words from the world

It rains early in the morning. I have an appointment with the responsible of the rafting agency in front of my hotel. We together head for the bus station where coaches leave from to the western town of Pokhara. Most of the buses are the Indian brand Tata. The Tata company belongs to a wealthy family which supplies all the Indian subcontinent with millions of vehicles. And according to the Italian I met yesterday, Tata makes business with Fiat. We soon might have Tata taxis with multi points injection engine!
The departure by rafting is 3 hours from Kathmandu, a few meters below the road. I team up with a Chinese group who is more made for working in a shanghaian skyscraper than paddling. 3 boats form the cortege and just after a few meters, the opposite Chinese at the front side of the raft isn't a good match. He more strokes the water than truly rowing so much so that the raft starts turning and it's difficult to keep the right direction. The second Nepali guide quickly takes his place and we beat time putting ourselves through the helmsman's orders.
The monsoon still waters this part of the country and the level of the river is high. The rains drain the hill lands and colour the river with ochre shades. The rough current promises good thrills. The helmsman endeavours to avoid no eddying areas. We zigzag from a bank to the other one to actively involve into these swirls. The other rafts manage pretty well. So do we. We take off from the first wave, crash and sink into the next one. The feet wedged under the inflate crosspieces, we attempt to cling the water while a muddy liquid goes over and fills the boat. But the most beautiful head-on attack is credited to the second raft that succeeds in wholly going under a wave. As a result, it loses one of its rower, worried to float among the white water. We have a great time for the 25-km sail down. The Nepali adventures only begins...








Everybody knows Nepal for its wonderful treks and breathtaking summits. Feeling like relaxing your legs without stagnating in the polluting atmosphere of Kathmandu, let you plunge into the tempting thrills of the Nepali rivers.