Well I'm at home. A fairly uneventful trip back, BA upgraded my seat on the way back so extra leg room for me which was nice. I ended staying in a fancy hotel in India for conveniance and comforts sake, I think it was a good decision as it all went very smoothly.
Anyway here is a link to some more photo's as promised.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=348310&id=621006137&saved#!/album.php?fbid=10150177421866138&id=621006137&aid=348292
Thanks for reading and see you soon I hope.
Sunday 27 March 2011
Friday 25 March 2011
Saying goodbye.
So tonight is my last night in Nepal. I am currently trying to get info about hotels in Delhi as I have a long over night stop over. It is proving more difficult than it should be, traveling would be great if you didn't have to travel.
Leaving work today was really difficult all the kids were being very sweet, and they were nearly all hanging off me as I went to leave. I really hope they do alright and that I might one day here from some of them again, they deserve a good life.
So this is it the end of this blog. I will post links to more photo's once I have uploaded them, but other than that that's it.
Oh I had dinner at the K-Too Steak House so I could watch the cricket. Ouch.
Leaving work today was really difficult all the kids were being very sweet, and they were nearly all hanging off me as I went to leave. I really hope they do alright and that I might one day here from some of them again, they deserve a good life.
So this is it the end of this blog. I will post links to more photo's once I have uploaded them, but other than that that's it.
Oh I had dinner at the K-Too Steak House so I could watch the cricket. Ouch.
Monday 21 March 2011
My Special Day.
I have had an ace Birthday. I get to work and all the children have brought me little bunches of flowers that they have picked themselves as well as some origami flowers and birds. I get in the classroom and there is a Birthday message for me on the blackboard. We make party hats and the children sing me happy birthday whilst passing me my gifts, it is so sweet, all the children have signed a card for me too. The teacher also has a gift for me a Thanka painting of Buddha that her Nephew painted. It is fantastic, he is studying at a Thanka Art School in Kathmandu. This is all totally unexpected and very touching. They are all so sweet.
We play pass the parcel and musical statues, and eat lots of cake and sweets. Tonight I am going to eat pizza.
All in all a top birthday!
We play pass the parcel and musical statues, and eat lots of cake and sweets. Tonight I am going to eat pizza.
All in all a top birthday!
Holi Moly What A Super Stupa!
Today I go to the Stupa at Bhodanath it is the largest in the Kathmandu Valley and one of the biggest in the world. I am as always goingto walk there, I am doing this inspite of the fact that today is Holi, the Hindu festival of colour. This involves young men, women and childen throwing water and powdered paint at each other and everyone else. It is a two hour walk to Bhodanath.
As I leave in the morning at about 9:30 my street looks very earie. Everywhere is closed today and where one would normally find brightly coloured clothing and shiny brass statues there is now just grey metal shutters. I will have breakfast on my way or at Bhodanath.
The walk takes me in more or less the same direction as Pashupatinath as my destiantion is just a little to north so only the last half hour or so will be new to me. I am wearing my hiking trousers (waterproof and quick drying), my hiking shoes (Gortex) and a bright white Daz doorstep challenge winning t-shirt. After walking past a lot of closed shops and armed police I pop into a cold store to buy some biscuits and a coke for breakfast, so far I have only had to deal with a couple of poorly aimed water bombs thrown from rooftops. I have been walking for about an hour. My shirt is still whiter than white.
As I get into the more populated area's the streets narrow and the Holi celebrators multiply. Water is sent hurtling from the rooftops some in small plastic bags some straight out of a bucket, all you can hear is laughter and yells of "Happy Holi, Happy Holi!" I should point out that I have made it perfectly clear that I am up for playing Holi, it is true that some people who don't wish to play get splatted by what the papers dub 'Holi Hooligans' but I haven't come across this. Eveyone gestures before throwing powder or water and everyone incluing myself is in high spirits.
The further I walk the more I get bombarded, luckily for me despite having a whole day that involves throwing things the Nepalese don't appear to be very good at it and I arrive at the Stupa wet damp but with only
a splat of red on my front and a splattering of purple on my back.
I walk around the Stupa a few times (clockwise naturally), there are a few children playing Holi but there are a lot of Buddhist Monks here today for an anniversary of some discription and when I arrive the air is filled with the sound of drums and chanting. You can walk up onto the first raised part of the Stupa and I do this and have another walk around. There a re parts between the outside walls and the raised platform that I am on where gardens have been planted, these are surrounded by butter lamps, it must look stunning when they are all lit in the evening. I find a place to sit in the sun, read my book for a while and give my shirt a chance to dry.
I repack my bag, wrapping everything in my waterproof jacket to keep it dry. My notebook, Ki Fed Membership Card and passport have all been victims and are pretty wet, completely my own fault of course. My plan is to walk to Kopan Monastery where there are a lot of Buddhist Nuns, nearly all Tibetan, I guess from my map that it is about forty five minutes to an hour away. As I make my way out of the square a man comes up to me wishes me a Happy Holi and after checking it is okay rubs some red powder into my cheeks. As I find out later this is a sign that I am well up for playing Holi.
Twenty minutes that is all it takes for me to be soaking wet and covered in red powder, my t-shirt is now a reddish pink and sticks to my chest, my neck, my ears and my face are totally smeared with red, yellow and blue powder. It is great fun and the locals love seeing a Westerner up for a bit of Holi fun away from the relative safety of the city centre. They genuinly seem delighted to see me and I cause nothing but howles of laughter from both adults and children as they see my bedragled frame make its way down the street. However I now look a bit if a state and almost completely wet though, although the hot day is helping to dry me out. The route to Kopan isn't as straight forward as I would have liked and amongst the chaos i decide not to go which is a shame but for the best I feel.
