The ubiquitous whistle of Indian Cuckoo was echoing in the far distance and soon it would become the only sound I’d associate with Nepal for years to come. The golden of a dawn sky reflected in the glimmer of River Rapti flowing in front of me as a thin veil mist lifted from the lush hills where the river disappeared from my sight. The grasslands on the opposite bank swayed in the gentle morning breeze and a Riverine forest extended well beyond. It was just my first morning in Chitwan National Park but I was already in love with the magical serenity of Terai.

When I think of Nepal, lofty Himalayan peaks were the only things that sprang to my mind for years! Home to seven 8000+ meter high peaks and many more impressive mountains, it’s hard for anything else to fight for attention living under the shadow of such a formidable presence.

So the first thing that sprang to my mind when I was planning to a trip to Nepal earlier this year was that I need to overlook the mountains and find something else to write about. And that’s how I ended up in the jungles of Chitwan National Park. Recognized as one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots and declared a World Heritage Site in 1984, the ecosystem of Chitwan is the last surviving pristine example of Terai region.

I have had only glimpses of Terai before while passing through West Bengal; and I have always wanted to spend considerable time reveling in the beauty of Sal forests, Riverine forests and Savanna grasslands that form the ecosystem. Naturally, I was thrilled to have spent a whole week in the jungles of Chitwan that were bound by the Rapti and Narayani rivers where I was staying and Indian border on the other side. I had no clue what to expect from Chitwan in terms of animal sightings and activities that would keep my occupied during my time there. Now, I can safely vouch that you can in fact spend a whole week in Chitwan and not get bored.

Sauraha is the more famous and densely packed village where plenty of resorts and hotels have popped up, thereby creating a very touristy atmosphere. I, on the other hand, stayed at a faraway village called Meghauli where only two resorts existed including the one I was at. My days in Chitwan went by like a dream, calm and serene. I almost saw no other tourist apart from the ones staying at my resort and that’s a big deal considering how inundated Nepal is, with travellers from all over the world.

I spent my days hiking in the forest, going on wildlife safaris, bird watching and rowing up and down Rapti River. Given that Meghauli hardly sees much action in terms of visiting tourists, the animals in this part of the National Park were immensely shy and would run for the cover the minute they would hear the sound of an approaching vehicle. This made observing wildlife even more interesting.

However, one of the most fascinating things that I had experienced in Chitwan was tracking animals on foot. Unlike National Parks in India, hiking in the forests of Nepal is allowed. I found it insanely exhilarating yet equally distressing to be walking in the same forest amongst the company of wild animals. We encountered massive 2000-kilo One-Horned Rhinos several times during our walks that got my heart racing like it was about to burst out of my ribcage!

The One-Horned Rhinos, Tigers, Leopards and other animals of Chitwan National Park suffered severe poaching during the 10 year Maoist Insurgency period in Nepal that lasted till 2006. However, soon after, Nepal’s government took extensive measures to protect the wildlife and doubled the numbers of Rhinos that had plummeted to 375 making it a rare conservation success story in a world where wildlife conservation is increasingly becoming a lost cause. The park is extensively patrolled by a battalion of army who are stationed at several spots in the area. I encountered many of these foot soldiers during my jaunts into the park and I was suitably impressed by Nepal Govt’s commitment to protecting their wilderness.

The jungles were indeed lovely and teeming with all sorts of wildlife creating strange dramas. I remember giggling at the sight of a tiny black Drongo chase a giant Great Indian Hornbill and marveling at the pulsating sound of Oriental Pied Hornbills flying over my head. I also remember feeling spellbound after my first sighting of the marvelous plumage of the exotic and long tailed Asian Paradise Flycatcher. I always thought of myself as a non-birder but somewhere over the course of several jungle explorations, I seemed to have turned into one.

