We have compiled some of our experiences backpacking Asia, the Middle East and Europe into a 4 minute video. We hope you enjoy it.

The sheer remoteness of the Himalaya’s have certainly been the focus of plenty of mythical tales such as yeti’s, snow lions, and tantric buddhist masters who have the ability to fly but one thing that surely does exist in these mountains are some of the most unique and beautiful cultures which exist on the planet. Many westerner’s fantasize about one day visiting such distant places such as Tibet, Nepal or Bhutan but with each one having its own flavour and attractions it can be hard to decide which one is right for you. I certainly struggled with this and instead visited all three.

TIBET

Ever since I watched Brad Pitt befriend the young Dalai Lama, I had long been fascinated by Tibet and it’s unique culture and have found in conversation with many westerners that a trip to Tibet ranks high on people’s bucket list. When we began seriously researching for a trip to the Himalaya’s, we began reading about Tibet but were put off by many accusations that “Tibetan culture is ruined” or that “Tibet is now just another part of China”. Luckily, we didn’t listen and last year had the opportunity to visit.

While its true, Tibet has certainly changed since the Chinese invaded, sending the Dalai Lama into exile in the 1950′s, those who believe Tibet no longer has any cultural interest clearly have not set foot in this amazing land. For those interested in the most important sites in Tibetan Buddhism a trip to Lhasa is a must. Imagine walking amongst a sea of pilgrims coming as far away as the Eastern Tibet, who circumnavigate the sacred site from sun up to sun down all the while chanting mantra’s and spinning prayer wheels. While the Han Chinese have their section of this sacred city and the Chinese military have a shockingly strong presence, the old Tibetan quarter remains a fascinating place to wander around or perhaps stop in and light some incense at one of the many monasteries.

Then there’s the landscape. Tibet sits high atop the highest plateau in the world in which locals herd their yaks across a high altitude desert surrounded by snow capped peaks. High altitude lakes shimmer bright blue in the powerful sunlight as you look around this great wilderness.

Tibet remains closed to independent travelers and the only way around this is to book a tour with a travel agency which is commonly run by a Chinese outfit and may be quite expensive. Tours can include only a single individual or as many as 4-5 persons (more is uncomfortable in a land cruiser) but includes a guide and driver. Companies such as Tibetan Connections will cater more to backpackers allowing them to choose their accommodation and food so as to cut costs and not be limited to tourist oriented services. Travel agencies can organize permits and train tickets into Tibet, but a Chinese visa will be needed to first enter the country.  Due to the strict regulations tourists outside of the major sites such as Lhasa and Yam drok lake are a rarity.

NEPAL

More of a backpacker and trekker utopia than a buddhist shangri la, Nepal offers almost an limitless opportunity to get up close and personal with the big mountains of the world while trekking day to day with pizza for dinner. In fact, while the scenery from Tibet is completely alien and moon-like, when it comes to admiring the sheer size of the majestic Himalaya, Nepal gets my vote. The reason being that while on the Nepali side you are staring up at the Tibetan Plateau rather than being already at 5000 meters plus looking straight at the great peaks.

While Nepal may be an overwhelming 85% Hindu, the areas bordering Tibet and specific areas of Kathmandu and Pokhara which harbor thousands of refugees offer glimpses into the amazing Tibetan buddhist culture described in “Lost Horizon”.

Nepal offers a kaleidoscope of activities from trekking mountain trails, Paragliding alongside the peaks, rafting down raging rivers, or chasing rhinos on the back of an elephant.  For someone looking for a lot of adventure, Nepal has it. Nepal has a massive backpacker lure and in the peak season Oct-Nov the trails can be busy and Kathmandu and Pokhara can feel a little invaded by the hordes here for months of trekking.

A big positive for Nepal is its ease of independent travel as there are virtually no restrictions on traveling independently as well as Nepal being very friendly on the wallet. A budget of 25 USD a day provide a comfortable lifestyle for most backpacker needs. Visa’s are available for most nationalities at the Kathmandu airport or border crossings.

BHUTAN

Bhutan is best described in one word…unique. Even attempting to visit such an intriguing country requires a completely different approach than any where else in the world. To even enter the country one must pay a visa fee of 200 USD per day…yes…per day.