I retrace my steps back to Bhudanath. More water, more paint and more smiles. Everyone finds the sight of me hilarious (At this point I look like a skinny Henry Rollins from his 'Liar' video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxrd_jZJxkg) They can just about get out a "Happy Holi" before bursting into laughter. Its a real shame that more westerners don't venture outside of the tourist spots in Kathmandu for this festival, it really seems to mean a lot to the people of this city. Everyone is so happy and playful, I even get a Buddhist Monk throwing water at me. At first he gestures with the bottle and when I nod my head a massive grin spreads across his face before like an over excited child he hurls the contents of the bottle at me. Later just outside the Stupa I see several Monks packing brightly coloured water pistols, they really are big kids.
Back in Bhudanath I decide to have a look in one of the monasteries. The lobby walls and ceiling are all painted with religious art work it is stunning. Unfortunately the monastery itself is closed but there is still access to the roof which has great views.
Afterwards I head for lunch at one of the rooftop cafe's. As I have mentioned I am totally covered in red. As I walk in the waiter doesn't blink but the other immaculately dressed diners stare agog. I go and wash my hands and mouth before tucking into a bowl of thumpa and some banana fritters, all washed down with a nice cup of Nepali tea, delicious!
With my belly full I decide to head home by this point there are a fair few groups of very drunk lads walking around covered in colour and they all want to be my friend and cover me in yet more powder, by the time I get home I am a state. The friendly guy on the door of the hotel who always greats me with a big smile and a 'Nameste' doubles up when he see's me. I have really enjoyed the day, my only regret is that I didn't bring my white trousers and shoes with me.
In the evening I go and have a pre-birthday dinner with Lee-Ann and her other half Micheal at 'The New Orleans Cafe'. Jazz and blues is being played and we have a very nice meal in the courtyard outside. Micheal is an engineer at a power plant in Dubai and a really nice guy. They have both been in Bhaktapur for the past couple of days, I full Lee-Ann in with what went on at work and they tell me all about their trip and their terrifying bus ride. C'mon guys say I it was only an hour long. They shout me dinner which is very sweet and we head back to ourt hotels.
In the lobby of my hotel is a sign that says the front shutter will be closed from 22:30. I get back at 22:15 and the shutter is down. After trying unsuccesfully to find a way in through the back I go to the next hotel along as my room overlooks their garden and ask them i f they know of a way in around the back. "Have you tried banging on the shutter?" they ask I havce but go and do it again anyway, no response. They try phoning tyhem and yelling at them from their garden all to no avail. I am just about to ask them the price of their cheapest room when I guy ushers me outside, he has opened the shutter of the hotel. I thank him many times before sneaking back to my room and going to bed no questions asked.
As I leave in the morning at about 9:30 my street looks very earie. Everywhere is closed today and where one would normally find brightly coloured clothing and shiny brass statues there is now just grey metal shutters. I will have breakfast on my way or at Bhodanath.
The walk takes me in more or less the same direction as Pashupatinath as my destiantion is just a little to north so only the last half hour or so will be new to me. I am wearing my hiking trousers (waterproof and quick drying), my hiking shoes (Gortex) and a bright white Daz doorstep challenge winning t-shirt. After walking past a lot of closed shops and armed police I pop into a cold store to buy some biscuits and a coke for breakfast, so far I have only had to deal with a couple of poorly aimed water bombs thrown from rooftops. I have been walking for about an hour. My shirt is still whiter than white.
As I get into the more populated area's the streets narrow and the Holi celebrators multiply. Water is sent hurtling from the rooftops some in small plastic bags some straight out of a bucket, all you can hear is laughter and yells of "Happy Holi, Happy Holi!" I should point out that I have made it perfectly clear that I am up for playing Holi, it is true that some people who don't wish to play get splatted by what the papers dub 'Holi Hooligans' but I haven't come across this. Eveyone gestures before throwing powder or water and everyone incluing myself is in high spirits.
The further I walk the more I get bombarded, luckily for me despite having a whole day that involves throwing things the Nepalese don't appear to be very good at it and I arrive at the Stupa wet damp but with only
a splat of red on my front and a splattering of purple on my back.
I walk around the Stupa a few times (clockwise naturally), there are a few children playing Holi but there are a lot of Buddhist Monks here today for an anniversary of some discription and when I arrive the air is filled with the sound of drums and chanting. You can walk up onto the first raised part of the Stupa and I do this and have another walk around. There a re parts between the outside walls and the raised platform that I am on where gardens have been planted, these are surrounded by butter lamps, it must look stunning when they are all lit in the evening. I find a place to sit in the sun, read my book for a while and give my shirt a chance to dry.
I repack my bag, wrapping everything in my waterproof jacket to keep it dry. My notebook, Ki Fed Membership Card and passport have all been victims and are pretty wet, completely my own fault of course. My plan is to walk to Kopan Monastery where there are a lot of Buddhist Nuns, nearly all Tibetan, I guess from my map that it is about forty five minutes to an hour away. As I make my way out of the square a man comes up to me wishes me a Happy Holi and after checking it is okay rubs some red powder into my cheeks. As I find out later this is a sign that I am well up for playing Holi.
Twenty minutes that is all it takes for me to be soaking wet and covered in red powder, my t-shirt is now a reddish pink and sticks to my chest, my neck, my ears and my face are totally smeared with red, yellow and blue powder. It is great fun and the locals love seeing a Westerner up for a bit of Holi fun away from the relative safety of the city centre. They genuinly seem delighted to see me and I cause nothing but howles of laughter from both adults and children as they see my bedragled frame make its way down the street. However I now look a bit if a state and almost completely wet though, although the hot day is helping to dry me out. The route to Kopan isn't as straight forward as I would have liked and amongst the chaos i decide not to go which is a shame but for the best I feel.
I retrace my steps back to Bhudanath. More water, more paint and more smiles. Everyone finds the sight of me hilarious (At this point I look like a skinny Henry Rollins from his 'Liar' video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxrd_jZJxkg) They can just about get out a "Happy Holi" before bursting into laughter. Its a real shame that more westerners don't venture outside of the tourist spots in Kathmandu for this festival, it really seems to mean a lot to the people of this city. Everyone is so happy and playful, I even get a Buddhist Monk throwing water at me. At first he gestures with the bottle and when I nod my head a massive grin spreads across his face before like an over excited child he hurls the contents of the bottle at me. Later just outside the Stupa I see several Monks packing brightly coloured water pistols, they really are big kids.
