Since we ended up with more time in the city of Pokhara than planned, we booked a tour to learn about the Tibetan refugees in the area. (We tried to squeeze in a trip to Tibet, but there is a ton of red tape.) But this tour was incredible. It is one of the best tours we’ve ever been a part of. We started at a Buddhist monastery for a sunrise service followed by a chat with one of the monks. This monk, Lip Shitz, was incredibly intelligent and was actually from the Tibetan region. He talked to us about his daily life, being sent off to live at the monastery when he was 10, his hobbies, and some of his Buddhist views. I’m a big fan of Buddhism. They keep to themselves, look to find Nirvana, study continuously, and don’t push their beliefs. The beliefs are there for you to study, question and choose to follow.

We then had a typical Tibetan breakfast which included butter tea (not the best), roasted barley porridge mixed with the tea, and Tibetan bread. The next stop was a chat with a Tibetan doctor to discuss the alternative medicines they use, but there was a long line of patients. We decided it was better to let the doctor focus on them instead of us, so we headed to a second refugee village. Here we saw a noodle factory that employs the community to help them develop working skills and provide income for the village.

The last village was where traditional Tibetan rugs are woven. These were gorgeous and very labor intensive sometimes taking multiple months to complete. We then visited a museum that outlined the history of Tibet’s relationship with China and the camp. We also learned a lot about the Dali Lama, and I’ll tell you what he is one hell of a guy.

The rest of our time in Pokhara was spent on the lake, playing with the local kids (some of which stuck to us like glue on our walks to and from town), and cooking classes back at the Hidden Paradise Guesthouse. (This place is a gem and anyone visiting Pokhara should consider staying there.)

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