Written by: Monika Schaffner, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
There is something about Nepal that has been attracting travelers over the decades, and the magic continues to enthrall its visitors. There are countless offers for travel in Nepal, but many will not ensure you the transformative travel experience you hope for. How to make the most of your tour through this unique country? How to discover the real authentic Nepal off the beaten track? How to custom-design your Nepal tour to ensure yourself a close-up, transformative experience of its unique magic?
When I think of Nepal, I remember the kindness of its people, I take part in the flow of traffic when crossing a street as a pedestrian, I hear the vibrant sounds of the city awakening at dawn, the myriad calls of birds in the trees in the morning, the sounds of pressure cookers cooking rice in local kitchens, motorcycles taking off for work, the sweeping of brooms, a friendly conversation drifting up from the neighboring courtyard. As I take in the lush scent of jasmine in the air after a morning rain, I sense a promise lying in the air, a remembrance of long-gone elegance, still alive today in Nepal’s rich socio-cultural landscape.
How to capture this atmosphere with all your senses, and allow it to flood the very cells of your body?
How to design your personalized Nepal tour, so it leaves a lasting impression on your body system and takes you back home renewed, inspired, transformed, and with a 1-degree shift in perspective that will change your world?
Here are five keys to ensure yourself a transformative, unforgettable experience of authentic Nepal.
1. Travel with a guide who knows the art of connecting between cultures
Travel with a guide who can connect you to Nepal’s unique culture and nature. Someone who knows the art of building bridges – between your understanding, your viewpoint, your way of seeing your world, your perspective and dreams – and your host. Someone who knows where to find those flavors, enabling those experiences to unfold as you take one step at a time into this foreign culture so different from your own.
This is not just about translating between languages, this is about about transmitting embodied cultural understanding that will allow you to tap into this connection and create authentic bridges of your own, between the oriental and the Western perspectives of the world.
Having been born and raised in Nepal, I know about the importance of this connection. My soul feels deeply at home in this country, its valleys, towns, villages, and mountains. For the past 20 years, I have come back on my own, to live and work in, to enjoy and experience the special magic of this country, its scents and colors, its diverse cultures, and its beautiful people with kind and gentle hearts. I made many friends and lasting connections with people of all backgrounds, cultures, and regions. Through my work in regenerative tourism, I have traveled to many areas far off the beaten tourist track. I have learned to speak the language, which has opened many doors and welcomed me to sit at countless local kitchen fires. Today, I am grateful and privileged to share this connection, this close-up insight into the real, authentic Nepal, allowing my guests to connect more deeply through the bridge of my own knowledge, perspectives, and network of friends.
2. Tune into the flow
As you travel, allow the day to unfold, observe the signs, and go with them. It is helpful to have a rough framework or schedule for orientation, a collection of ideas of experiences you brought with you. But then – allow the pure and real-life experiences to unfold in their own rhythm and flow. Be ready to jump into the unexpected turns of events, to grasp the moment as it presents itself in its raw, alive, authentic way, far beyond anything you might have conceived.
In this way, perfect timings, unexpected encounters, and beautiful synchronicities will take their transformative course to reveal to you the unique magic of Nepal.
3. Activate your senses, and look out for the magic in small things
Activate your senses for the subtle tastes, flavors, sights, sounds, and fragrances you meet as you take your every step. Experience, listen, look, feel, and flavor, to encounter – with all of who you are – the complete caleidoscope of Nepal’s vibrant landscapes, cultures, and people. There is no limit to this discovery, the most beautiful moments lie in the smallest of things – a tiny marigold flower vase at the doorstep, a butter lamp lit at the side of a temple entrance, a fragrance of jasmine finding its way to your nostrils, the wood carvings on the pillars of the door you enter, the sound of a rooster ringing out to you through the rich rural dawn, the pink touch of a first sun ray on the mountains you see from your guesthouse window.
Your senses are the doorway to your deeper insights, and your conscious sensitive experience will spark those lasting, transformative experiences.
4. Walk off the well-known, well-recommended pathways
Get up early to follow the stream of local people – to discover the intimate, local shrine, its popularity visible by the blurred features of the original face of the god presiding there. Ask the local residents for the most recent openings, for the hidden secrets, and for the spontaneous traditional rituals happening in the shelter of the inner courtyards. Try the local food and its kaleidoscope of tastes and fragrances.
Discover the unique offerings of Nepal’s rich culture and history, elements which may not be on the general bucket list: The artistic craftsmanship (visit a carpenter workshop, watch a woman weaving a bamboo basket); dinner being cooked on the fire in a private home; the art of baking sweets in the popular local breakfast shop; accompany the women on their morning round of offering prayer to their particular family deity or asking for blessings from the god of the particular weekday.
Traveling off the well-known track is where the real, authentic Nepal reveals itself to you, with its deep transformative potential.
5. Don’t ask too many questions
… trying to structure your mind around rational explanations of the irrational truths underlying life. Wanting to “know it all”; attempting to grasp the complexity of circular, vast realities with your mind accustomed to linear patterns and rules. This vain attempt will lock out the many irrational phenomena presenting themselves in this country. Instead: Absorb, smell, taste, feel, observe, and listen to your heart for the answers it holds. Be ensured: If you remain vigilant, all your questions will be answered spontaneously in their own way, at the latest by the evening of that same day.
So, I encourage you not to ask too many questions of your busy mind, but to focus your attention on absorbing the atmosphere, the sounds, the scents, the flavors, the sights. Experience your body system resonate, calm down, and become more sensitive to the nuances. Where else is this possible in such a close-up and authentic way, than in this country of vibrant life, 125 ethnic distinctions, its rich history of all religious influences passing through, mingling, coming to stay, and mixing into the abundant culture that has already been here?
And lastly, while I clearly understand the urge, I also encourage you not to take too many photos. I know that this is a totally challenging attempt in such an utterly picturesque country. The truth is that unfortunately, you will never be able to truly CAPTURE these moments, wishing to KEEP them FOR ETERNITY... Instead, try to find a good balance between capturing the moment (with your camera) and experiencing the actual situation as your senses register it, in its vast complexity and richness. This deep real-life experience will leave an everlasting imprint on your soul – deeper than any photographs will ever take you.
Are you ready to book yourself a transformative, unforgettable experience of authentic Nepal? Click here!
Monika Schaffner, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Monika Schaffner was born in Nepal and is now settled in Switzerland. Having grown up in the Himalayas, she cares deeply for the mystic beauty, the vital sanity, the complex harmony of pristine natural spaces. Today a freelance geographer, Monika advocates a holistic co-existence of the human species with Nature. She develops regenerative approaches to tourism in Nepal, and works at the nexus between water protection and hydropower in Switzerland. As a nature therapist she inspires individuals to reconnect with wild nature and to thereby reconnect with themselves. With her own formula of energetic massage, she creates spaces for her clients to relax, regenerate and experience deep sense of home-coming within.