Back in Bhudanath I decide to have a look in one of the monasteries. The lobby walls and ceiling are all painted with religious art work it is stunning. Unfortunately the monastery itself is closed but there is still access to the roof which has great views.
Afterwards I head for lunch at one of the rooftop cafe's. As I have mentioned I am totally covered in red. As I walk in the waiter doesn't blink but the other immaculately dressed diners stare agog. I go and wash my hands and mouth before tucking into a bowl of thumpa and some banana fritters, all washed down with a nice cup of Nepali tea, delicious!
With my belly full I decide to head home by this point there are a fair few groups of very drunk lads walking around covered in colour and they all want to be my friend and cover me in yet more powder, by the time I get home I am a state. The friendly guy on the door of the hotel who always greats me with a big smile and a 'Nameste' doubles up when he see's me. I have really enjoyed the day, my only regret is that I didn't bring my white trousers and shoes with me.
In the evening I go and have a pre-birthday dinner with Lee-Ann and her other half Micheal at 'The New Orleans Cafe'. Jazz and blues is being played and we have a very nice meal in the courtyard outside. Micheal is an engineer at a power plant in Dubai and a really nice guy. They have both been in Bhaktapur for the past couple of days, I full Lee-Ann in with what went on at work and they tell me all about their trip and their terrifying bus ride. C'mon guys say I it was only an hour long. They shout me dinner which is very sweet and we head back to ourt hotels.
In the lobby of my hotel is a sign that says the front shutter will be closed from 22:30. I get back at 22:15 and the shutter is down. After trying unsuccesfully to find a way in through the back I go to the next hotel along as my room overlooks their garden and ask them i f they know of a way in around the back. "Have you tried banging on the shutter?" they ask I havce but go and do it again anyway, no response. They try phoning tyhem and yelling at them from their garden all to no avail. I am just about to ask them the price of their cheapest room when I guy ushers me outside, he has opened the shutter of the hotel. I thank him many times before sneaking back to my room and going to bed no questions asked.
Thursday 17 March 2011
Sorry, Did I Not Mention... Also Holi Approaches.
Looking back through my previous posts I realise there are a few everyday occurances that I haven't really written about but are important pieces of life in Kathmandu.
Simple things like shopkeepers throwing water onto the streets in front of their stores to keep the dust off of their merchandise. They generally do this without paying any attention to what or who is passing by, I have had to jump out of the way on a couple of occasions. Still it is better than being gobbed on.
Also there is only ten hours of electricity a day from the main grid. A good portion of this seems to come on in the middle of the night so people can charge their back-up batteries for the daytime. When the power is off they call it load-shedding. This means that people are very frugal with power and it also means that you have to get used to the sound of generators trundling away at all hours. The hotel I am at has a generator but it only powers the lights so I cannot watch TV or charge anything at these times. I have been leaving whatever it is that I need to charge plugged in over night this seems to do the trick. Because of all this I am getting a lot of reading and writing done which is no bad thing. I think I am correct in saying that all of Nepal's electricity comes from either hydro or solar power which of course is fantastic, there just isn't enough of it.
You are never more than a few steps away from a temple or shrine or stupa. They are everywhere on main roads down little side streets and in the middle of road works. Half of the city feels like it is being re-built. Unlike in the UK where large sheets of tarpaulin cover up whatever work is going on here it is out in the open for everyone to see. The tools are basic the scaffolding mostly bamboo, a huge amount of houses look half finished especially outside of the centre, it can be hard to tell what is falling down and what is being built.
Lately I have also seen a lot of women carrying massive cupboards and wardrobes on their backs. Something to think about next time your having a moan about Ikea's delivery service. Strap it to your head and carry it on your back.
The children of this city love saying hello. I know assume if I hear a hello that it is directed at em it normally is. Most are happy with a cheery hello back but some are a bit more demanding. I had a lad run up to me the other day yelling "Chocolate!, Chocolate!, Chocolate! I had no chocolate and when this became obvious he demanded one hundred rupees. They always want one hundred rupees. Some of these children have real chutzpah!
It isn't only shopkeepers that throw water. This Sunday is Holi the Hindu festival of colour. In the build up to this itis traditional for children to throw water at balloons at people especially westerners. I am yet to be hit but there have been a couple of close calls. Come Sunday I fully expect to be covered head to toe in paint as the children roam the streets with balloons and water pistols full of colourful paint, keeping an eye open for easy targets. Despite not standing out in a crowd unless I stay indoors all day Sunday I am getting splatted.
Simple things like shopkeepers throwing water onto the streets in front of their stores to keep the dust off of their merchandise. They generally do this without paying any attention to what or who is passing by, I have had to jump out of the way on a couple of occasions. Still it is better than being gobbed on.
Also there is only ten hours of electricity a day from the main grid. A good portion of this seems to come on in the middle of the night so people can charge their back-up batteries for the daytime. When the power is off they call it load-shedding. This means that people are very frugal with power and it also means that you have to get used to the sound of generators trundling away at all hours. The hotel I am at has a generator but it only powers the lights so I cannot watch TV or charge anything at these times. I have been leaving whatever it is that I need to charge plugged in over night this seems to do the trick. Because of all this I am getting a lot of reading and writing done which is no bad thing. I think I am correct in saying that all of Nepal's electricity comes from either hydro or solar power which of course is fantastic, there just isn't enough of it.
You are never more than a few steps away from a temple or shrine or stupa. They are everywhere on main roads down little side streets and in the middle of road works. Half of the city feels like it is being re-built. Unlike in the UK where large sheets of tarpaulin cover up whatever work is going on here it is out in the open for everyone to see. The tools are basic the scaffolding mostly bamboo, a huge amount of houses look half finished especially outside of the centre, it can be hard to tell what is falling down and what is being built.
