I've been intrigued since we got here by these giant bamboo poles tied together at the top. I wondered if it was an old Nepalese teepee or maybe it was staking out the four corners of a garden? And then I saw some kids FLYING in the air on a swing strung up on a pole balanced on the bamboo poles. It. looked. Awesome. and I wanted to try it.
We were on our way (or so we thought) to Old Pokhara. Andrew expected a similar Kathmandu old city vibe, while I was unsure what we would find, as Pokhara felt more like a spread out suburb than compact city. We asked for directions, and were pointed in a general direction with various time estimates. We were told to take a taxi or a bus, but we prefered to walk (you would too, after an entire day on a bus). So we walked. and walked. and then I came face to face with a bamboo swing. (kinda) A handful of children were playing on or near it and they waved when they saw us. I pointed to my camera and to them and they screamed "Yes! Come play! Come play with us!"
And so I did.
When a handful of Nepalese children at the side of the road with a big bamboo swing scream "Come play with us" you do not say "No." I hopped on the swing and they pushed, told me not to bend my legs (in Nepal you move the swing with your torso only- I'm still not sure if that would be effective for me though) and they all took turns watching. Half of the street took turns watching the white girl on the swing. It was super fun, but I got a little stage fright with the crowd that was forming, so I slowed down, hopped off, learned a little bit of Nepalese and thanked them for sharing their swing with me.
We didn't end up finding Old Pokhara. We asked for directions several more times. We got different answers. We walked back and forth on the main road. We ended up waving our white flag and taking a taxi back to Lakeside (where we were staying). I'm convinced the Nepalese have an entirely different sense of time and direction. I know you might be thinking it's a language barrier, but believe me, it's not.