Probably that’s the charm of Chitwan, it will turn you into an ardent admirer of all things wild. Now, I even fondly look back upon my heart-stopping encounter with a humongous 18-foot Rock Python while I was on foot in Chitwan! And to think that the mammoth mountains grossly overshadow all this glory. Next time you plan a trip to Nepal, do consider starting from the plains before you head up to the hills! You can thank me later.

I was hosted by Pugdundee Safaris at their recently acquired Barahi Jungle Lodge in Meghauli village. Keeping in line with the Pugdundee ideology, the property is eco friendly, environment-conscious, uses locally sourced material and emulates the indigenous Tharu architectural design. During my fortunate stint as a travel blogger/writer, I’ve stayed in plenty of rather luxurious properties but without a doubt the rustic cottage at Barahi happens to be my most favorite one so far!

Located on the banks of Rapti River, right opposite the grasslands of Chitwan National Park, location is golden in case of this property. My room had huge glass windows through which I could see the grasslands, night sky and the colors of sunrise sneak up at dawn every day. Every single minute of the day that I didn’t spend in the jungle was spent sitting in the lovely balcony overlooking River Rapti and the National Park. Without getting into lengthy descriptions of the property, I would just highly recommend spending a night or two here to experience the beauty of the Chitwan yourself!

Disclaimer: My stay at Barahi was sponsored by Pugdundee Safaris, opinions as always are mine!

I was fast asleep on the bumpy bus ride, traveling from Kathmandu to Chitwan on the day when the devastating earthquake measuring 7.8-magnitude hit Nepal on April 25th 2015. 

(FYI, Richter Scale was replaced by Moment Magnitude Scale in the 1970s)

Reaching Bharatpur by noon, the district headquarters of Chitwan and gateway to explore the jungles of Chitwan National Park, we could see the people of the city were gathered out on the streets and in the grounds, staring intently at their mobile phones. Looking through the glass windows from inside the bus, the reason why people were out was anybody’s guess. I got down at my stop to make a call to the resort that was supposed to pick me up. 

The manager said “Sorry, I do not have the exact information on where your cab is, it’s been a bit busy here because of the earthquake.”

“EARTHQUAKE?!”, I repeated after him in disbelief.

He confirmed. “Yes, an earthquake just hit Nepal.” 

I ended the call and went outside to find my cab had just arrived. Prem Gurung, an elderly forest guide, visibly shaken, came up to me apologizing for the delay caused (because of the quake) and escorted me towards the jeep as he asked me if I felt the tremors. 

I was clueless, I hadn’t felt anything. And only now I figured the reason why everyone was out on the streets in Bharatpur. I also wondered if it was the earthquake that must’ve jolted me out of my sleep in the bus?

We still had no clue on the magnitude of the earthquake. Fortunately here in Chitwan district, that was the extent of the disturbance caused by the quake, people were driven out of their homes temporarily. Intently listening to the radio, we heard people calling in from all over the country, reporting the damage in their respective areas. We couldn’t figure out the extent damage or the seriousness of the situation yet, barely an hour passed by since the earth shook. 

Soon, the conversation veered from the earthquake towards me, Chitwan, the weather, all and sundry. We completely forgot about the earthquake by the time we reached the resort in Meghauli, an area far removed from the tourist crowd of Sauraha. If there was a crowd, there would’ve been chatter about the incident. In this remote corner, where nothing was affected, earthquake became the subject of our small talk, but only until late afternoon.

At around 4 PM, the manager informed me about the casualties of the earthquake when the cable connection finally got working. 

“600”, he said. And this was the number only from Kathmandu, mere hours after the quake hit. 

After the number sunk in, my head started spinning. A thousand thoughts ran through my mind - fear, anxiety, relief, worry, confusion, disappointment and all such emotions hit me at once. 

The earthquake hit Nepal at 11.55 AM.

It was now 4 PM!

I could only imagine the horror my family and friends must’ve gone through during these long 4 hours when I was not reachable in any way. Just the previous morning, I had decided I would go old school and travel without a local sim, just for the heck of it. Bad timing to disconnect, I realized. 

