Life is easy. Between the Internet and guidebooks, there is little in this world that is not covered. We can figure out what to do at each location and even what it contains. We prepare the trip to the rhythm of our imagination. But if one day we go to the place we planned, we found that it is much more than that. Beyond what is written, there is a unique world that is ours. The trip goes beyond what we see and becomes what we feel.
Chitwa
It is small and you can do as much as you wish. Between doing nothing or a filled the day, the choice is yours. But everything will revolve around one thing: the jungle. I ended up arriving as a tourist. This meant that everything was included. In this case: a jungle walk, canoeing (which really means going on a cannoe), Elephant Ride, museums (which the greatest interest is the strange things you find there), and a show of traditional dance (whose rhythm is different from what I was used and it).
In all activities, there is no doubt that it was the Jungle walk that caught my emotion. Not that I have encountered dangerous animals ... far from it. On the way the only thing I saw were insects, deer and ... wild chickens. But there is no escaping the vulnerability feeling. You walk in a place with a 3 meters visibility. The only sounds you hear are the wildlife, your footsteps and your breathing. All your instincts are alert. And the simple idea that the track sounds - real or imagined - can be of a bear, a rhino or a tiger, makes your heart race. You know which part of the food chain you are.
And nothing was more real than when I started hearing the sound of dry leaves being trampled. The sound was a growing pace and came towards us. Surrounded by dense vegetation it was impossible to know what it was. Between accelerated heartbeats, I tried to remember what to do for each animal - zigzag or tree for the rhinos, keep still for the bears, look in the eye of the tiger and run like hell for the elephant. Of course, everything goes too fast, and when the animal presents itself, is a relief to see that it is a simple deer.
Pokhara
Pokhara has a lake. A beautiful lake. Has a Peace Pagoda where we can admire the landscape around us. We arrived there on foot or by boat across the lake. It has many restaurants and some shops. It has the main street of tourism - lake side. A wide street with the type of business that fits the tourists and travelers who pass through here. Pokhara has also a peace of mind of a very beautiful landscape.
But my Pokhara has a street. One that leaves the Lake Side. It has asphalt through the holes and is flanked by two ditches that serve to drain the rain. The streets has no sidewalks. But there is shops. It has small grocery stores where the owners wait patiently for customers. Whenever a tourist passes, they greet them with a friendly "Namaste." Ask if they want something. A "something" that goes from a simple bottle of water to laundry. It has barbershops where tourists and locals let the owners do its magic. These, with a sharp blade, turn a bearded face into something presentable. It also has small travel agencies, cyber cafes and inns.
And my street has people, laughter and emotions. Has a family that nurtures people with his sympathy. There are children playing in the street with the little they have - a basketball - and much they possess - joy and imagination. Among them are tourists, neighbors who exchange words with their parents or cows with a zen spirit.
And amid this calm spirit of being I find my Pokhara. Not a tourist one. But one of the emotions it conveys. The quiet of a life where you don't feel the lack of visiting a highlight of any travel guide. A simple way of living. I learn to stop and contemplate the wealth around me. An emotional space where I keep the people laughs, talks and looks...
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