Lately I have also seen a lot of women carrying massive cupboards and wardrobes on their backs. Something to think about next time your having a moan about Ikea's delivery service. Strap it to your head and carry it on your back.
The children of this city love saying hello. I know assume if I hear a hello that it is directed at em it normally is. Most are happy with a cheery hello back but some are a bit more demanding. I had a lad run up to me the other day yelling "Chocolate!, Chocolate!, Chocolate! I had no chocolate and when this became obvious he demanded one hundred rupees. They always want one hundred rupees. Some of these children have real chutzpah!
It isn't only shopkeepers that throw water. This Sunday is Holi the Hindu festival of colour. In the build up to this itis traditional for children to throw water at balloons at people especially westerners. I am yet to be hit but there have been a couple of close calls. Come Sunday I fully expect to be covered head to toe in paint as the children roam the streets with balloons and water pistols full of colourful paint, keeping an eye open for easy targets. Despite not standing out in a crowd unless I stay indoors all day Sunday I am getting splatted.
Wednesday 16 March 2011
On My Commute & Prayer Wheels
During my wallks to and from work I have seen many an unusual site (for me at least). A man lying prostrate on the floor praying outside a temple, a single prayer wheel spinning behind him. There was also a Monk nearby that day who was there on both my way and way back from work that is eight hours I wonder how long he was there for.
I also accidently scared a monkey by making a noise whilst pulling a monkey face. A bigger monkey nearby was very upset with me and scurried towards me growling, well as close to growling as a monkey can get, which to be honest is pretty close. I turned around and yelled "Heeey" at it and it sat back happy that a point had been made.
Now I am not a very spiritual person although I would consider myself agnostic (Lets not get into that) but there is somnething about seeing a prayer wheel spinning its mantra that fills me with hope. I don't really know how to explain it. Spinning a wheel doesn't take a lot of effort but I guess for me that it is saying that amongst all this poverty and squaler there are people who are thinking beyond themselves, towards a better future for everyone. They also bring a wall or building to life the wheels spinning long after the spinner has moved on. I like to think that no matter what time of day it is somewhere in Kathmandu there is a prayer wheel spinning its message onto the winds.
I also accidently scared a monkey by making a noise whilst pulling a monkey face. A bigger monkey nearby was very upset with me and scurried towards me growling, well as close to growling as a monkey can get, which to be honest is pretty close. I turned around and yelled "Heeey" at it and it sat back happy that a point had been made.
Now I am not a very spiritual person although I would consider myself agnostic (Lets not get into that) but there is somnething about seeing a prayer wheel spinning its mantra that fills me with hope. I don't really know how to explain it. Spinning a wheel doesn't take a lot of effort but I guess for me that it is saying that amongst all this poverty and squaler there are people who are thinking beyond themselves, towards a better future for everyone. They also bring a wall or building to life the wheels spinning long after the spinner has moved on. I like to think that no matter what time of day it is somewhere in Kathmandu there is a prayer wheel spinning its message onto the winds.
The Joy Of Work When Work Is A Joy.
I'm starting to get into the swing of things now. The kids are great, full of life, some have the eyes of somone five times their age and this is very sad, but also to be expected. We have painted portraits and today drew around some wooden shapes its lovely to see some of the children slowly gain confidence with their drawing and painting. We also did face paints and the kids absolutely loved it, we had monsters, fairies, angels, soilders as well as spiderman it was a massive hit. We played volleyball of sorts in the afternoon and a lot of the younger kids enjoyed using me as a climbing frame and being swung about. The children are so sweet and run up to greet us everyday looking forward to making some art and playing some games.
Monday 14 March 2011
A Song And A Dance.
After a breakfast of banana and honey crepes I meet up with Lee-Ann at around 10:00 and head to B's who has sorted us out with a taxi to take us to our destination. We arrive at the classroom and the teacher is not in, we are greeted with a loud hello from all the kids and after an awkward wait of a few seconds the teacher arrives.
The children are very loud and lively but they are busy doing drawings when we arrive. Most of them have finished and they leave for lunch at 11:30 giving us a chance to clear up before lunch. The children are loud and lively and there are approximately sixteen of them. Still despite this being about half the size of the classes I can expect in the UK it is going to be hard work, especially with the language barrier. The teachers English is fairly basic and the kids don't really speak a word except for hello and a few numbers.
After lunch we head outside so they can stretch their legs and we can do some dance. We try to sing 'Old McDonald' but the language barrier proves tricky so we move on and do the Okey Kokey several times and they love it. Especially the part where everyone runs into the middle and out again.
Tomorrow we have more of an idea of what we can do and we already have a set of ideas to try out. Hopefully they will enjoy them and it will keep them busy. I am shattered, an early night I think.
The children are very loud and lively but they are busy doing drawings when we arrive. Most of them have finished and they leave for lunch at 11:30 giving us a chance to clear up before lunch. The children are loud and lively and there are approximately sixteen of them. Still despite this being about half the size of the classes I can expect in the UK it is going to be hard work, especially with the language barrier. The teachers English is fairly basic and the kids don't really speak a word except for hello and a few numbers.
After lunch we head outside so they can stretch their legs and we can do some dance. We try to sing 'Old McDonald' but the language barrier proves tricky so we move on and do the Okey Kokey several times and they love it. Especially the part where everyone runs into the middle and out again.
Tomorrow we have more of an idea of what we can do and we already have a set of ideas to try out. Hopefully they will enjoy them and it will keep them busy. I am shattered, an early night I think.
A Grand Day Out
Today I am meeting up with Lee-Ann for breakfast before heading South of Kathmandu to Patan we are of course walking. Patan has its own Durbar Square and is the main area for Newari Buddhists. Newari Buddhism is a mixture of both Hindu and Buddhist beliefs. The integration of these two different faiths is one of the most striking and impressive things about Nepal.
