Charikot

After travelling for several days, Istanbul, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Kathmandu and then the bumpy roller coaster drive to Charikot I enjoyed a good sleep on an excellent bed. I woke up at 10am, had an excellent breakfast of roti, curry boiled egg and coffee...and went back to bed for another few hours. This was a minor mistake because the morning had been sunny and clear whereas the afternoon was overcast and drizzly. Nevertheless, being an intrepid curious traveller I ventured out to take a short walk, or that was my intention. The centre of town was left so I turned right to see what was at the top of the hill. Wow!

Before this tournament is over I want to play a game of chess on this magnificent stone table looking out over an incredible valley. Unfortunately the fog prevents you from seeing it in its full splendour.

The next hill is clear enough to see but beyond the mountains are obscured.

Same hilltop, a nice cafe. It is also on my list of places I would like to visit again.

The Chariang Monastery sits on top of the hill overlooking all of Charikot. It is one of many places of worship in this town. All faiths seem to co-exist without a hint of tension, in fact they pray at each others temples and churches thinking nothing of it. The saying goes, something like, where people see a thousand faces the wise man sees just one. 

It never fails to amaze me how happy and friendly people in developing countries are. Everybody smiled at me as I walked down the street, some kids tried out some English and laughed and nobody asked for anything! We in developed nations worry about the economic crisis, politics, immigration and a whole host of other issues while living in the lap of luxury. And we are suspicious of strangers worried they will take our cherished jobs or seduce our daughters. 

On my way back I stopped at a shop to watch some people playing chess. They invited me to play a game and brought out their best player, a delightful young girl. We played many games with an ever growing audience. She is playing in the tournament tomorrow!

And after I was invited to dinner by a lovely family. I played several games of chess and got taught some Nepalese. To learn a few words of the local language can never hurt and sometimes can be vital. Also having some respect for the culture and people of the country you are a guest in is just common courtesy :-)

Stay tuned for more and have a nice day my friends