While this is far out of the reach of anyone even considering themselves a backpacker, the 200 dollars a day fee not only buys you a visa but a driver, guide, vehicle, food, accommodation and really just about any costs you may come across on your trip. While its a shame this country can’t be explored independently, this is exactly part of the reason why Bhutan is so special – It’s almost void of tourists. Every experience is authentic and free of all those negative effects mass tourism can have on a fragile culture. I had the amazing opportunity to visit and while staying in tourist oriented accommodation and eating tourist oriented food was never my style, what I came away with from that trip was of the ultimate goal of the traveler, to experience something completely unlike anything else.

For those with even a little sense of adventure, a home stay in Bhutan can offer a glimpse into daily life and opportunity for cultural exchange. I stayed with 3 families while in Bhutan but it was the family below which was the highlight of my trip as they had only ever had a single western guest many years earlier.   As we sat around their yak dung stove drinking rice wine and talking of my life back home before they allowed me to sleep in their alter room surrounded by butter lamps with images of buddha sending me to sleep.

While the price tag keeping most tourists out, Bhutan has a list of attractions not the least of which is its intact Buddhist culture uninfluenced by a foreign government such as Tibet or parts of India. Imposing Dzongs or Fortresses are still houses of government, not a single building is built in a non traditional manner, a son entering monk hood is still a blessing to a family, and due to strict environmental policies the forests and landscape remain evermore pristine than its neighbors.

Bhutan may be labeled as “the Last Shangri-La” or “What Nepal was 30 years ago” these labels simply fall short in describing this amazing country. Bhutan has recently just become a new democracy but with its charismatic policy still in force of “Gross National Happiness over Gross National Product”, Bhutan is entering the future in its own unique way.

While not a destination for the long term traveler, for those interested in intact buddhist culture and one of the most unique countries in the world, Bhutan may just be for you.

* Not listed here are the Indian areas of Ladakh and Sikkim which are also sometimes lumped into the great Himalayan Kingdoms. We haven’t got there just yet…

The sheer amount of temples, mosques,pagoda’s and shrines throughout the continent is mind blowing but this post highlights the top 10 that we wont soon forget.

10) The Enigmatic Bayon Temple of Cambodia

9) The Rat Temple of Bikaner

8) Big Dagobas in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka

7) Jokhang Temple Lhasa

6) The All Mighty Angkor

5) The Dalai Lama's Previous Residence

4) The Holiest of Holy Rivers - The Ganges

3) Qomolangma or Mother Saint to the Tibetans, Mount Everest to you and me.

2)Beautiful Shwedagon Pagoda of Myanmar

1) Sikhism's Masterpiece, The Golden Temple

The 3 hour bus ride north of Kandy seemed to pass by quickly probably because we finally had a seat. The smaller intercity buses even have air conditioning for which we were grateful. Kandy is the last town on the edge of the hill country and as soon as you head north to the vast plains, the heat begins to rise.

Since the ruins are spread over huge distances and the entrance ticket is only valid for a single day we decided it was best to leave our site seeing for the following day. Originally we had planned to rent bicycles and self guide ourselves around the site but when we talked to a couple from Alaska about just how much there actually was to see, we decided it was best to go by tuk tuk.

The next day we set off with our driver Vimalay and after expecting to pay 50USD to enter the ruins, he suggested that we pay him 25USD for bribes (and his own profit) to take us on alternate routes so we avoid the ticket counter. We of course obliged as 25 bucks in the developing world is close to two nights accommodation. For the next 4 hours we saw countless amounts of ruined temples and dagobas scattered amongst throughout the surrounding forest. Highlights of the site included the sacred bodhi tree which is the oldest authenticated tree in the world and Thuparama,the oldest dagoba in the world. Some of the sites around Anuradhapura are still being excavated and anyone with some interest in archeology would be in heaven.

While the countless amount of sites were interesting some of our best moments in Anuradhapura came from meeting some of the people including a man and his buffaloes who introduced us to his herd (including a baby buffalo) and a group of young monks fascinated by my camera.

We returned that evening to another meal of rice and curry at our guesthouse feeling glad we had made the trip North but felt the ruins were pale in comparison with the charm of the hill country and the serenity of the southern beaches. Needless to say we were happy with our decision to spend the majority of our time in the other regions.

