Mountain Flights: Still Exclusive To Foreigners
By NIRAKAR POUDEL
Annually, tens of thousands of foreigners come to visit Nepal. Most of them want to see the beautiful Himalayas. Although Nepal is blessed with such beautiful Himalayas, only a few Nepalese actually make a trip to see them. Mountain flights begun more than two decades ago but it is still exclusive to the foreigners. Every morning Nepal’s flight operation begins with mountain flights and almost all airlines with turbo-prop aircrafts operate this service. Everyday, Yeti Airlines also operates a couple of flights through its SAAB aircrafts. It costs US$ 100 for foreigners and much less for Nepalese citizens.
Enjoying the beautiful scenery of Himalayas from the windows of an airplane is the best experience and an unforgettable moment of one's life. I had only seen mountains in a picture and a few times from the roof of my house. Then I was not attracted by their beauty. I also used to wonder why the people from different countries came here to waste their money and see those mountains. But when I viewed the Himalayas from a mountain flight of Yeti airlines I learned that I was wrong. I realized that all those tourists who come to Nepal to see these mountains do not waste their money. Those mountains were really gorgeous. I had thought that the one-hour-long flight will be boring but it wasn’t. During the flight I felt that I was in heaven and it was the happiest moment of my life.
The plane took off at seven in the morning. There was a group of Indian pilgrims who were also enjoying the flight and only a few seats were vacant. After a few minutes of flight I saw a mountain very close by and it was very beautiful. The air hostage was very helpful. During the flight I saw mountains like Dorje-Lakpa, Sisha- Pangma, Phurbi-gyachu, Choba-bhamare, Gauri-Shankar, Nuptse. Lhotse, Everest and Kanchenjunga. I became extremely pleased when I saw the Mount Everest for the first time very closely. Unlike other mountains, there could see no snow at the top of the Mount Everest. I was so excited during the flight that I forgot my preoccupations and worries about my upcoming exam results. That one hour, I felt, flew in just a few seconds. Even after four days of flight, I am not able to think of anything else except the beauty of those mountains.
These mountains are the most valuable gifts that mother nature gave us. These mountains have helped promote tourism industry and create employment opportunities. These are the sources of earning foreign currency for Nepal as thousands of tourists visit Nepal annually just to view these mountains. These people come from very far and spend a lot of money to view the mountains. Even though this mountain flight was started many years ago, I think very few Nepalese know about this because the number of Nepalese passengers was very less in these flights. Instead of wasting money unnecessarily on other things, we can utilize our money to enjoy the beauty of our country. Watching mountains in television and seeing it through one's eyes from close quarters are completely different experiences. Those mountains are far more beautiful than they are seen in television and photographs. I think, one see those mountains from a mountain flight at least once in a lifetime. Though this Himalayan range also lies in Bhutan, India and Pakistan, Nepal is the only country where there is a facility of mountain flight. We must make use of this facility to enjoy the Himalayas. This will also promote internal tourism and help in economic progress of our country.
