Arrival in Jumla : The Usual Challenges

This is our fourth shoot. We have the routine down but have also become used to the unexpected inconveniences that arise. This is Nepal, after all. This trip, just getting there was a challenge.

The Shakti team were reunited in Pokhara after Sophie, Nisha and I had spent a couple of days resting following our Mustang trip. Soraj joined us there and the next morning the four of us got in a jeep bound for Nepalgunj. Our flight to Jumla was booked for the following day. The 'direct' flight (which actually stopped in Pokhara to refuel) had been recently cancelled so this was our only way of reaching Jumla.

The journey to Nepalgunj (about 12 hrs) went smoothly and we arrived in good time to find it raining. A nice respite from the sticky heat. The jeep was piled high with all our bags and we pulled up at the hotel, The Kitchen Hut, a new one we were looking forward to trying - we had stayed at Travellers Village before and its resemblance and smell of a forgotten 70s American motel was not tempting us back.

It was only after we'd unloaded the multitude of luggage from the roof of the jeep that the guy at the front desk thought it worth telling us that although we had reserved two rooms, they only had one available. This was because there had been no flights out of Nepalgunj that morning so people had stayed an extra day. They hadn't thought to mention this the repeated times they had called us throughout the day to find out when we were arriving.

pile of luggage and empty jeep in background

The hotel was offering to ferry two of us to another location and back in the morning but we wanted to all stay together, so eventually they booked us two rooms at the other hotel, Travellers Village!

The next day at the airport, after a few hours waiting around (as per usual), the bags were checked, excess baggage paid and we'd all gone through to the departure lounge. We were the last four to set out across the tarmac to the plane and we were suddenly informed that one of us would have to stay behind. The bags could all go but the plane could not accommodate all of us. A brief, fraught negotiation ensued  and eventually three of us boarded the plane, leaving Nisha on the runway, with only her carry on with her (which had all our snacks and various other items, but nothing useful for her to spend a night).  It was heart-breaking leaving her there on the runway as the plane pulled away and frustrating as there was an empty seat in front of us. Apparently it was to do with weight which seems ridiculous as she weighs less than our luggage!

As it turned out, they managed to put her on another flight with a different airline that afternoon. Her brother, Lal Singh, had been at the airport to greet all of us, so he hung out with us until she arrived and it suddenly became a great opportunity to film Nisha arriving back in Jumla - and so, shooting began!

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The night before, in Nepalgunj, Soraj had informed us that the road to the village, Urthu-Chautara, where we were shooting, was not passable by jeep. There were a couple of places where landslides were blocking the road. We would have to walk and get porters or donkeys for the bags.

Because of this added element we planned to stay in Jumla Bazaar for the first night. Flying in from Nepalgunj, you never know exactly when you might arrive as the flights don't run on a particular schedule. And any time spent at Nepalgunj airport is quite tiring, so it seemed less daunting to stay in Bazaar and then we could set off in the morning after a night's rest.

The first night in Jumla Bazaar, we made the most of the all night electricity, making sure everything was charged and watching a movie. We had been fore-warned and were prepared for the inconvenience of no power in Urthu-Chautara. The generator in the micro hydro-power station had broken down and had been sent off in a jeep to be fixed. Apparently there had been no power for about a month. It turned out the generator had actually been fixed and was en route back but the jeep, that was transporting it from Butwal (far away), had then broken down!

It is about 5 km from Jumla Bazaar to Urthu-Chautara and roughly a hour and a half walk to Jumla Bazaar. Soraj's family home is in Bazaar, and as he was only back in Jumla for the two weeks of shooting, he was happy to go home most nights to charge the batteries and computers as it also gave him a chance to spend time with his family.

This was even more essential, as the night we arrived in Jumla, his wife gave birth to their second child, a beautiful girl!

 

The next day, Nisha, Sophie and I set off for Urthu-Chautara on foot. In the end, Soraj had organised a tractor to transport most of our bags. We insisted that he stay in Bazaar to spend more time with his family. It is a pleasant walk and we took our time, shooting a little on the way.

I must admit to having a lump in my throat as we came up around the final corner above the village. We were back!

Thankfully, from then on, everything continued smoothly. And in fact, by the time we had finished the shoot, the road had been fixed. The generator, thus the power, had been returned, which was lucky, as at the same time, the power in Jumla Bazaar went out due to a fault in their power house, soon to be followed by the phone lines, which in turn, meant all internet connections in Jumla!

Small inconveniences to remind us how tentative the infrastructure still is in places like Jumla.