Phone lines were down in the country but thankfully internet was working. Quickly connecting to the internet, I waited for my phone to explode with notifications and as expected, it did! People were worried sick about my safety - family, friends and strangers alike. I let everyone know I was safe. It was very touching, the outpouring of concern from everyone. 

That evening, we were talking to the mahouts on how the elephants fared when the quake hit. They said the gentle giants were stomping hard on the ground and visibly shaken during the earthquake. I could only imagine how scary the ordeal must’ve been for all the animals that felt the tremors. 

The next morning, I woke up to mild tremors. I sat on the bed as the ground shook gently, it was a mild aftershock. It was surprising, our body’s naturally wired response to natural calamities such as this. Although the tremors were very mild, my heart raced like it was about to burst out of my ribcage! If a small tremor had me running out of the room, one can imagine how frightening it must have been when the ground shook like crazy for minutes.

As the day progressed, slowly the news about the scale of the destruction started trickling in. Along came the reports about the rescue efforts by the embassies of various countries, the valor of Indian army, the agility of the Ministry of External Affairs so on and so forth. My parents and friends were urging me to take the support of the Indian Embassy and fly back into India immediately. I couldn’t leave just yet. 

Here in Chitwan, the foothills of Himalayas, there was no devastation. Things were absolutely fine and it didn’t make much sense to me in leaving the safety of the jungles to head towards the devastated and resource-crunched Kathmandu. As people were making all sort of plans to leave the country, I didn’t feel the need to the flee as long as I could find a safe place. After all, the severely limited resources of Kathmandu were better put to use for local aid and relief efforts than rescuing foreigners who had come for a “vacation”, me included. I was safe here in Chitwan, so I decided against going to Kathmandu at least for the next 5 days much to the chagrin of worried folks back home. The only way I could help the situation immediately was keeping out of the way. And my motto always has been, if locals can survive, so can I. I decided to wing it with the people of Nepal.  

It was April 26th, a day after the dreaded event, rightly dubbed as the Great Earthquake. Things were slowly getting clear as the casualty count climbed higher, steadily. In 2 weeks, I was supposed to be trekking the Manaslu Circuit, a friend confirms that region is one of the worst affected, I was sure that my trek is cancelled. I had my return ticket booked for May 25th, it was only April 26th today. I was here in Chitwan at least till April 30th, but I decided to leave the rest to fate. I didn’t make any new plans just yet. 

On the afternoon of 27th, we were all sitting in the lobby, close to the WiFi router, sending updates and making escape plans. Just then, the ground shook violently. The tables and chairs shook hard as well, the vibrations were palpable and the noise was shockingly loud. We all ran away from the wooden porch building towards the pool, the water was swaying wildly as one single viscous body. Heart was pounding again, uncontrollably. This was a major aftershock and it lasted about 5 seconds.  

Later one afternoon, talking to the local staff, a friendly Indian Lady working in Chitwan, reminded me that if something has to happen, you cannot escape it even at the fringes and if not, you will be safe even in the eye of the storm. I took that advice to heart and decided to head to Pokhara which was verified to have escaped unscathed. While deciding what to do next, I was terribly conflicted. On one hand the fortunate turn of events that placed me out of harm’s way didn’t escape me and on the other hand there was this feeling of impending doom that things could go wrong the very next moment and that I should flee. All the bookings had been cancelled immediately at the resort, people who were there left the country in a hurry and those were to come, cancelled. The resort was empty by April 27th, the staff was given a well-deserved break, they started leaving for home too. The place was almost deserted except for me and a handful of staff. 

Torn between perceived safety and the actual situation on the ground, I spent the next few days with thoughts moving between participating in relief efforts, staying out the way, leaving the country and staying back. Things in Chitwan were fine meanwhile where I was well cared for. Meanwhile, in Kathmandu incessant rain, food and water shortage, unsafe buildings and blackout kept people exposed to danger days after the quake hit. They surely didn’t need one more person to take care of, I was staying away. 