It takes about an hour to get their along busy dusty roads. We enter under a large white arch painted with eyes and the other usual Buddhist iconography after purchasing our tickets and placing our square yellow sticker on our shirts as proof of purchase we head towards the square. On the way there are lots of little shops selling brass and gold statues of Buddha as well as other deities some of which have their faces covered with cloth, I am not sure if this is just to protect the metal or whether it has a greater significance.
Before we reach the square we get chatting to a local man who leads us to the Golden Temple (Kwa Bahal). Once inside we make it clear that we do not want nor require a guide but if he wants to show us around as a friendly gesture we are happy to walk around with him, he quietly disappears. We have a look around the temple and see the priest of the temple. He is a young boy and he is swinging from a nearby rack that holds prayer wheels. He will be the priest of the temple for thirty days at that point another young boy will be chosen. We take some photo's unfortunately the most impressive part of the temple is covered in scaffolding so after a couple of walks around we decide to head off. Just then the local re-appears and shows us the monastery in the upstairs part of the temple, which despite being empty has some lovely thankas shame it is such a dark space.
After we leave he insists on showing us his at workshop and school where he is learning to paint Thankas. We tell him that we wont be buying but that we would love to have a look he he would like to show us. After seeing some people at work he shows us a lot of his paintings, after informing him yet again that we are in no position to buy he starts insisting that we should buy and that the price he asks for is nothing to us, I hate this attitude and the presumptions it makes if I am honest if I would have warmed to him more I might have brought one, but he was far too pushy. We say again that his paintings are beautiful but we wont be buying, as I turn to leave I hear him mumble "No problem, No respect, that's okay" I almost respond but decide better of it and we head to the square.
The hawkers seem to be more pushy in Patan I think they get more tour groups and less individual tourist's so its all a bit more desperate. After having a look around the square we decide to go for lunch we walk past a temple we can see through the doorway that it looks run down and there is a lot of scaffolding up. A man outside yells come in have a look no fee to go inside. "No thank you, we are off to lunch" I reply, "Okay, goodbye forever!" he yells back. They sure like to lay the guilt on thick around here.
We have lunch on a restaurants flat roof about four storeys up, it has fantastic views of the square and beyond. It really feels like you are right in the middle of the valley. We both have veg style curries and rice that are very tasty.
After lunch we head North to go and look at the Mahabuddha or 'Abode Of Thousand Buddhas'. The temple itself is tucked away down an alley you really wouldn't find it if there were no signs despite it being fairly large. It is all built around a huge terracotta tower into which thousands of small Buddhas have been individually carved. It is quite something to behold and in a part of the world that is full of temples it really stands out.
There is an arts festival on today and when we got our ticket for Mahabuddha we also got a ticket for Rudravarna Mahavihor Temple. It is another pretty courtyard temple containing plenty of intricate carvings and impressive statues. On the road between these two temples there are lots of stalls displaying large and impressive brass statues of Buddha's built for temples. The work is really impressive in detail and size. There is also a massive Buddhist flag at one crossroads its bright coloured stripes blowing in the breeze would not be out of place at a gay pride parade. We also come across a man in a small store front surrounded by six inch high tin soldiers in traditional Nepalese uniforms. He pulls on a small lever and their hands move up and down, it is very quaint.
We decide to head back to Kathmandu through an alternate route that will take us passed more temples and stupas. Along the way kids see us taking pictures and start posing for us. After one picture is taken a lad runs up and demands 100R, they are not shy of asking these kids.
We get a little lost on the way back more down to our lack of confidence in where we had ended up more than a poor sense of direction. We still get back well before dark and after saying cheerio to Lee-Ann I decide to do a bit more shopping, before heading out for something to eat and crashing back at the hotel. Tomorrow work begins.
It takes about an hour to get their along busy dusty roads. We enter under a large white arch painted with eyes and the other usual Buddhist iconography after purchasing our tickets and placing our square yellow sticker on our shirts as proof of purchase we head towards the square. On the way there are lots of little shops selling brass and gold statues of Buddha as well as other deities some of which have their faces covered with cloth, I am not sure if this is just to protect the metal or whether it has a greater significance.
Before we reach the square we get chatting to a local man who leads us to the Golden Temple (Kwa Bahal). Once inside we make it clear that we do not want nor require a guide but if he wants to show us around as a friendly gesture we are happy to walk around with him, he quietly disappears. We have a look around the temple and see the priest of the temple. He is a young boy and he is swinging from a nearby rack that holds prayer wheels. He will be the priest of the temple for thirty days at that point another young boy will be chosen. We take some photo's unfortunately the most impressive part of the temple is covered in scaffolding so after a couple of walks around we decide to head off. Just then the local re-appears and shows us the monastery in the upstairs part of the temple, which despite being empty has some lovely thankas shame it is such a dark space.
After we leave he insists on showing us his at workshop and school where he is learning to paint Thankas. We tell him that we wont be buying but that we would love to have a look he he would like to show us. After seeing some people at work he shows us a lot of his paintings, after informing him yet again that we are in no position to buy he starts insisting that we should buy and that the price he asks for is nothing to us, I hate this attitude and the presumptions it makes if I am honest if I would have warmed to him more I might have brought one, but he was far too pushy. We say again that his paintings are beautiful but we wont be buying, as I turn to leave I hear him mumble "No problem, No respect, that's okay" I almost respond but decide better of it and we head to the square.
The hawkers seem to be more pushy in Patan I think they get more tour groups and less individual tourist's so its all a bit more desperate. After having a look around the square we decide to go for lunch we walk past a temple we can see through the doorway that it looks run down and there is a lot of scaffolding up. A man outside yells come in have a look no fee to go inside. "No thank you, we are off to lunch" I reply, "Okay, goodbye forever!" he yells back. They sure like to lay the guilt on thick around here.
We have lunch on a restaurants flat roof about four storeys up, it has fantastic views of the square and beyond. It really feels like you are right in the middle of the valley. We both have veg style curries and rice that are very tasty.