With 3 extra nights in the country before flying to Kuala Lumpur we were unsure where to spend them and after chatting to the Alaskan couple, they suggested Hikkaduwa. On our way to Unawatuna we carelessly by passed Hikkaduwa hearing that it was busy and knowing there were more pristine beaches further east. Hikkaduwa is known as a great beginner/intermediate surf spot and I spent the day brushing up on some surfing while Lianna soaked in a few more rays. Hikkaduwa really was the perfect last stop before we head into the urban bustle of Kuala Lumpur and Manilla.

]]> http://theworldonatoilet.com/2010/01/21/dagoba-overdose/feed/ 3 http://theworldonatoilet.com/2010/01/20/sri-lankan-kandy/ http://theworldonatoilet.com/2010/01/20/sri-lankan-kandy/#comments Wed, 20 Jan 2010 11:35:30 +0000 Lianna http://theworldonatoilet.com/?p=1220 Nick had good reason to be lazy after he returned from Adam’s Peak, so we decided to shell out the cash for a taxi ride to Kandy and avoid the routine of standing on an overcrowded bus getting a headache. When we arrived at our wonderful guest house, Mcleod Inn, we went for a walk and ended up spotting tons of wildlife in the second largest city in the country.

Kandy is situated around a man made lake where we spotted 5 monitor lizards which are the worlds second largest lizard (next to Komodos.) We even saw a giant pregnant mama sunning herself on a log. Then we walked alongside a huge pelican swimming along the lake fishing with his giant bill, filling it with water and fish and draining the water before swallowing the fish whole. Not a good way to go if your a fish I imagine, but pretty impressive to watch!

We didn’t go to one of the main attractions in Kandy, which is a temple that holds the believed tooth of Buddha (the temple of the tooth) because we had been told by more than one person that it’s not very impressive. Instead we opted to go to a cultural show, which is something we don’t normally go for. We changed our minds because we were told that besides the cultural dance and music, there were fire eaters and people walking across hot coals so we decided to reserve front row seats. It was a really cool experience that we recommend.

The next morning we joined a couple from Boston and woke up early to see elephants! There is some controversy surrounding the Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage as there always seems to be at any kind of rehabilitation center. That being said, if we listened to every criticism from anyone with an internet connection we would never get to see any animals so we decided to give it a go. Elephants are truly one of my favourite animals, so we when first arrived and I saw two babies chained up to be bottle fed I was upset because I had read that the elephants were free roaming. We decided to skip the feeding because it wasn’t something I was interested in seeing, and we arrived to the field where about 40 elephants of all ages were walking around eating. I got to get up close to some of them and it was a great experience, I would swear that they love getting their pictures taken.

Some of the elephants were rescued from inhumane situations, such as the two that were found (separately) roaming around near Jaffna. One elephant had stepped on a land mine and had it’s right leg from the knee down blown off. His left supporting leg is very bowed resulting from the extra elephant weight it carries. The other elephant was a mature male (75 years old!) who had his eyes gouged by poachers looking to steal his enormous tusks. They didn’t end up getting his tusks, but he was wandering blind when he was rescued. It was really sad to see such a wise looking animal that had lived so many years having one of his most important senses taken from him. Thankfully they seem well cared for at the orphanage and we had an overall good day at the center.

One of the highlights of the day is when the elephants get bathed in the nearby river. Everyone had to stand up on the curb while all the shops close their doors and elephants come hurdling down the hill excited for their scrub down. It’s very cute to watch them plunk themselves down in the water and patiently wait for a mahout to come give it some attention.

On the drive back to Kandy we stopped in at the Peradeniya Botanical Gardens which were pretty amazing. I had fun running around from tree to tree trying to guess what part of the world they were from before reading their tags. There were none from Canada but we did see a rubber tree which when tapped, pours rubber instead of maple. Although I would personally go for maple any day and right now I think I would pour it all over any food, it was really cool to see rubber oozing from a tree.

The highlight of the botanical gardens was by far a giant Javan Fig Tree that has taken the number one spot on my list of favourite trees. The branches covered 2500 square meters, and one of the branches even spawned a whole other tree! It was truly breathtaking.