On 30th morning, I made my way towards Pokhara, Nepal’s second largest city which had surprisingly escaped any devastation even though it was just as close to epicentre as Kathmandu Valley, thankfully. Here in Pokhara I felt more strongly than ever that I must help with the relief efforts since I was already in Nepal but was quite confused on how I could help. Around the same time many articles came out suggesting that best thing you can do if you’re not a trained aid worker was to donate your money, not time and stay out of the rescue worker’s way! The logic seemed about right, I let go of the idea of volunteering. From past experience I knew I didn’t have the stregnth in me to face such a major humanitarian crisis, let alone help. I’m going to help Nepal stand on its feet by coming back as soon as it’s ready to take tourists. For now, I lay low. 

2 days after I arrived at Pokhara, I was resting in my room on 2nd floor when the floor shook lightly again. Once you have experienced an earthquake, you keep reliving the moment and imagining the ground is shaking. It’s not a feeling we are used to and we find it hard to let go of it so soon. I thought I was just imagining the aftershock, after all it was already a week since the quake hit. Later that day I found out that I wasn’t imagining, a 5.1 magnitude quake had hit Nepal again. 

I couldn’t shake off that terrible feeling of thinking anything in this world is permanent. I was filled with inconsolable regret about missing my chance to see the now destroyed, famous Hindu temples of Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur. I couldn’t shake off the finality of missing that opportunity, many of the century old monuments were reduced to rubble, lost for eternity when I was sitting mere kilometres away from them in Kathmandu over the past 3 days thinking I could come back to them. While the civilization crumbled and struggled to stay afloat, the mountains stood resolute. They grumbled and shifted but they stood their ground, the fragile life on the other hand was torn to bits. It was as if the uncertainty of our existence was laughing in my face.

At first the feeling of extreme disappointment hit me, that my long awaited trek in Nepal was ruined. That I couldn’t see the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Then came the realization that my loss was nothing compared to the hundreds who spent outrageous amounts of money and mental energy in preparing to climb Everest. Then came the crushing realization that both of these selfish and rued opportunities were no match for the loss of livelihood and lives of the people who called these mountains home and those unfortunate visitors who lost their lives to the mountains. Resentment was quickly replaced with gratitude and I was embarrassed at my thankfully fleeting self-absorbed ego trip. 

Days after the quake hit, almost 80% of the future reservations were cancelled. Nepal is a poor country that depends a lot on tourism, even those not affected by the quake directly will be affected the sudden loss of income stream. Me and few others like me sauntered around in Pokhara, waiting for things to get better. While the short term survival is of utmost importance now, it’s the long term sustainability of the country that really bothers me. It isn’t easy picking up the pieces and starting all over again, from scratch, with no resources to begin with, but unfortunately that’s what the people of Nepal will have to do. 

Most of us, we are not the doctors who are saving hundreds of lives right now. We are not the people who are marshalling relief supplies and troops to affected areas, we are not the selfless volunteers working on ground distributing supplies and rebuilding houses. But if there’s one way we can help it would be by not cancelling our plans to Nepal. Just postpone your plans to the next season, whenever that is. Deep inside we all know that the mountains will never be 100% safe, and that’s an essential part of the adventure now isn’t it? So the minute the country is ready to take in tourists, you must go back.

***

Here's how you can help

While there are plenty of big charities you can donate to, I think helping the local teams and travel companies that are working on the ground at the moment could better support the relief efforts. Few teams that I know of are here, here and here.

Suggested reading on the Nepal Quake

Nepal earthquake: why I had to return to a devastated country in crisis

Nepal’s Aid System Is Broken. So These Lifesavers Hacked It

Real time photo updates crowdsourced from reporters on ground on Instagram

***

I just returned from Nepal 2 days ago. As I prepared the mental notes for this post, I saw that another earthquake of magnitude-7.1 7.4 hit Nepal again causing a lot more casualties, just 3 days after I was in Kathmandu. Then, I could only pray for Nepal and thank my lucky stars, for saving me twice!