No place is like home
Yuba Nath Lamsal
Escaped from the loathsome crowd, smog-filled madhouse and terrible traffic of Kathmandu, a trek to village is, indeed, enchanting that refreshes and reinvigorates your mind, appetite and energy. If it were a place close to your heart, the trip becomes more captivating. To this scribe, it was a moment to be back to nature's purity accompanied by a sense of ownership and affection with the place where I was born and brought up.Kurgha, a tiny hamlet on the ridge of Mahabharat range in western Nepal, South of Kusma Bazaar, headquarters of Parbat district, about 250 kilometers west of Kathmandu, offers a perfect blend of ethnic and cultural mosaic, exclusive social harmony and a true nature's diversity. The image of this tiny parish has always been imprinted in my heart. The place is so close to me that its image almost always comes to my mind.The lush green mountains, terraces on the slopes, plowed fields bursting with crops, cows and buffaloes grazing at their own will and whim on the fields, meadows and forests, serpentine rivers and rivulets running at their own speed are some of the features that come vividly to my mind and keeps on chasing me. Little far away in the south-west hisses holy Kaligandaki River with its own soliloquy. This is the place where I cried, laughed, played and stumbled, swam and skidded. And this is the place where my love, affection, emotion and the sense of belonging are attached. This is why heart is where one's identity is linked. Being here was a kind of born again feeling to me.It is said time travels faster than anything. To me the time has flown in supersonic speed that so much has changed in the last two decades. The same things looked strange and different from what I had seen before. Already full of green forests, further greenery has been added to the village with tree plantation campaign and preservation of forests, thanks to community forest users' group's initiative. Once barren land has turned into lush green area. Much change has taken place in terms of development infrastructure as well. It used to take almost three days to reach Kathmandu from this village. One and a half day's arduous trek to Syangja's Naudanda walking on the trails up and down the hills and finally along the banks of meandering Andhi Khola to catch the bus. Now national highway crisscrosses Kosmas Bazaar and motorable road has reached almost every village of Parbat district including my own Kurgha.Modern amenities have reached almost villages and people are enjoying the fruit of modernization. There is a daily bus service from Kusma Bazaar to Lunkhu Deuralai via Kurgha. National grid's electricity and cable television have already reached and almost everyone in the village carries mobile telephone set. The village has higher secondary school with classes running for 10+2 level. Bachelor level education is also available in the next village, which is just half an hour walk. This is the fruit of modernization and development. However, there is other side of the coin-the negative side.Despite the availability of modern facilities, the village is, instead, hunted by modernization. The development has not only brought about ease in the life of the people but it, at the same time, made village life tough. The modern facilities do not come free of cost and one has to have additional income to pay for these services and facilities. But opportunities for additional income are rare in the village, which compels the people to move out in search of jobs and other opportunities. The village is virtually deprived of youth population as the youth force has either migrated to urban centers in search of opportunities and or left for foreign land for jobs. Only women, children and elderly are in village. In the absence of working population, villages have faced labour crunch even for agricultural activities. As a result, arable land has been left barren. This is a nationwide phenomenon and more is with Parbat villages.Tourism is almost in infancy in Parbat, although it has much to offer for visitors. Even Kusma Bazaar, the district headquarters, has not benefited from tourism what to talk of the villages. Parbat Fair was observed a couple of months ago in Kusma Bazaar with much pomp and glitter but its outcome is yet to be seen.Parbat is worth visiting place which has its own historical, cultural and religious significance and background. If one wishes to visit this place, it is very much accessible. The trip begins a bus ride to Kusma Bazaar that takes six to ten hours from Kathmandu depending upon the type of vehicle you chose. If it were a microbus, six hours are enough to reach but you have to pay slightly higher. If you are in a shoestring budget, take a bus that leaves from Gangabu Bus Park that reaches Kusma Bazaar in eight to ten hours. The public buses are uncomfortable, crowded, and slow in speed and stop frequently to pick up and drop passengers on the