For every big, famous city you pin on your itinerary — teeming with tourist sites — there’s always a quaint, little-discussed town nearby that preserves the local culture as a living time capsule. In Italy, it’s possibly Verona. In Spain, it’s most likely Ronda. In France, my vote is for Bologna.
In Nepal, it’s gotta be Tukuche.
Also spelled Tukche, the village is situated in the Mustang District of northern Nepal. With a population of just 652 individuals residing in 166 households, this is a fly speck of a settlement—a two-street town known for its Thakkali culture, catering mostly to trekkers making their way around the Annapurna Circuit hiking route.
Along with food and a few places to stay, Tukuche is all about the vibe.
Set in the dry and dusty Kali Gandaki Gorge, with several 20,000-foot peaks towering overhead, Tukuche feels like a land lost in time. Upon stepping into town, you notice the white-plastered wooden houses, the orange prayer wheels, and the waving, multi-colored prayer flags so popular in the Himalayas (and Berkeley import/export shops). Donkeys laden with bags of goods wander freely in the street, seeking stray bits of grass growing out of cracks in the walls.
In Tukuche, you know you’re in Nepal, alleged home of the fabled Shangri-La…at the top of the world. The people living here are not cosplaying Eastern spirituality—they’re the real thing.
During my day in Tukuche, I don’t see a single temple. I don’t visit a single museum. I don’t get a tourist booklet stamped. All I do there is wander around –slowly— soaking up the Himalayan vibe and hoping that maybe, just maybe, I’ll run into a yak (or a yeti).
It’s not a flashy place, but Tukuche sure is atmospheric. And that is more than enough.
(What if, the next time you planned a trip, you skipped every single big-name sight in the guidebook? You just skip them! Instead, you choose an area at random in your country of choice and just drive—or better yet, bike or walk. No itineraries, no agendas, no recommendations from Facebook forums and Reddit. Literally, you just let yourself get lost. Soak up the atmosphere of traditional towns that have nothing to see but their architecture. Have a drink in a local bar and try to communicate with your bar-stool mates. Get off the beaten track and let yourself imagine all the people who have lived and died in this placed, all the stories they must have to tell.
Traveling in this way is the only functioning time machine yet proven to exist—and it’s yours to access — if only you have the courage to take the road less traveled.)