After lunch we head North to go and look at the Mahabuddha or 'Abode Of Thousand Buddhas'. The temple itself is tucked away down an alley you really wouldn't find it if there were no signs despite it being fairly large. It is all built around a huge terracotta tower into which thousands of small Buddhas have been individually carved. It is quite something to behold and in a part of the world that is full of temples it really stands out.
There is an arts festival on today and when we got our ticket for Mahabuddha we also got a ticket for Rudravarna Mahavihor Temple. It is another pretty courtyard temple containing plenty of intricate carvings and impressive statues. On the road between these two temples there are lots of stalls displaying large and impressive brass statues of Buddha's built for temples. The work is really impressive in detail and size. There is also a massive Buddhist flag at one crossroads its bright coloured stripes blowing in the breeze would not be out of place at a gay pride parade. We also come across a man in a small store front surrounded by six inch high tin soldiers in traditional Nepalese uniforms. He pulls on a small lever and their hands move up and down, it is very quaint.
We decide to head back to Kathmandu through an alternate route that will take us passed more temples and stupas. Along the way kids see us taking pictures and start posing for us. After one picture is taken a lad runs up and demands 100R, they are not shy of asking these kids.
We get a little lost on the way back more down to our lack of confidence in where we had ended up more than a poor sense of direction. We still get back well before dark and after saying cheerio to Lee-Ann I decide to do a bit more shopping, before heading out for something to eat and crashing back at the hotel. Tomorrow work begins.
Sunday 13 March 2011
Down By The River Where The Dead Men Go.
Today is a very busy day. I decide to try and catch up with my blog in the morning after breakfast and then I go and do a little bit of shopping for gifts. I am meeting Lee-Ann for lunch at what is becoming our usual spot, it is called The International Restaurant and does fantastic Indian style food for very cheap. After lunch I head to Pashupatinath which is Kathmandu's main Hindu temple just to the east of the valley, it is also where they burn the bodies by the river.
I walk there as I do everywhere, it is the best way to see the Kathmandu or any city for that matter. It is true that catching a bus or a taxi is an experience in itself but you miss so much. As I walk east and start to leave the centre of Thamel the area's I go through become much poorer, there are many signs advertising secondary schools and universities as well as a small football ground with concrete tiers. I also pass bicycle repair shops (Not a fixie in sight, almost makes up for all the hippies) and carpentry stores where intricately carved window frames and doorways are being produced..
Before you get to the temple there is a massive bustling market to get through, I had no idea this was there and it was a bit of a shock, thousands of people milling about looking for bargains down this narrow road. The market itself sells cheap plastic toys and shoes as well as other clothes and kitchen ware, as you get closer to the temple more religious paraphernalia comes to the fore. Men stand by the stalls shouting prices whilst holding aloft their produce, other stalls have megaphones blaring out the same recording over and over to help save their voices. The stalls in Kathmandu all have the same philosophy of stack it high and sell it cheap. There are stalls that are just piles of bangles or shoes or... well pretty much anything as long as you can put it in a pile they will sell it. As I walk through the market it becomes clear that I am pretty much the only westerner there I am also the tallest by a good foot.
At the temple I pay the quite frankly expensive 500R to get in and I go and look at the cremation ghats along the river. To the right as you enter the area you can go and stand and watch the cremations and take pictures it is traditionaly where the commoners were allowed to view ceremonies. I am told this by a man who obviously wants to be my guide, I explain to him that I don't want a guide and he slopes off. Shortly after this two young lads come up to me and start asking the usual questions. Where are you from? Is this your first time in Nepal? etc I assumed they were trying to sell me something and I was a little guarded but I don't think they were. I actually believe that they are local students who wanted to practice their English with a native speaker they seemed interested in what I had to say about life in London, they even warned me off getting a guide. "They do not care for Nepal, they only care for money. You should read your book and look for yourself". I feel bad for being so defensive when they first approached we chat for a while before they head off on their way. People seem to genuinly want to talk this side of the city, I get a lot of teenage girls walking past saying hello, they find it hilarious when I respond with a cheery "Hiya!" or a boomy "Hello". It also appears to be less touristy and I seem to be of far more of an oddity here more than anywhere else I have been in Nepal. I stay and watch a pyre for a bit, a man pokes the embers with a stick and a foot pops out, thats enough of that for me.
On the other side of the river there are lots of Shiva shrines and you can view the riverside ceremonies (funerals) from a high vantage point, where you get a great view of the grimy but sacred Bagmati River. The funeral processions themselves are fascinating, a man leads whilst blowing into a shell which makes a deep and droning horn like sound, behind him the bodies are carried wrapped in colourful cloth and covered in flowers with the mourners just behind. It is very peaceful up here on the other side of the river and I rest a while before carrying on through the park to Guhyeshwari Temple. I take a wrong turn in the park and end up finding another temple called Vishwarup. I have a look around the outside as people seem to be worshiping and living inside and I felt it would be obtrusive. Around the back of the temple some youths are playing volley ball it is quite the contrast.
After walking back and getting back on route I walk through another temple area where there are lots of Yogi's. They don't appear to be doing anything that holy but they look the part as the pose for tourists. Past this area is more of the park area which contains about four monkeys to every human, I see one drinking from a juice box it looks sweet until it gives evils and barks at another juice loving monkey. A little further on and down some steps I reach Guhyeshwari Temple. Only Hindu's are allowed inside and it is not much to look at from the outside. A ceremony does spill out onto the streets though, I believe it is a wedding there are two people being carried piggy back style out of the temple and there is a marching style band playing music, everyone is dancing and clapping and the crowd are dressed in finery.
Time is getting on and I decide to head back so I can be home before dark. On my way I see two monkeys attacking a dog, which is nice.
