Junko Tabei—the name sounds pretty familiar, doesn’t it? Well, it should be, considering that it’s a name that is now indelibly etched in the history of mankind as the first woman to conquer the world’s highest peak on May 16, 1975. She also became the first woman to summit the seven tallest mountains of all seven continents (seven summits) on June 28, 1992. Now, her ambition is to climb the highest points of all the countries around the globe. How many has she achieved so far? She has climbed the highest peaks of 61 countries as of date.
Well, who better than her to inaugurate Pokhara’s most ambitious venture, theInternational Mountaineering Museum (IMM)? This singular honor fell upon her on May 2002, and she did it side by side with the equally renowned Appa Sherpa, conqueror of Everest 20 times. Since the opening, the museum has gone to become a big success and a star attraction of the ‘Lake City’. Themed as ‘Man, Mountain, and Mountain Activities’, it has the following sections—Mountain People Gallery, Mountain Gallery; Mountain Activities Gallery, Associates’ Gallery, Library, and Audio Visual Hall. Well, when you are in Pokhara, keep at least half a day aside to visit this one-of-a-kind museum that’s located south of the airstrip near the Himalaya Eye Hospital.
No doubt, you’ll be pressed for time when in this lovely city because of the many interesting activities asking for your time. Such as a couple of boat rides around the FewaTal (lake); this, a particularly rewarding pastime in the winter when you can paddle out to the middle of the large lake and sunbathe to your heart’s content. Then, there’s a bit of exploration than has be done around the city. You could hire a mountain bike and ride from one interesting place to another, or better still, follow the path of the mysterious river that flows deep down below the city. On the way, take some time off to explore the cavernous depths of the Mahendra Gufa, a cavernous cave in the mountainside that is a claustrophobic’s worst nightmare. After this, your next stop could be at Devi’s Falls to take in the engrossing sight of water cascading down hundreds of feet below.
Aside from your forays into the natural bounties of the city, there are a couple of sporting activities that you must experience, such as paragliding from a mountain top called Sarangkot (1,592 m), parasailing, and a glorious ultra flight on a ultra light aircraft that fly at 50 to 90 km/hr and takes you up to 5,000 feet. The 15–30 minutes of pure thrill gives you a bird’s eye view of the beautiful valley below and a close-up view of the fabulous Macchapucchre Himal (Fishtail Mountain) alongside. Sure, Pokhara is one city that has a lot going in its favor. Added to that, the lakeside area has all kinds of amenities, from hotels and restaurants to trekking agencies and tour operators, and yes, a pretty cosmopolitan crowd at all times. Good place to strike up new friendships, what?
