Shenwei Tour Nepal | Mustang Secret, a precious soul on the snowy border Shinta Mani "In the embrace of this snowy mountain
Shenwei Tour Nepal | Mustang Secret Land, a Precious Soul on the Snowy Border Shinta Mani
“In this land embraced by snow-capped mountains, I experienced true luxury—not gold, silver, or jewelry, but a profound dialogue with nature and the soul.”
If you thought Nepal was just a backpacker’s paradise, you’re wrong.
Shinta Mani Mustang, located in Mustang, is the most stunning and luxurious sanctuary I have ever seen in my life.
Shinta is a Khmer word associated with "heart" or "soul", and Mani is a Sanskrit word meaning "gem" or "treasure".
Shinta Mani can be understood as "precious heart" or "precious spirit"
There is no hustle and bustle of a bustling city here, only snow-capped mountains and tranquility between heaven and earth. Only through a deep dialogue with nature can you touch the true luxury.
1. Fly to the end of the world, the call of the snow-capped mountains
At five o'clock in the morning, Pokhara was still immersed in the night, but I had already dragged my luggage to the airport.
The flight to Jomsom is at 6:15. This airport now only flies to Mustang, and this route is a test of nature - whether the flight can take off on time depends entirely on the mood of the snow-capped mountains.
Sure enough, my flight was delayed again and again.
Some passengers next to me were yawning, while others were curled up on the benches in the waiting room, having long been accustomed to the casual nature of this route.
I could only be torn between anxiety and anticipation until 10:30, when I finally received the news of take-off.
The cabin is small and can only accommodate 15 passengers, plus 2 pilots and 1 flight attendant.
As the plane slowly took off and passed through the morning mist, the magnificent scenery of Mustang suddenly came into view - snow-capped mountains, rolling sea of clouds, and sunlight dancing on the white snow, like a golden vein inlaid between heaven and earth.
I forgot my tiredness, my eyes felt slightly hot, and my heartbeat seemed to resonate with the pulse of the snow-capped mountains.
This is a route leading to the end of the world, and the call of the snow-capped mountains has been waiting for my arrival in the dark.
2. Mustang: A luxurious hideaway in the embrace of snow-capped mountains
As the plane landed at Jomsom Airport, a breath of fresh air hit us.
I wrapped my clothes tightly and stepped onto this land carved by the wind.
Mustang is not beautiful in the secular sense. Its yellow-brown mountains are like ancient fossils, tough and vast; its rivers meander like ribbons, and together with the prayer flags, they tell the story of faith in the wind.
Dawa was my personal butler, a Mustang boy in his early twenties.
He came up to me with a smile, his eyes gentle and deep.
He told me that "Dawa" means moon in Tibetan, and the people of Mustang believe that the moonlight on the top of the snow-capped mountains can illuminate people's hearts.
Camille was in charge of all arrangements for this trip.
She is an account manager at Shinta Mani Mustang, a woman from the Philippines who has settled in Nepal for 6 years.
She lives alone in this distant and culturally different country, but she has already fallen in love with Mustang.
She told me, “There is freedom and tranquility here, and there is a kind of magic that makes me not want to leave.”
Camille takes me to Shinta Mani Mustang, Bill Bensley’s luxurious hideaway in this frontier land.
The hotel is like a Tibetan temple, with its stone exterior walls blending in with the snow-capped mountains, as if it had grown naturally out of the land.
I opened the door and held my breath for a moment - outside the floor-to-ceiling window, the entire Himalayas spread out like a vast painting, and the snow-capped peaks stood majestically like temples.
“Every window here pays tribute to Mount Kinabalu,” I said quietly in my heart.
During the few days in Mustang, my driver Bajay was always by my side.
He used to be a driver in Dubai, where he had been driving for 10 years and had a good salary.
But in the end, he chose to return to Nepal. Even though his income was only a fraction of what it used to be, he felt unprecedented happiness and security.
Every morning, he would wait at the hotel entrance on time and ask with a smile: "Are you ready to talk to the snow mountain today?"
