Still in Kagbeni, the morning wait for transport to take us in the direction of Jomsom reaches two hours.
It leaves us saturated. A car appears in the opposite direction, the one from Muktinath.
The driver approaches us. “The bus has already passed. It will be difficult for you to catch another one now. If you want, I can call someone who has a jeep. For 1800 rupees (about €11), he will take you there.” We accept immediately.
Five minutes later, the jeep appears. In a few more minutes, we arrive near Jomsom, a town located on the banks of the Gandaki River, which is so wide that it looks more like a lake. Jomsom is home to one of the main airports in the northern reaches of Nepal.
Over time, the relevance of this infrastructure brought about a development and modernization that we had not seen for almost half a month.
Jomsom to Marpha trek along the banks of the Gandaki River
The driver dropped us off on the banks of the Gandhaki River, which shortened the remaining walk. We covered the 5km to Marpha in an hour and forty-five minutes.
The first stretch follows the arid and rocky banks of the Gandaki. From the river, we follow rural paths, many of them walled. We are less than 100 metres higher than the 2760m at which Jomsom is located.
We found Marpha nestled in the Kali Gandaki valley, with its houses set against the low slopes of the Dhaulagiri mountain range, which is closer to the Dhamphus (6012m) and Tukuche (6920m) mountains.
At a certain point, a narrow dirt road gives way to another, now with a street profile and paving made of almost smooth, light-colored stones that lead to the heart of the village.
In the middle of the afternoon, we come across the “Paradise Guesthouse” which, still in Kagbeni, an American from Colorado had advised us.
And an Inaugural Tour of Marpha
We settled in. We took an inaugural tour of Marpha.
Old man at the entrance of a deserted street in Marpha
Alley after alley, we recognize its peculiar architecture, the homes made of stacked stone and painted white, almost all of them equipped with terraces with piles of firewood stored on the edges.
We climbed the slope. At the same time, we moved away, in search of a panoramic perspective.
So much so that we crossed the entrance gate to the village, on the opposite side to the one we had entered through.
It is white. Lines of Tibetan flags give it color. lung ta.
We climbed as high as we could.
Panoramic view of Marpha
Finally, we gained an overview of Marpha.
We admire the houses stretching out into the countryside, crowned by the Tashi Lha Khang monastery of the Tibetan Nyingma sect, the town's large temple, which stands out in an almost maroon tone.
The Soaring Spirituality of Tashi Lha Khang Monastery
Further away, we could still see apple orchards and other plantations close to the opposite slope, the Gandaki River and its tributary Thak Kola.
Detail of a door at the Tashi Lha Khang monastery
Tashi Lha Khang Monastery is over two centuries old.
It houses a collection of 225 sacred Tibetan books and educates many of Marpha's young people.
Worship hall of Tashi Lha Khang monastery, with Buddha image in background
From 1960 onwards, it began to play a crucial aggregating role for Tibetan civilization.
The Invasion of Tibet and the Refuge of Tibetans, also in Marpha
In 1950, China invaded Tibet, forcing nearly 130 Tibetans into a diaspora facilitated mainly by India, Nepal and Bhutan.
Marpha has about 1600 inhabitants.
Less than half an hour's walk away, on the opposite bank of the Gandaki, equipped with a primary school and a health center, the Tserok refugee camp is home to around two hundred Tibetans with little hope of returning to their homes.
For reasons of spirituality and reception logistics, the camp was set up next to a monastery of the same name.
Built in the 16th century on an ancient salt trade route, the monastery, also known as Chhairo, predates that of Tashi Lha Khang.
Buddhist elements on the roof of Tashi Lha Khang Monastery
It is, in fact, the first monastery of the Nyingma Tibetan Buddhist sect in the Mustang region.
This salt route, which partly followed the meanders of the Gandaki River, ceased to make sense when, determined to stop the movement of liberation activists, Tibet, China closed its border with Nepal.
Detail of a door at the Tashi Lha Khang monastery
The Buddhist Community thakali local, a minority but considered one of the wealthiest in Nepal, did what it could to integrate Tibetan refugees into village life.
Every Tibetan family is entitled to a plot of land for cultivation.
Vendors on one of the streets in the heart of Marpha
They work in the shops downtown.
They support tourist activity in general, often as guides and porters on the many hikes that pass through Marpha, which depart from there to other meritorious nepali places.
The Apple Capital of Nepal
On the way back, we crossed the village gate again.
We give way to a caravan of horses with sacks on their backs.
Tibetan Buddhist gateway to Marpha
It is run by a trio of owners, three of whom are breeders of mules and small horses, who profit from their sale and rental for a variety of services.
In an area like Marpha, surrounded by orchards and other agricultural production, the need for these cattle is often pressing, often for transporting apples. Marpha is, after all, the apple capital of Nepal.
