Manish Man Singh
It all began with excitement as I was going to Pokhara after more than twenty years. Our hiking team - ManishS, KanchanP, SulekhaB, SubashN, ShakunS, JeevanT, AshayT, ArjunA, ShushilS, SangitaM, SurendraA, and PrativaS - were picked up early in the morning at 6:30 AM. It was a long drive as we all had anticipated. We reached Naubise at 9:30 AM, and we stopped by Banepali Hotel for breakfast. Then we continued on our way. Some time later we made another stop to buy some watermelons to refresh ourselves. Travelling was fun. We did not realize that time flew so quickly, as we had lots of fun and games on the way. We reached Lekhnath at around twelve and finally reached Pokhara about forty five minutes later from there. We stayed at Hotel Annapurna, where we refreshed ourselves after checking in. Then we were on our way to Thakali restaurant for lunch. Weather at this point was quite unpredictable and we could not decide where we should go for hiking. Finally, we decided to go to yellow Pagoda and started hiking at around 2:00 PM. It was a short hike but the climb was steep uphill - so pretty tough for some. However, we slowly climbed up the hill. We met few people on the way trying to guide us through an easy path and even telling us that we could take our vehicle all the way to the top. Apparently they were unaware that we wanted to hike and that we wanted to take the toughest path possible. Hiking has always been fun for me and I thoroughly enjoyed this hike. We reached the top at around 4:00 PM, where there was a beautifully made Stupa. We rested for some time there and clicked a few pictures as well. Then we started climbing down. Sulekha and Ashay were definitely the last people to reach the top, but they were the first ones to reach the bottom! As planned, we then decided to take a boat across the Phewa lake. So we hired three boats. I was with Jeevan and Kanchan on one of the boats. We came across Barahi Mandir, which is in the middle of the lake. It was a short boating and we quickly reached the other end. At the other end was a platform from where you could see a magnificent view of the lake. We stayed there for some time. Afterwards we headed towards a restaurant to have some food. We had a great time in the restaurant with some nice live musical performance. Arjun joined the band followed by Jeevan, which made it even more interesting. We then decided to go to the lake side to get a nice view of the lake once again. I definitely enjoyed it as I got to take some beautiful photographs. We all had a nice day with lots of fun. We all were tired by the end of the day. So we headed to the hotel for dinner, and went to bed right after dinner for a much needed good night's rest. Second day - it was yet another special day. Yes, it was April 1st! The guys made a fool out of me. When I knew I was fooled, I was really embarrassed, but it was fun. Surendra and Arjun were not spared either! The purpose of the trip, in fact, was books handover ceremony at Gandaki College of Engineering Science. We headed towards the college at 10:00 AM. At the college, we were welcomed by the principal of the college. We had some conversation with the principal. Then we went for lunch. After lunch, the principal showed us around the college. Jeevan, being an alumnus of the college, was definitely popular here. The Books handover program was held in the college hall. The program was followed by interaction with the college students. It was a good interaction indeed. Ashay and Surendra did a good job of entertaining the queries that the students had. We also had a short interaction with the 10+2 students. We had a great time meeting the students and principal of the college. We were touched by their warm reception and hospitality. The two-day program came towards the end after the college visit, and we had to make our way back to Kathmandu as it was already 2:30 PM. We spent some time at Seti river bridge before heading on our way back. Definitely, the visit was a great experience and truly a memorable one – making me want to go there again and again.
Arjun Adhikari Deerwalk hike has always been exciting and fun.This hike was a little different from earlier ones as there was an important mission associated with it. We were going to participate in the Book Handover Ceremony by Deerwalk at Gandaki College of Software Sciences, Pokhara - the winner of Deerwalk cause. Apart from this, Surendra Adhikari, campus chief of DWIT (Deerwalk Institute of Technology), and I had planned to visit couple of colleges in Pokhara in order to promote DWIT. The 200+ kilometers drive to Pokhara seemed so quicker and easier because of the songs and games. I enjoyed the trip even more as Arbina, my daughter, was accompanying me. As I hail from Pokhara, I got an opportunity to be a tourist in my own hometown this time around. Hanging around the lakeside reminded me of Bangalore's night life, where I had spent around five years in the course of my studies and work. The second day of arriving in Pokhara, Surendra and I started our early morning visiting rounds to different colleges in Pokhara. I was able to reconnect with my old friends in different colleges that helped me renew my academic network. Thank God, they still remembered me! The moment of Book Distribution Ceremony at GCS was also pleasant. It gave me an opportunity to speak before a big group of teachers and students.I think we were successful in our mission. We were able to spread the message about DWIT, which in due course will at the forefront of IT Education in Nepal. The return trip back to Kathmandu was also a memorable one with all the jokes, fun and the games along the way.
Surendra Adhikari This trip was special for me as it was official cum hiking trip. On the first day of hike, it was really different for me as I had never hiked to Peace Stupa in Pokhara before. It was short and sweet. The 'hukkas' during the snacks time was the first experience for me, which was completely different from what I had thought. I had tried traditional hukka using Chilim (oven), Pato (tobacco holder) and Tamakhu (wet tobacco) before. The evening scenes of lake and around were very heart touching that reminded me of a village near Zurich, where I had a short stay back in 2001. I hope that people who see the pictures of the place taken by Manish and Kanchan can feel a sense of the amazing environment. The second day was really hectic as we had to visit five different colleges for the purpose of Deerwalk Institute of Technology (DWIT) promotion. The visit was successful in showing the strong bond between academia and the IT industry. We got the opportunity to inform the students and the faculty about our current program and future plans. The arrangement and hospitality at Gandaki College was praiseworthy, and I am thankful to the organizer. I would not have realized that it was 'April first', were I not made a fool early in the morning by our team members. The time in the journey to Pokhara and back passed as if it were just a moment. Playing Antakshari on the way and back, we never realized we had traveled more than 400 kilometers distance in the round trip!
Sulekha Bhandari I have been on hikes before, but this was the first time that I had organized one. Pokhara, one of the most beautiful places in Nepal, was the place where hike was to be done. I was pretty excited about this hike. It was not just a hike - we had another objective as well. Deerwalk, our company, does charitable work every quarter. This time our company was donating books to the Gandaki College of Software Sciences, Pokhara - winner of Deerwalk cause, Q1 2012. We had to attend the Book Handover Ceremony at the college. We enjoyed those two days in Pokhara to the fullest. Still, we felt that we did not have enough of it!
Subash Neupane Waking up at 4.30 am in the morning would be try-not part of me where weekend is concerned but when it came about going to Pokhara was already excited. After long around 6 hours drive we finally reached Pokhara. A most beautiful touristic destination ornamented by the nature, enclosed by green hills, panoramic mountain views from low elevation, rare combinations of snow clad peaks and snow fed lakes and rivers. One of the most picturesque natural attractions. Living in Kathmandu where dirt and dust has become a common thing in everyday life, I was stunned at the purity of pokhara, where I could breathe unsullied air for at least two days. Hiking to Peace Stupa was fairly easier and shortest hike I have ever been. The scenery of landscapes and terrace farming was breathtaking. I had never experienced the top view of Fewa Lake before I do not have words to utter about how marvelous it looked like, for matter of moment I could just say I was spellbound by beauty of nature which was absolutely mesmerizing. Cheers Pokhara I am coming again.