The hotel's restaurant was another pleasant surprise.
At breakfast, I sat by the window, drinking Tibetan milk tea made with Mustang yak milk, with snow-capped mountains shining with golden light in front of me.
Dinner was served under warm candlelight. It was a fusion of Nepali and Indian cuisine - saffron risotto, charcoal-grilled spiced lamb chops, handmade puff pastry. Each dish was like a story of this land and was served on the table.
In the bar, I met the bartender Risab, who served me a cocktail made with Mustang's own apple brandy. The drink was slightly intoxicating, with the aroma of apple and cedar.
He told me that the brandy here is made only from mountain apples and every drop has the flavor of Mustang.
The most amazing thing is the spa.
Each spa room faces the snow-capped mountains. I felt the chill fade away in the warm sauna, then lay on the Tibetan massage bed, and the technician slowly pushed away the fatigue in my muscles with warm Tibetan herbal oil.
Outside the window, the snow-capped mountains watched all this quietly, as if they also understood that the human body and mind also need to be healed.
3. Travel through thousands of years and enter the soul of Mustang
(1) Thini: Praying in the temple
On the first day, Dawa took me to Thini Village, one of the oldest Tibetan villages in Mustang. The red walls of the temple are warm and thick in the sun.
To get here, one needs to travel through mountains and rivers. Bajay drove the Indian brand Mahendra's SUV Scorpio skillfully into the deep valley, across the turbulent stream, and finally brought me to the small village.
I gently turned the prayer wheel and made a wish silently - perhaps, in Mustang, all prayers will be heard by the snow-capped mountains.
(2) Lubra: The ancient wisdom of Bon religion and the smiling faces of children
The next day, we headed to Lubra village, the only town in Nepal where the Bon religious traditions are still preserved.
I walked into a primary school deep in the mountains. The children read aloud in Tibetan and the classroom was simple but full of vitality.
Their dormitories are simple, with more than 20 bunk beds in a room covered with only thin bedding, but their eyes are pure and their smiles are bright. The way they play football on the playground makes me see the sky full of stars.
I was on the rooftop of a villager's home, tasting the traditional Bon vegetarian food she made herself.
In the distant valley, a falcon was circling in the blue sky.
Dawa told me that the Bon religion believes that the direction of the wind indicates destiny, and the Mustang wind always brings new travelers.
(3) Marpha: Apple Town and the Guardian of a 600-year-old Temple
On the third day, we went to Marpha Village, the most gentle place in Mustang, known as the "Apple Town".
The proprietress Kamala personally poured me a glass of cider she brewed. The amber-colored wine shone with a warm luster in the sunlight.
I took a sip. The wine was mellow, slightly sweet but not greasy, just like the people on this land, tough and warm.
Then I walked into a 600-year-old temple. The Buddha statues and ancient artifacts in the temple quietly tell the story of time.
Guru Padmasambhava left his footprints here, and the stone is still preserved on the shrine.
I stood in front of the altar, imagining how the believers six hundred years ago made pilgrimages here, how they lit butter lamps in the wind and snow, and prayed for a perfect reincarnation of life.
4. Mustang’s farewell, but his faith remains
Early in the morning of the day I left, I stood on the hotel terrace and looked at the snow-capped mountains.
The sun shines on the mountaintops, and colorful prayer flags flutter in the wind, like the prayers of the Mustang people from generation to generation, floating towards the sky.
"Will you come back again?" Camille smiled.
I nodded slightly, and the answer already came to my mind.
Mustang is not just a stop on the journey, but a call of the soul. It reminds me of the words in the Yoga Sutras:
"तत्स्थितौ यत्नोऽभ्य━सः" (Tatsvituau Yatno Abhyasah) - Calmness is the result of continuous practice.
When the plane flew away from Mustang again, I knew that the snow-capped mountains were still there, the faith had not gone away, but my heart had remained on this sacred land.
——To be continued. My next stop will be Chitwan, the paradise for wildlife, where I will explore the charm of the Nepalese jungle under the arrangement of the wild luxury hotel Kasara Jungle Resort.