“1,000 places to see before you die”

Wow. Sheesh. No pressure. But “ya better get on that, Crackie,” as we say at The Beanhouse.

Um, this is the name of a book I have. I really enjoy it. So inspiring, etc.

Or I really hate it. So depressing, etc.

But I’ve decided to try to make this a (somewhat) regular feature here. I mean, just think. Whenever I’m feeling all desperate and lazy, I will randomly flip open “1000 Places … You Die,” type up whatever it lands on, and feel I’m actually supplying content — even though I may be telling you something you give not one tiny rip about. And that will feel familiar and non-threatening because, let’s face it, that’s pretty much business as usual ’round here.

And — ooh! doing the math on my handy-dandy calculator here — if I do this once a week (HA) with 1,000 places total, I will have cool, lackadaisical content for exactly 19.230769 years.

The winner in all this? Well, I’m pretty sure it’s not you. Oh, well.

Anyway … here we go. Opening the book. Hold please.

Okay. Ready?

Today’s “Place to See Before You Crump It” is-ss-s:

THE KINGDOM OF THE MUSTANG
Mustang, Nepal

Surrounded by Tibet on three sides and governed by a Tibetan royal family, Mustang — a kingdom within a kingdom — survives as one of the last remnants of ancient Tibet. Although nominally integrated into the kingdom of Nepal in the early 1950s, it remains largely autonomous, and much of its medieval cultural fabric has survived. In fact, Mustang is said to be more like Tibet before the Chinese occupation than Tibet itself, filled with ancient walled fortress-villages and monasteries hewn from rock, displaying a muted natural palette of grays and variegated rusty reds. Like much of the Tibetan plateau, the landscape is rugged and austere, a dramatic high-desert terrain flanked by towering peaks, including the snow-capped Annapurnas to the south. Though Nepal opened to tourism in the 1950s, Mustang’s sensitive position along the Tibet border kept it off-limits until 1992, when the Nepali government began admitting a trickle of foreign tourists, Ironically, Mustang was well traveled in the past, its ancient trade routes dating back more than 1,000 years. Its treeless vistas must have appeared distant and extraordinary to European travelers returning from China with their precious cargo. They would have been as hard pressed as today’s trekkers to explain the otherworldliness of it all.

WHAT: Experience. WHERE: Northwest of Kathmandu and north of Pokhara. Treks depart from Jomsom. HOW: All travel to Mustang is restricted and must be made through a licensed trekking company; all treks are accompanied by a government liaison officer. COST: 17-day land package (with 12 days of trekking) departing Jomsom $2,600. Airfare from Kathmandu to Jomsom $298. WHEN: Mustang opens to visitors Mar-Dec. BEST TIMES: Spring trip coincides with Tigi, a Tibetan festival.

Hmm. Sorry. I thought there might be horsies.

Bon Voyage!!