Horses in a sunny Marpha corral
It produces jams and liqueurs and the famous Marpha brandy, all derived from its precious fruits, in a vast mountainous area where this type of fresh food is scarce.
Over the centuries, Marpha and the ethnicity thakali that the population were almost always blessed with abundance and well-being.
The Tibetan Buddhist Faith That Eradicated a Leprosy Epidemic
There are, however, reports of a dark period when a leprosy epidemic ravaged the village and no attempt to eradicate it seemed to be successful.
This scourge resulted in another of the local Buddhist-Tibetan sanctuaries.
Chorten added to a hillside in the village, said to be in an attempt to eradicate a leprosy epidemic
Um chorten added to a steep, rocky slope, a white and red painting highlighted above and to the right of the Tashi Lha Khang monastery, complemented with chortens of normal dimensions below the base which believers can access to say their prayers.
The story goes that the person responsible for this unusual work was a monk from the neighboring town of Tukuche.
This monk advised the people of Marpha to build the chorten, that if they did so and prayed there and carried out certain rituals, the leprosy would disappear.
Os thakali Marpha followed the advice. The leprosy subsided.
The village returned to its familiar fertility.
Business signs on a touristy street in Marpha
It darkens.
The Night and New Dawn
We return to the “Paradise Guesthouse”. We had dinner with Kofi Josua (we called him Josh) and an Australian woman we had met on the ascent a few days ago to the Ice Lake (4600m), above brakka (3470m).
As we savor apple tarts topped with egg custard, we talk about past experiences on the crucial and most demanding stretch of the route, which goes from Manang to the gorge of Thorong La, at 5416 meters, its highest and most risky point.
We talk about altitude sickness, expensive helicopter rescues and other problems that never affected us.
The weather forecast predicted rain for the next day. In fact, it could be long-lasting.
We found it strange. Marpha is located in an area surrounded by mountains that block the arrival of heavy clouds. Even during the monsoon months, which cause heavy flooding in other parts of Nepal, there is little rain.
View of Marpha with Tashi Lha Khang Monastery highlighted
It is the prevalence of sunny days, associated with the irrigation guaranteed by the imminent rivers that substantiates the abundance of apples and other fruits.
We finished the pies. We chatted a little more. Overcome by tiredness, we went to bed. Just as we suspected would happen, the next day dawned sunny, with no signs of the sun setting.
We had a slightly faster breakfast than usual, in case the weather wasn't playing tricks on us. Before 8am, we returned to the streets of Marpha.
We passed by the monastery again.
Novices play in the courtyard of Tashi Lha Khang Monastery
A Harmonious Nepalese Life
A few novices play in a sunken courtyard where the sun begins to shine.
They are blessed by a crossroads of prayer flags stretched between a central mast and the roofs of the porch structure, open to the sky.
In one of the rooms on the upper floor, a young monk, bundled up against the cold, with a cap still covering his head, teaches a small, disciplined class.
Buddhist class at Tashi Lha Khang Monastery
On a nearby balcony, another group, unoccupied with learning, debates some juvenile topic, their backs turned to the hundreds of terraces of Marpha homes, to the Buddhist-Tibetan flags that wave there in the wind.
We descend towards the tourist and commercial heart of the village.
Along the way, we pass through an alleyway, which is cheered up by the presence of two technicians who are trying to restore the electricity supply.
Residents of Marpha witness an intervention in the village's electricity grid
Residents go out, ask questions. They come back in. A few prefer to make sure the job gets done.
They accompany the technicians, with what seems to us to be frequent bouts of misunderstanding.
Above this commotion, more concerned about the health of her long hair, a woman straightens and combs it without respite.
Woman combs her hair on the firewood-filled terrace of her home
We knew, almost certainly, that around one in the afternoon, a bus would pass through Marpha, bound for Pokhara.
Departure from Marpha and the Early End of the Annapurna Circuit
We set out with an open mind, prepared to set off at Ghasa or the Tatopani hot springs area, where many of the hikers once visited. Annapurna Circuit They stopped to relax their muscles and minds from the daily effort that the walks had required of them.
However, successive monsoon seasons, aggravated by hurricanes, had caused numerous landslides and other damage to the F042 road, which runs along the Gandaki River bed. As a result, there were a succession of construction sites, rubble, machinery and other blemishes on the landscape, along the road and elsewhere.
The more kilometers we covered, the more disappointed we became with what appeared and we became discouraged about the prospect of extending the Annapurna Circuit in those conditions.
We arrived at Ghasa. The scenery remained the same.
And the same on the verge of Tatopani. We had already been walking for thirteen days. With more than fifteen days around the Annapurnas if we counted the trip to Besisahar, the night spent there and the connection, also by jeep, to Chame, where we started walking.
At Tatopani, we decided that we would rather keep the memories of the many stretches between Chame and Marpha and the villages and unforgettable places along the way.
We continue until Pokhara .
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