After working my way back through the market I get to the football stadium, I game is about to commence and I kinda wish I could go in and watch but I do not want to be this side of town when the sun goes down. I stop a little later for a drink, I go over to a small shop and purchase a Pepsi, there is a sound in the building just behind the shop that sounds like crowd noise coming from a television. I think it might be the Cricket so I go and have a look to check what the score is. It turns out that it isn't a telly but an arcade football game. The machine is in a hand build wooden case with no paintwork just a couple of stickers. There are three kids there watching the machines they see my camera and start to pose running up to see the image in the back of the camera and laughing.
About thirty minutes later and I'm nearly home. I decide to pop into Himalayan Java a swanky coffee house to have a cup of tea, some cake and catch a bit of cricket. (In Kathmandu there aren't any chain stores. No Starbucks, No McDonald's, No Burger King. I have seen one KFC but thats it. This is obviously a very good thing.) After India have a bit of a collapse in their last ten innings I head back to my temporary home with some snacks to watch South Africa bat, unfortunately there is no live cricket on any of the channels on my telly so I end up watching the world news and an Austin Powers film instead. I am a little annoyed I didn't get to Pashupatinath earlier and make a day of it as I missed the Yogi caves and didn't really see much of the main temple/courtyard. Still it was an enjoyable and productive afternoon.
I walk there as I do everywhere, it is the best way to see the Kathmandu or any city for that matter. It is true that catching a bus or a taxi is an experience in itself but you miss so much. As I walk east and start to leave the centre of Thamel the area's I go through become much poorer, there are many signs advertising secondary schools and universities as well as a small football ground with concrete tiers. I also pass bicycle repair shops (Not a fixie in sight, almost makes up for all the hippies) and carpentry stores where intricately carved window frames and doorways are being produced..
Before you get to the temple there is a massive bustling market to get through, I had no idea this was there and it was a bit of a shock, thousands of people milling about looking for bargains down this narrow road. The market itself sells cheap plastic toys and shoes as well as other clothes and kitchen ware, as you get closer to the temple more religious paraphernalia comes to the fore. Men stand by the stalls shouting prices whilst holding aloft their produce, other stalls have megaphones blaring out the same recording over and over to help save their voices. The stalls in Kathmandu all have the same philosophy of stack it high and sell it cheap. There are stalls that are just piles of bangles or shoes or... well pretty much anything as long as you can put it in a pile they will sell it. As I walk through the market it becomes clear that I am pretty much the only westerner there I am also the tallest by a good foot.
At the temple I pay the quite frankly expensive 500R to get in and I go and look at the cremation ghats along the river. To the right as you enter the area you can go and stand and watch the cremations and take pictures it is traditionaly where the commoners were allowed to view ceremonies. I am told this by a man who obviously wants to be my guide, I explain to him that I don't want a guide and he slopes off. Shortly after this two young lads come up to me and start asking the usual questions. Where are you from? Is this your first time in Nepal? etc I assumed they were trying to sell me something and I was a little guarded but I don't think they were. I actually believe that they are local students who wanted to practice their English with a native speaker they seemed interested in what I had to say about life in London, they even warned me off getting a guide. "They do not care for Nepal, they only care for money. You should read your book and look for yourself". I feel bad for being so defensive when they first approached we chat for a while before they head off on their way. People seem to genuinly want to talk this side of the city, I get a lot of teenage girls walking past saying hello, they find it hilarious when I respond with a cheery "Hiya!" or a boomy "Hello". It also appears to be less touristy and I seem to be of far more of an oddity here more than anywhere else I have been in Nepal. I stay and watch a pyre for a bit, a man pokes the embers with a stick and a foot pops out, thats enough of that for me.
On the other side of the river there are lots of Shiva shrines and you can view the riverside ceremonies (funerals) from a high vantage point, where you get a great view of the grimy but sacred Bagmati River. The funeral processions themselves are fascinating, a man leads whilst blowing into a shell which makes a deep and droning horn like sound, behind him the bodies are carried wrapped in colourful cloth and covered in flowers with the mourners just behind. It is very peaceful up here on the other side of the river and I rest a while before carrying on through the park to Guhyeshwari Temple. I take a wrong turn in the park and end up finding another temple called Vishwarup. I have a look around the outside as people seem to be worshiping and living inside and I felt it would be obtrusive. Around the back of the temple some youths are playing volley ball it is quite the contrast.
After walking back and getting back on route I walk through another temple area where there are lots of Yogi's. They don't appear to be doing anything that holy but they look the part as the pose for tourists. Past this area is more of the park area which contains about four monkeys to every human, I see one drinking from a juice box it looks sweet until it gives evils and barks at another juice loving monkey. A little further on and down some steps I reach Guhyeshwari Temple. Only Hindu's are allowed inside and it is not much to look at from the outside. A ceremony does spill out onto the streets though, I believe it is a wedding there are two people being carried piggy back style out of the temple and there is a marching style band playing music, everyone is dancing and clapping and the crowd are dressed in finery.
Time is getting on and I decide to head back so I can be home before dark. On my way I see two monkeys attacking a dog, which is nice.
After working my way back through the market I get to the football stadium, I game is about to commence and I kinda wish I could go in and watch but I do not want to be this side of town when the sun goes down. I stop a little later for a drink, I go over to a small shop and purchase a Pepsi, there is a sound in the building just behind the shop that sounds like crowd noise coming from a television. I think it might be the Cricket so I go and have a look to check what the score is. It turns out that it isn't a telly but an arcade football game. The machine is in a hand build wooden case with no paintwork just a couple of stickers. There are three kids there watching the machines they see my camera and start to pose running up to see the image in the back of the camera and laughing.
About thirty minutes later and I'm nearly home. I decide to pop into Himalayan Java a swanky coffee house to have a cup of tea, some cake and catch a bit of cricket. (In Kathmandu there aren't any chain stores. No Starbucks, No McDonald's, No Burger King. I have seen one KFC but thats it. This is obviously a very good thing.) After India have a bit of a collapse in their last ten innings I head back to my temporary home with some snacks to watch South Africa bat, unfortunately there is no live cricket on any of the channels on my telly so I end up watching the world news and an Austin Powers film instead. I am a little annoyed I didn't get to Pashupatinath earlier and make a day of it as I missed the Yogi caves and didn't really see much of the main temple/courtyard. Still it was an enjoyable and productive afternoon.