way but are reliable as they at least reach the destination, sooner or later. The bus ride, too, is both exciting and irksome. The road up to Pokhara is okay except some portion pockmarked with potholes but only occasional bumps and jerks. The road beyond Pokhara is nasty requiring immediate repair which makes your journey strenuous. But the bus ride is enthralling as it passes through lush green lands, forests and beautiful mountains and rivers. More captivating is the scene beyond Pokhara where you would encounter nature's excellence. From Pokhara, the bus climbs uphill till it reaches the top at the point of Lulme and Kande from where it begins to descend until it reaches down on the bank of Modhi Khola. From there it goes west parallel with Modhi Khola until it reaches Kusma Bazaar.Once arriving at Kosmas Bazaar, you would heave a sigh of relief and you will find yourself at the heart of nature. Kusma Bazaar, a small plateau situated on the foothill of the Himalayas overlooking south, is dissected by Kali Gandaki and Modi Khola from three sides. Stretched north to South, Kusma Bazaar, once a deserted and barren land, is slowly marching toward urbanization and modernization. The Pokhara-Baglung Highway has changed the face of Kosmas Bazaar which is not only political center of the district but also a commercial hub of Parbat and southern area of Baglung. The pace and rapidity with which it is advancing, Kusma Bazaar is crawling to become a medium-sized city.The features this spectacular place possesses are the meandering Kali Gandaki River which is famous for holy Shaligram, considered to be a relic of Hindu God Lord Vishnu. To the north east is the Modhi Khola which has its own role in national development. One hydro-electricity project has already been completed in Modhi Khola adding power to national grid and two projects are under construction. The other features that one must not miss to see are the famous Gupteshwor Gufa (Secret God's Cave) and suspension bridge over Modhi Khola. The Gupteshwor Gufa is on the western cliff of Kusma Bazaar juxtaposing Kaligandaki. Inside the cave, are the nature carved images of Lord Shiva and other deities. The bridge over Modhi Khola connecting Kusma Bazaar with Pipaltari village is the tallest suspension bridge ever built in Nepal. These are the must see places in Kusma Bazaar.Being on the lap of nature, Kusma Bazaar and other villages, definitely, makes your trip and stay magnificently pleasant.
Escaped from the loathsome crowd, smog-filled madhouse and terrible traffic of Kathmandu, a trek to village is, indeed, enchanting that refreshes and reinvigorates your mind, appetite and energy. If it were a place close to your heart, the trip becomes more captivating. To this scribe, it was a moment to be back to nature's purity accompanied by a sense of ownership and affection with the place where I was born and brought up.Kurgha, a tiny hamlet on the ridge of Mahabharat range in western Nepal, South of Kusma Bazaar, headquarters of Parbat district, about 250 kilometers west of Kathmandu, offers a perfect blend of ethnic and cultural mosaic, exclusive social harmony and a true nature's diversity. The image of this tiny parish has always been imprinted in my heart. The place is so close to me that its image almost always comes to my mind.The lush green mountains, terraces on the slopes, plowed fields bursting with crops, cows and buffaloes grazing at their own will and whim on the fields, meadows and forests, serpentine rivers and rivulets running at their own speed are some of the features that come vividly to my mind and keeps on chasing me. Little far away in the south-west hisses holy Kaligandaki River with its own soliloquy. This is the place where I cried, laughed, played and stumbled, swam and skidded. And this is the place where my love, affection, emotion and the sense of belonging are attached. This is why heart is where one's identity is linked. Being here was a kind of born again feeling to me.It is said time travels faster than anything. To me the time has flown in supersonic speed that so much has changed in the last two decades. The same things looked strange and different from what I had seen before. Already full of green forests, further greenery has been added to the village with tree plantation campaign and preservation of forests, thanks to community forest users' group's initiative. Once barren land has turned into lush green area. Much change has taken place in terms of development infrastructure as well. It used to take almost three days to reach Kathmandu from this village. One and a half day's arduous trek to Syangja's Naudanda walking on the trails up and down the hills and finally along the banks of meandering Andhi Khola to catch the bus. Now national highway crisscrosses Kosmas Bazaar and motorable road has reached almost every village of Parbat district including my own Kurgha.Modern amenities have reached almost villages and