Marpha gompa and the whitewashed lanes

We start at the southern end of the village where the main lane begins. The stone paving covers a drainage channel that carries water through Marpha, an old solution in a valley where every drop is managed. Houses face inwards onto courtyards to escape the wind, with flat roofs used for drying crops and for storing firewood. Your guide will explain how the size of a family's woodpile was long read as a sign of its standing.

Halfway along, steps lead up to the Nyingma gompa. Morning prayers sometimes take place early, and you are welcome to sit quietly at the back. Inside are statues of Guru Rinpoche and other Nyingma figures, painted walls and butter lamps. From the courtyard the view runs over the flat roofs to the river and the snow of Dhaulagiri and Tukuche Peak. Look for the old wooden prayer wheel by the entrance, turned by every villager who passes.

Above the gompa a chorten is painted on the cliff face, with small stone chortens on the ledges below. Villagers link it to a time when Marpha was struck by leprosy and a monk from Tukuche told them to build it. We walk back down through the northern lanes, past prayer wheels and kani gates, and finish with tea in a family kitchen. Take your time on the way down; the side lanes are where you see daily life.