds started to enclose the peak, then the rest of the mountain, like a white winter coat.

First view point on Macchapucchre (Fishtail) on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

First viewpoint on Mardi Himal and Macchapucchre (Fishtail) – Photo: Johannes Nachbar

But we were not yet satisfied; our goal was to reach the upper viewpoint.

We hiked for two more hours, enjoying the view despite the – here in the high altitude higher – physical effort. Finally, we saw the sign with colourful praying flags on it – we reached almost 4500 meters! An overwhelming feeling overcame us, looking on the white giants on one side, and the valley with a dark mountain range, which seemed endless on the other side.

Upper View Point on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

We made it – almost 4500 meters above sea level! – Photo: Eva Hirschi

The clouds were rising, so we decided it wouldn’t be worth to hike up to Base Camp because we wouldn’t have had any views anyway, and would make our descent unnecessarily more dangerous. After a break, we started our hike back. On our way, we met a smiling Israeli with a long white beard sitting on a rock, and a bunch of Nepalese next to him. It turned out they were part of the rescue team, searching for a missing Israeli guy.

We had an interesting conversation with the man, about the power of mountains, the weight of years and the understanding of strangers. Instead of searching planlessly the area, they would try to understand the behaviour and thoughts of the Israeli, hoping to be able to trace his way by logic rather than by chance. We left them not without promising we wouldn’t take the short cut, but take the longer but safer way back down (not mentioning though that we had taken this precise shortcut on our way up…).

Pure happiness. View on Annapurna mountains on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal.

Pure happiness. View on Annapurna mountains. – Photo: Lorène Métral

Finally, we reached High Camp again. The rest of the afternoon we spent heating up with tea first, then relaxing with a well deserved Nepali Ice beer. At one point, we found ourselves sitting around the warm oven in the middle of a group of Nepali, who offered us Nepali Whiskey, which is mixed with water and drunk warm. Soon, we felt the heat also inside the body and had a funny, laid back afternoon.

Day 4: Down, down, down

Since this was our last morning high in the mountains, and since we’d become used to getting up early, we decided to enjoy the sunrise one more time. We climbed up a small hill behind the guesthouse and could feel the euphoria filling our heart as the sun started dipping the mountains in a pinkish warm light. We felt the sunlit loneliness as if we were the only ones in this magical world.

Sunlit loneliness in the Annapurna mountains on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

Sunlit loneliness – Photo: Eva Hirschi

Then began our descent. The first part was truly beautiful and we realised which endless view we had missed when we were hiking up in the thick fog.

We couldn’t help but stop every few meters to take pictures or just to enjoy the majestic view. At Badal Danda, we got breakfast and saw the clouds coming up. Especially in this time of the year (October in our case), it’s worth to get up early since clouds are coming up rather fast, mostly around 9:30 to 10 o’clock already.

Feeling like on top of the world on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

On top of the world. – Photo: Lorène Métral

Then the path re-entered the forest, and the descent turned out to be more challenging than expected. Instead of going down to Forest Camp, we took the left path, which led to a village called Sidding. Not only was it a steep path, but also there were many loose rocks on the ground, which made it slippery. My friends soon felt their knees but I was lucky and didn’t feel any pain except for the tired feet.

As we reached the first houses of Sidding, next to rice fields and bamboos, we had a tea break before looking for our tonight’s accommodation. Raj Kumar, our friendly host at the High Camp had organised us a home stay accommodation – at his family’s place.

We were looking forward to this experience, even though we soon realised that there was a language barrier. At least with two men we were able to communicate, and especially with one of Raj’s brothers, we learned a lot about the current working situation for Nepali men.

Homestay in Sidding in Nepal on Mardi Himal Trek in Nepal

Our homestay in Sidding – Photo: Eva Hirschi

He told us that many Nepali would – because of lack of job opportunities in Nepal – go working in the Gulf states or in India, under harsh conditions. The employers take away their passports the day they arrive, so they can’t leave the country before the contract is over, which often lasts for three years – so they can’t defend themselves against exploitation nor visit their families. Now, he was back after having finished his working contract in South Africa, looking for a new job, maybe in Japan.

Full of thoughts, we went to bed.

Day 5: The jeep ride – an experience itself

The next morning we changed our plans. From Sidding, we could have continued our hike for three more hours before taking a jeep back to Pokhara. Since my friends were dealing with knee pains, we decided to take the jeep directly from Sidding, since the further hike would have been as steep and difficult as on the former day.

So we found ourselves on top of an old jeep, driving down what wasn’t even close to a road to Swiss standards – not enough, in Switzerland there certainly are at least ten laws why we shouldn’t do this. The word «bumpy» wouldn’t do this experience any justice, my hands got blisters from holding myself on the bar, trying not to fall off. The jeep passed over stones and through a small river, which came from a waterfall next to the road – what a crazy experience!

Jeep drive from Mardi Himal Trek to Pokhara in Nepal

Standing in the back of the jeep was certainly less bumpy than sitting on top… Photo: Eva Hirschi

Once we reached the flat land of the valley of Pokhara, my bottom was very happy and I could finally enjoy the view on the Himalayas better, without needing to hold myself convulsively on the bar. This jeep ride was almost more exhausting than the actual hike in itself but definitely worth the experience.

Precious Tips:

Trekking permit: Before starting the trek, you need to get an official trekking permit at the tourist centre. For Mardi Himal trek, you need two different permits: Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) and TIMS Card (Tourism Information Management System). Each one costs 2000 Rupees (20 dollars) and you need two pass photos for each permit. If you don’t have any photos with you, there is a possibility to get pictures – for free! At some points on the route, you will find checkpoints where you register your name, so authorities know who’s on the trek. And who’s missing – so don’t forget to check out in the end again (also possible via phone if you don’t pass a checkpoint, as us)

Accommodation: A Nepali friend booked our rooms one day before we started our trek and we were happy since sometimes, it seemed that certain accommodations were fully booked. The rooms are very simple but clean and good. The bathrooms are rudimentary and outside, so bring a torch to be able to use them after sunset.

Water: For ecological and economical reasons, we brought two one litres bottle each and refilled them up at the teahouses on our way for free. We used water purification tablets my friend had bought in Switzerland and some drops to make disappear the chlorine taste. In high altitudes, the body needs more water so make sure to drink enough.

Electricity: From Dhampus on, there was no electricity available in the rooms anymore. In the lodges, they have electricity for the lights, but usually you can’t charge your phone or camera, or only do it if you pay for it. It’s easier and safer to bring a spare battery for your camera and a power bank for your phone.

Prices: the prices are fixed and transparent. The higher you get up the mountain, the higher get the prices, but the difference isn’t big. For a room with two beds we paid between 350 and 550 rupees, a Dal Bhat was around 350 rupees and tea or coffee around 60-80 rupees.

Clothes: We did our trek in the end of October, which is the beginning of the winter season in Nepal. The higher you hike, the colder it gets. From High Camp on we were happy to have windbreaker jackets and a cap.

What to bring: Sleeping bag (even if some lodges provide blankets, it can get very cold and you’ll be happy about your comfy and warm sleeping bag!), water purification tablets, two water bottles of one litre each, some snacks, sunscreen, a windbreaker jacket, a power bank, cash. A map is not needed since the path is well indicated and there are few chances to get lost.

Daily Life Highlights

Eva around the world.

Tag Archives: Asia