Gill St. Bernard’s Nepal 2018

June 9, 2018

Travel Days: Our trip started June 9th early in the morning. We had a layover in Qatar where we got to experience one of the nicest airports we’ve ever been too. After that it was of to Nepal! It was here that we got our first good look at Nepal from the air.

June 10, 2018

Our plane landed in Nepal around 4pm in the capital city called Katmandu. After meeting our wonderful guide Sagar, one of the first few things we noticed were the vibrant buildings, the animals in the streets, and the chaotic driving. After arriving at the hotel we had a few minutes to ourselves and then went on a short walk to exchange currency. After we got back from that walk, we had a traditional Nepalese dinner that consisted of many different types of foods. Our personals favorites were the green beans and the Lassi. After dinner we discussed our plans for the following day and went to our rooms for some much needed sleep.

-Mark G.

June 11, 2018

We awoke in the morning to a wonderful breakfast and immediately left for Swaymbhunath Stupa, otherwise known as the monkey temple. While the climb up 365 steps was not easy, it was well worth it due to the wonderful views, cultural experience, and monkeys. We were given time to explore and got learn about many different things including the famous prayer flags. After that we went to go visit the legendary living royal goddess Kumari Devi. We learned about what it takes to be a Kumari and received a blessing from her when she saw us. After visiting the Kumari we went to a rooftop terrace restaurant where we got to eat a fantastic lunch and enjoy the beautiful views that came along with it. After lunch we went to go have our photos taken so we could receive SIM cards and then bordered our bus to the world famous Hindu-Temple Pashupatinath. While we were not able to go inside the temple because we are not Hindu, we were still able to witness famous cremations that take place here on a daily basis. After this we went back to the hotel to relax a little bit and have our final meal of the day.

-Jack R.

June 12, 2018
Our group had an early start to the day as we headed over to the river to canoe around 7am. The canoes were large enough to fit our whole group, including a guide to steer the boat down the river. In the canoe, we were able to observe wildlife such as crocodiles and birds. After about 30 minutes of going down the river, we stopped at the Elephant Breeding Center where we saw elephants, a small museum, and had a chance to purchase some souvenirs. After this, our group drove to a spot in which we were able to ride an elephant in the refreshing river water. When we had finished visiting the elephants, we headed back to the hotel to change our wet clothes and eat lunch.

The second half of our day consisted of a 3 to 4 hour safari. After having lunch we drove to the river and used canoes to cross the river and get to our safari jeeps. After about an hour and a half of riding in the blistering hot car, we were refreshed by a sudden rain downpour. On the safari we saw various types of birds, visited a crocodile breeding center, and even had the opportunity to see a baby rhino and it’s mother. Our day concluded as we returned from the safari and came back to the hotel for dinner.

June 14, 2018

On the morning of the 14th, we drove 3 hours from Chitwan to Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha. After checking into our hotel in Lumbini, we took three rickshaws to the temple where we saw a large stone marking the exact spot of Buddha’s birth. At this temple, we also saw several monks meditating around an old prayer tree which we then walked around three times, demonstrating luck for our families.

June 15, 2018

The morning of the following day, we traveled in rickshaws around the town visiting several of Lumbini’s 42 monasteries from different countries. We took a bit of a rest during the hottest part of the day and late that afternoon we went to one last monastery. Here, we sat down with twelve young boys ages 7-14 who are training to become monks. We spent a few minutes getting to know them then spent the rest of our time playing with bubbles, balloons, soccer balls and many more fun things. Before dinner, we took a final stroll around the town to explore and do a little shopping. Finally, the following morning, we departed Lumbini for Kathmandu.

– Lily, Elle, and Eve

June 16, 2018

Today, we left to take a short flight in the morning to Kathmandu. From there we went back to the Hotel Manaslu, got settled and went for lunch. After we went souvenir shopping in the area and got lots of cool things unique to Nepal. That night we saw a Stupa—which is one of the biggest in the world, and had our last dinner with our amazing tour guide, Sagar.