TRAVEL DIARY ( ROAD TRIP TO RASUWA)
Road trips, to me, are a joyous escape. Get in a car, listen to
good music and you roll down the windows (or not) because usually, you’re going
somewhere fun.
That fun
place this time was Rasuwa where we were to assess the development work being
carried out by various aid agencies in Nepal. After driving for around
nine hours we reached our overnight stop Gatlang, a village in Nothern Rasuwa.
Gatlang, is known to many as the ‘black village’ as all the houses in the area
once had black roofs. But after the 2015 Earthquake, most houses in the village
have no roofs.
Part of
the Tamang Heritage Trail, the village, before the earthquake, used to see a
lot of tourists but now the flow has virtually stopped. Most tourists, who come
to see the ‘black village’, leavethe place disappointed.
Gatlang after the earthquake
The black wooden roofs
have been replaced by tin ones as the people don’t have enough money to replace
the wood.
On an evening stroll
around the village, I came across many who were affected by the earthquake and
were slowly rebuilding their houses with the grant they received from the
government.
“I was drinking with my fellow mates when it all happened,” says
Dil Bahadur Tamang whose “world came crashing down with this house.” And it
hasn’t been easy for him after breaking his leg in the earthquake he has had a
tough time getting back on his feet. He works hard to rebuild his house.
Most
houses in the area are made up of stones, and as these don’t have concrete
pillars, the earthquake took a heavy toll on them. “The initial aid that we
received was not much but it helped a lot. At least the tents we received put a
roof over our heads,” says Tamang who now feel that the no help is enough when
one loses so much.
A brief
stroll around the village brought us to our overnight stay, Langtang View
Homestay, a lodge/tea house at the bottom of the village. The lodge was rebuilt
after the earthquake and the first floor didn’t look very strong as most of it
was made from wood. After having a healthy local dinner we went to bed wishing
to see the mountain in the morning.
Our
wakeup call at 4:30 am wasn’t a knock on the door, but the literal sensation
that our roof was going to fly away. The wind was rapid and made a noise that
felt like the whole floor was moving. The gale gave us little choice but to
wake up, and as I left the bed to go outside.
Then I got my first glimpse of the Langtang mountain. Far away
between large hills, I could see the top of the mountain where the rays of the
sun were just hitting the mighty mountains. And after admiring the mountain and
the valley, our group had breakfast and left to explore the village.
Many
stone houses in the area suffered structural damages but many were still living
there. “People here still want to live in these old houses because they relate
to it. Most of us have grown up in these houses, a reason why I am rebuilding
it in a similar way,” says Ram Tamang who adds that the window he plans to put
in his house costs around Rs. 50,000.
Building
the houses in its traditional forms will definitely be expensive which is why
many are replacing these stone houses with bricks and HELVETAS, a Swiss INGO,
has been training both men and women to make earthquake resilient homes.
This
initiative trains 10 workers who learn the basics of building an
earthquake-resistant house starting from laying the foundation to placing the
roof and what even more encouraging is that they make sure they have 30 per
cent female representation in the groups.
While
driving to Rasuwa, I read that it is a district full of lakes and we were later
informed that there was a lake around 20 min drive uphill from the lodge. So we
drove up through a pine forest where we saw multi-coloured rhododendrons
and reached Parvati Kunda, a popular pilgrimage during Janai Purnima where
thousands of devotees visit the sacred pond and nearby temple.
We also
found out that there was a DDC (Dairy Development Corporation) factory a few
miles up and not wanting to miss out on fresh cheese, we climbed further up. We
reached a green meadow where some yaks were grazing. Unable to get fresh cheese
as their production had stopped, some of our team bought cheese and we were on
our way to Goljung.
Goljung, like Gatlang, was another village under-construction.
There we visited a stone cutter’s house where Norbu Tamang and his wife Chewang
Gyalmo Ghale cut stones using a machine and earned a decent living.
Most
people in the area break stones using hammers due to which the houses don’t
have a still foundation. But as this village has better road connectivity and
most men in the village go to Kerung to work, houses here have been built using
bricks as it saves more time and effort, even though it’s a bit expensive.
After talking to a few people and to avoid driving on bad roads
for the entire day, the next day we left for Dhunche. Driving past a relatively
dry river on dusty roads we climbed up some tough terrains suited only
four-wheel drives as we passed Shyaprubesi and reached Dhunche a stop from
where most pilgrims head to the holy Gosaikunda Lake.
Our next
day would be spent mostly on the car which is why we went to bed early. Unlike
the lodge in Gatlang, the one in Dhunche was comfortable and to my surprise
even had hot water and wifi. And after a hearty breakfast, we drove to some of
the most remote parts of Raswua.
Our
destination was Langbu, a village near Yarsa. Driving from Dhunche to Langbu
was extremely tiring as the entire day we drove on roads not meant for cars. We
passed through huge scenic rocks some perfect for climbing but people don’t
seem to visit these areas as they do think it good for tourism.
We
reached Langbu, a small village with less than 200 houses. There we ate lunch
at Curry Ghale’s house and talked to women who were involved in making foot
trails from Langbu to Abu Kharkha.
Walking around, I notice that most houses in this area have been
rebuilt with support from the Batas Foundation and Chaudary Group but none
of them look authentic as they have used tin doors and window along with
bricks.
After a
few hours in Langbu, we left for Kalikastan our final overnight stop. On our
way there we couldn’t help but stop to click pictures in a small waterfall and
at that point where all of us forgot how bad the road was.
Driving
off-road for a few hours we finally saw fresh tarmac which was welcomed after
moving like a pendulum for the entire day. But even though the ride was tiring
it was worth it as we experience rural Nepal like never before.
One the
final night most of us had a heavy dinner which included dal-bhat-tarkari-masu
and locally produced ghee which was extremely fulfilling as it might just have
been the best meal of the entire trip.
The next
day we left early for Kathmandu, but on our way visited two CSEB (Compressed
Stabilised Earth Blocks) firms. One firm in Pipaltar was owned by a woman who
has for the past year has been producing around 500 blocks a day to meet the
demand she gets from remote areas of Nuwakot and Rasuwa.
CSEB house
The other firm in
Bogatitar was owned by a school teacher who had employed local women to produce
the blocks. It was encouraging to see the women work to sustain their family
and earn a modest living by working 5-6 hours a day.
The trails around these
regions saw a lot of tourists during the tourist season which helped many
sustain themselves. But after the earthquake, the flow of tourists has stopped
drastically.
In times like this
tourism is what will help them get back on their feet and give them a steady
income but without promoting places like Gatlang or Langbhu that will never be
possible.
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