Shaurab Lohani

After hearing a lot on social media and seeing pity videos of “Bhaktapur after earthquake” I decided to go take a short motorbike trip, with my friend and look around to check its authenticity. I wouldn't like to go on the contrary, as the videos were shot concurrently at the time for quake but would like to request the owners of the video should try and visit Bhaktapur and update the recent status of the periphery. Let me tell you my findings after walking and talking to the local authorities, locals and the vendors. First thing the entrance of the Durbar square still has a huge pile of rubble left from the prehistoric mud and brick gate but once we enter the durbar square periphery you will see it clean and ready to welcome guests. Not to forget that this vicinity I am writing about at the moment dates back to over 300 years and making hypotheses about not seeing the distress is completely a hypothesis itself. The museum suffered a major hit which is why only one of...

The #GoHome movement was phenomenal that even I couldn't sway my hands away from making twitter posts, people rose from every corner of the country and world to show the rest of the world that Nepalese will not remain hushed for every misrepresentation Indian media imposed. This was on the very initial days of the earthquake and as an after earthquake social activist I had a hunch that it wouldn't be long before Nepalese get back on their feet and continue doing their chores.  #Stillnepal #Stillsmining is amongst the campaigns with a positive lead to my hunch. These campaigns invite travelers who have been stationed or landed in Nepal post quake, intended to boost post Earthquake confidence for travellers willing to trot in this beautiful country. These are the signs that we are up, moving and are not frowning for what we had no control of. The request to the entire world is to “Participate in the Recovery of Tourism in Nepal” and there are many ways to do so. As an owne...

Everyone has their own favorites when it comes to seeing places and doing things and so do I. I am a big time foodie and a travel junkie and nothing stops me from munching around and nothing forbids me from the places I like to visit time and again, not even a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. 1.       The first on my list is mountain flights and it reserves a top spot on my list for the reason that it is an absolute stunner. The first time I had a seat right behind the pilot and copilot on a small aircraft which offered me a wide angle view of Himalayas stretched as far as India was awe-inspiring. It was 2010 that I had decided I would do mountain flight every once in a while if I had the shekels and luckily I have done is thrice since then. 2.       Walking around Durbar squares is another favorite Saturday fixation. I have had best times around these monument as a kid and visited them in field visits from schools very recurrently ...

There was a lot of crying and agony for the people whose family members survived and there was the same for the ones who lost their beloved ones. I and my mother as well for the entire sleepless night of aftershocks held hands and tried staying strong by providing each other motivation. The power was out so it wa dark and we could hear the entire communities phones and mobiles on the high. Me and my mom and along with the entire community of at least 500 household spent the first day under the tents tarpaulins, under the open sky. It was one chaotic night and we could hear a huge noise under the ground, people chanting prayers, children crying, during and after every aftershocks. The night passed by with eyes wide open. Early in the morning the first thing that I did was sent my mom to my closest relative; my father's elder sister. I told my mom I am going to be in the community to assess the damage but I and Sabin; one of my friend had already made the plans for the day. The ...

This as usual again happened over night, I had no plans to visit or travel yet I did and I guess that’s what’s “call of the mountains” means is!! It was immediately after the biggest Nepalese festival Dashain, one of my cousins, popped in at my home. We had dinner and we were watching T.V, that’s when he had a call and he was explaining what he has already packed for the trip and is ready to leave as early as possible. As its in we Nepalese blood to intervene in anyone’s business, I asked him, where he is headed for?? He quickly replied, I have couple week’s long break, so escaping this hustle and bustle for a week, may be to Mustang, more precisely “Muktinath”. I was explaining my cousin how I wanted to go with him but cant because mum was going to India and cannot leave the house and dog by itself. As soon as I dropped my words to my cousin, came a phone call to my mom saying her trip to India has been postponed for the reason that the train tickets have been postponed. I went to...

Every country has their own norms and values, religion and practices. These practices could be a matter of shock for people visiting. My advice is not to be too cocky and enjoy different perception of a country and go with the flow, which is the best way to learn. Welcome to the Nepal, a country where “virginity is dignity” compared to that of “virginity is lack of opportunity” that I experience while studying in USA. The list goes like this:   Let’s start from the airport, Tribhuwan International Airport is a very small, one terminal led airport, and one runway airport. Be ready to walk to and fro the bus which carries you to and from the aeroplane in the only international airport in Nepal. It looks like an unmaintained warehouse. The streets are filled with idiots. The lanes are separated but you will never be able to figure out which lane are you on as everything seems to be coming to your way until the very last moment. Driving in Nepal is ...