people are enjoying the fruit of modernization. There is a daily bus service from Kusma Bazaar to Lunkhu Deuralai via Kurgha. National grid's electricity and cable television have already reached and almost everyone in the village carries mobile telephone set. The village has higher secondary school with classes running for 10+2 level. Bachelor level education is also available in the next village, which is just half an hour walk. This is the fruit of modernization and development. However, there is other side of the coin-the negative side.Despite the availability of modern facilities, the village is, instead, hunted by modernization. The development has not only brought about ease in the life of the people but it, at the same time, made village life tough. The modern facilities do not come free of cost and one has to have additional income to pay for these services and facilities. But opportunities for additional income are rare in the village, which compels the people to move out in search of jobs and other opportunities. The village is virtually deprived of youth population as the youth force has either migrated to urban centers in search of opportunities and or left for foreign land for jobs. Only women, children and elderly are in village. In the absence of working population, villages have faced labour crunch even for agricultural activities. As a result, arable land has been left barren. This is a nationwide phenomenon and more is with Parbat villages.Tourism is almost in infancy in Parbat, although it has much to offer for visitors. Even Kusma Bazaar, the district headquarters, has not benefited from tourism what to talk of the villages. Parbat Fair was observed a couple of months ago in Kusma Bazaar with much pomp and glitter but its outcome is yet to be seen.Parbat is worth visiting place which has its own historical, cultural and religious significance and background. If one wishes to visit this place, it is very much accessible. The trip begins a bus ride to Kusma Bazaar that takes six to ten hours from Kathmandu depending upon the type of vehicle you chose. If it were a microbus, six hours are enough to reach but you have to pay slightly higher. If you are in a shoestring budget, take a bus that leaves from Gangabu Bus Park that reaches Kusma Bazaar in eight to ten hours. The public buses are uncomfortable, crowded, and slow in speed and stop frequently to pick up and drop passengers on the way but are reliable as they at least reach the destination, sooner or later. The bus ride, too, is both exciting and irksome. The road up to Pokhara is okay except some portion pockmarked with potholes but only occasional bumps and jerks. The road beyond Pokhara is nasty requiring immediate repair which makes your journey strenuous. But the bus ride is enthralling as it passes through lush green lands, forests and beautiful mountains and rivers. More captivating is the scene beyond Pokhara where you would encounter nature's excellence. From Pokhara, the bus climbs uphill till it reaches the top at the point of Lulme and Kande from where it begins to descend until it reaches down on the bank of Modhi Khola. From there it goes west parallel with Modhi Khola until it reaches Kusma Bazaar.Once arriving at Kosmas Bazaar, you would heave a sigh of relief and you will find yourself at the heart of nature. Kusma Bazaar, a small plateau situated on the foothill of the Himalayas overlooking south, is dissected by Kali Gandaki and Modi Khola from three sides. Stretched north to South, Kusma Bazaar, once a deserted and barren land, is slowly marching toward urbanization and modernization. The Pokhara-Baglung Highway has changed the face of Kosmas Bazaar which is not only political center of the district but also a commercial hub of Parbat and southern area of Baglung. The pace and rapidity with which it is advancing, Kusma Bazaar is crawling to become a medium-sized city.The features this spectacular place possesses are the meandering Kali Gandaki River which is famous for holy Shaligram, considered to be a relic of Hindu God Lord Vishnu. To the north east is the Modhi Khola which has its own role in national development. One hydro-electricity project has already been completed in Modhi Khola adding power to national grid and two projects are under construction. The other features that one must not miss to see are the famous Gupteshwor Gufa (Secret God's Cave) and suspension bridge over Modhi Khola. The Gupteshwor Gufa is on the western cliff of Kusma Bazaar juxtaposing Kaligandaki. Inside the cave, are the nature carved images of Lord Shiva and other deities. The bridge over Modhi Khola connecting Kusma Bazaar with Pipaltari village is the tallest suspension bridge ever built in Nepal. These are the must see places in Kusma Bazaar.Being on the lap of nature, Kusma Bazaar and other villages, definitely, makes your trip and stay magnificently pleasant.
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