We planned a few "buffer" days for the trek and since everything went smoothly and we didn't use them, we had a few extra days in our hands to explore Nepal. At first I was just going to poke around Pokhara- I had heard it was such a lovely place and relaxing by the lake was enticing A 4-day kayaking adventure caught Bryan's eye and he signed up for it right away. That afternoon, it started to rain pretty hard and I had a feeling my time at the lake everyday would be interrupted by a pre-monsoon rainfall-- so I decided Chitwan National Park was the cure.
It worked out so that Bryan and I still had a whole day in Pokhara to explore, then leave for our various activities and we'd meet up in Kathmandu a day before we leave.... Perfect timing!!
Chitwan National Park is in the southeren region if Nepal, bordering India. It's home to elephants, rhinos, lots and lots of birds, and Bengal Tigers :) Tigers are, of course, rare to see on the wild, but that won't stop me from looking!!!
I went for an elephant ride, jeep safari into the jungle, canoe ride, bird watching, and helped bath the elephants. I stayed a a relaxing hotel. For the majority of the time, I was the only guest, so I got a bunch of one on one attention.
The weather was hot and humid!! I found that my favorite spot was in the shade on a hammock reading a book during the middle of the day. One evening there was a terrific thunderstorm.
