A Journey to Remember

 It all began with us pretending to work while sneakily Googling hotels in Chitlang and Markhu—as if the Wi-Fi signal could also deliver motivation. By 4:00 PM, we had no destination, no plan, and definitely no clue. Just a tired soul yearning to escape spreadsheets and Viber notifications.

Then came the twist: at 4:30, my colleague-turned-comrade-in-chaos looked at me and dropped the bomb—“We’re leaving.” That was it. No itinerary, no backup socks, just vibes.

So naturally, five full-grown adults jumped into a Hilux like a bootleg version of The Fast and the Slightly Confused. After leaving the office premises, we paused somewhere around Kalanki, exchanging puzzled looks. I finally asked, “Where exactly are we heading?” That triggered a round of laughter, because truth was... nobody knew. At 5:30 PM, we were quite literally in the middle of the road, plans blurry, not a single one of us had even informed our families. Then someone blurted out “Sauraha,” and without thinking twice, we hit the highway toward Chitwan.

The crew? Five misfits with a laptop, one jacket, some pocket cash, zero common sense, and a wild urge to drive into the unknown. Our conversations were like a buffet: a bit of office gossip, a sprinkle of road condition analysis, a hot serving of political debate, and a side of oversharing our love lives. Two cans of beer later, we were philosophers.

Dinner was served around 11 PM somewhere that may or may not have been on a map, and we stuffed our faces like we hadn't just debated for 45 minutes whether or not to trust the Google Reviews. Miraculously, we found a hotel with rooms. At midnight. On no prior booking. Miracles do happen.

Now, about that jungle safari... we were expecting Lion King. We got National Geographic: Home Edition. Two deer, a suspiciously chill peacock, one crocodile giving us side-eye, a monkey in a hurry, and a rhino we nearly drove past thinking it was just a very committed boulder. The two-hour jeep safari wasn’t exactly National Geographic-worthy (unless you count birds and a monkey), and sharing the ride with a group of annoyingly loud guys didn’t help. 

And just like that, we returned to Kathmandu. Tired, slightly sunburnt, and still wondering... why Sauraha? No idea. But do we regret it? Not even close.

Next trip? We’re packing snacks, at least one pair of extra underwear, and possibly a map. Or not. Chaos worked pretty well the first time.