Hello! My name is Mingmar Tamang. I am currently studying Travel and Tourism and I am in my final year of my Bachelor’s degree. This blog will explore my experiences working in Nepal and the impact of COVID 19 on our beautiful country. It’s been a remarkable year with quite a few ups and downs as you can discover from my description of my personal journey and that of my country!

Nepal- Geography

Nepal is divided into three parts. The Himalayan, Hilly and the Plain Terai Region. So, In the North, we have some of the most stunning and beautiful snow caps mountains of the world. You will be able to see Mountains such as the  Mt Everest( the highest mountain of the world), Mt Kanchanjunga, Mt Annapurna and Mt. Daulagiri and many more. The Himalayan range stretches from east to west, and these beautiful mountains are famous for mountaineering. The rich biodiversity of the mountain areas make the scenery more beautiful and breath-taking. Right below the great Himalayan range there is the hill region and the plain  terai region. The naturally diverse, historically rich and colourful culturals  holds and makes this region famous. There are world heritage sites like the Birth place of Buddha in Lumbini or the holiest place for Hindu- the Pashupatinath temple. The green Hills and valleys are  famous for trekking, cycling, rafting, paragliding and culture tours.  Our culture, language and lifestyle is so different that you will be amazed to see it.

COVID-19

COVID 19 hit hard in Nepal. When the first news broke out it was January in Nepal. After applying for an  internship and job in multiple travel agency I got an internship in a travel Tech company called HoneyGuideapps company. I was nervous and excited at the same time. My internship was going well and I was working in communictions. I develop some key skills and then everything changed.

I was in my third month of my inter when COVID hit Nepal. Nepal was struggling to make isolation canter and hospital were predicted to be helpless if cases rises rapidly. Hospital were already out of proper facilities and equipment and looking at the struggles faced by the developed countries increased fear in Nepal. As soon as the areas sharing open borders with India got COVID patients, our government enlisted a full lockdown for a whole week. It was March. In this month of the year all the universities and schools conduct their Final Examination. My examination for 5^thsemester was in a week. After that the lockdown kept extending and my exam kept on being postponed, until after 9 month gap I did my 5^thsemester examination. During the first wave of COVID everything was closed. I stayed in the  Kathmandu valley for about 2 weeks and when the cases kept increasing, I decided to go home.

Returning to the village

My home is located in the North East part of Nepal. It is called Solukhumbu. I stayed there for almost 9 months. It is the longest that I have ever stayed in home with my parents. I definitely got a chance to see my mother after a long time. I help my mom in every way possible. It was fun. Being away from all the noise and pollution and vehicles- to be more connected with nature, taking fresh mountain air and eating organic food and vegetables and working in the farm was absolutely an amazing experience. I learned a lot of skills like cutting fire woods, hunting, farming and cooking.  I also taught English to some students in my village. Due to poor telecommunications and poor electricity I didn’t use my mobile phone that often. I used it once a week to check my emails and work on the assignment from my missed classes. In the meantime, university decided to press ahead with our course so our 6^thsemester classes were conducted online.

Pandemic easing

After the pandemic was eased physical classes began. In a week of classes our 5^thsemester examination was held and the system of our examination were changed into 1 and half hour. It was one of the most rushed exam that I have ever done. Examination was done with full precaution and maintaining social distance. Everything slowly came back to normal. Death rate declined rapidly while the cases of COVID patients declined too. Due to long gaps and I also lost my internship and have to look for a new job.

I decided to do some online courses in a mean time. So, I took courses like graphic design and digital marketing. I completely made a new resume. There weren’t many jobs available but luckily there was a job opening for wall climbing Instructor and I applied for the job. My interview went well and go in and started working as a wall climbing Instructor.

The second wave -COVID hit Nepal hard. The number of patients are rising in an uncontrollable pace and hospitals are packed. There is a struggle for equipment, hospital are packed and patients are struggling for oxygen cylinder. The price of daily goods in the market has risen. Everything is very chaotic and out of control. It is always like this in the first week but eventually it will come under control. The recovering rate is very high in Nepal. I hope everything comes under control in near future.

During the lockdown many young students like me are having online classes from respective university or schools. As for me I am studying on my own. I am learning Chinese language. I am also spending my time painting and playing guitar. I go for a jog in the morning to keep myself fit. But most of the days are boring. I don’t have anything to do. Just sleeping and watching movies.

It’s hit the travel industry really hard. The expeditions are running well as compared to the situation but for trekking and other travel it is all stopped. However, whilst everything else may have change – Nepal itself remains incredibly beautiful and I cannot wait until we can welcome people from other cultures to enjoy the stunning scenery too.

Ready for an adventure in Nepal? Take a look at our tour here, or browse our other adventure travel tours. Drop us a message in the chat box below or send us an email at trips@thedragontrip.com to find out more!

Subscribe for tour updates, blogs, special offers and more! We won’t email you too often. View our privacy policy here.