Saturday 12 March 2011
In The City
Turns out it doesn't matter what is on the telly if there is no power, I think the lights run off of a generator but the mains electric does not. I decide to start a new book instead 'The Wind Up Bird Chronical' by Murakami so far it is excellent.
I don't do very much today, I get up early and have a breakfast of omelet and toast before heading to the internet cafe to catch up on this here blog and check me emails. I have an email from UEL offering me an interview for a PGCE place on the 11th which is very exciting despite me being woefully unprepared for it. I will have to hit the books when I get home.
Afterwards I decide to head back to Durbar Square top take some decent photo's and check out the museum that was closed last time I was there. The museum itself is interesting to say the least. Cameras are not allowed and you have to put your bag and camera in a locker before they will let you into the building. The exhibits like a lot of things in Kathmandu are old and dusty. They are also very dimly lit making it difficult to read any information which is mostly a laminated piece of paper glued to the wall, other than this there are brass plack's which are all nearly impossible to read in the poor light.
The views from the tower are fantastic though and the endless photographs and paintings of later day King's are in places hilarious. There is also a lot of taxidermy, one unintentionally funny photograph shows a king sitting rather awkwardly on a massive dead rhino holding a rifle, the caption near the set of photo's claiming he was a big lover of nature.
Another small room has a plack above the entrance that simply reads 'Death Room'. Inside is a long wooden coffin and around the walls are pictures of various coffins in transit. I find no explanation for the coffin or the photographs.
After a while the endless parade of photographs, old uniforms and personal objects take their toll and I decide to head back to Jyatha for lunch. I do a bit of shopping afterwards and have a nap before heading to Kilroy's for supper. Kilroy's is a very fancy place, despite this my chair breaks and they bring me a black coffee instead of tea. The food on the other hand is amazing, I have a chicken balti with rice and a garlic naan. The bill comes to more than I would normally spend in a day on food. It is still dirt cheap compared with back home though and treating myself once in a while wont hurt.
I don't do very much today, I get up early and have a breakfast of omelet and toast before heading to the internet cafe to catch up on this here blog and check me emails. I have an email from UEL offering me an interview for a PGCE place on the 11th which is very exciting despite me being woefully unprepared for it. I will have to hit the books when I get home.
Afterwards I decide to head back to Durbar Square top take some decent photo's and check out the museum that was closed last time I was there. The museum itself is interesting to say the least. Cameras are not allowed and you have to put your bag and camera in a locker before they will let you into the building. The exhibits like a lot of things in Kathmandu are old and dusty. They are also very dimly lit making it difficult to read any information which is mostly a laminated piece of paper glued to the wall, other than this there are brass plack's which are all nearly impossible to read in the poor light.
The views from the tower are fantastic though and the endless photographs and paintings of later day King's are in places hilarious. There is also a lot of taxidermy, one unintentionally funny photograph shows a king sitting rather awkwardly on a massive dead rhino holding a rifle, the caption near the set of photo's claiming he was a big lover of nature.
Another small room has a plack above the entrance that simply reads 'Death Room'. Inside is a long wooden coffin and around the walls are pictures of various coffins in transit. I find no explanation for the coffin or the photographs.
After a while the endless parade of photographs, old uniforms and personal objects take their toll and I decide to head back to Jyatha for lunch. I do a bit of shopping afterwards and have a nap before heading to Kilroy's for supper. Kilroy's is a very fancy place, despite this my chair breaks and they bring me a black coffee instead of tea. The food on the other hand is amazing, I have a chicken balti with rice and a garlic naan. The bill comes to more than I would normally spend in a day on food. It is still dirt cheap compared with back home though and treating myself once in a while wont hurt.
Through The Mountains Back To The City.
I have what is probably my latest night of the trip so far and I finally go to bed at around 22:00. Most nights I have been going to sleep between 20:00-21:00. I wake up a little earlier than needed regardless of this and decide to spend a bit of time packing my gear away. I have really enjoyed the last few day's adventures but I am looking forward to clean clothes a comfortable bed and a loo you can sit on.
In the Jeep is the driver, myself, Swiss guy, Austrian Lady and our Sherpa's. Austrian lady has two, one for lugging and one for guiding. Tammie and her guide are catching the bus back as it would appear all the people who came out for Losar, the 6:30 bus is already full by the time they try to get tickets and so they have to wait another hour for the next can on wheels turns up, I hope they don't get back too late and that unlike my journey out their bus isn't owned by 'The Red Hand Gang'.
I get to ride shotgun due to owning the longest legs. Not only do I have legroom but I also have a seatbelt, untill that is we hit the first of many very bumpy bits of road and the belt pings out of it lock proving itself to be as functional as a chocolate teapot. The journey back is fairly uneventful and I listen to my ipod as we hurtle down the hills, there is nothing like listening to David Yow yelp "Maybe, were never going to make it" whilst hurtling round blind corners on a small mountain road.
Just outside of Syabrubensi there are many men working on the side of the roads, either breaking rocks with sledgehammers or digging dirt with shovels. Their bright orange safety helmets glisten in the sun the rest of them is covered in dust. This becomes an even more ridiculous sight when you realize that all of them with no exceptions are wearing sandals. We also get held up by a gritting lorry, the lorry does not disperse the grit itself. This is done by young ladies in pollution masks carrying silver trays that are loaded up with grit that they then scatter on the hot tarmac it is a slow and hard process. A bit further along we see more and more children working by the roads. They are doing hard physical labour. It is a sad sight to behold.
The ride itself lasts a mere six hours and I am back at my hotel just after 13:00. I say my goodbye's to Geljin and give him a healthy tip, he has been absolutely brilliant the past week, before heading to my room to unpack.
I have been allocated a new room, it has a double bed and doesn't face out onto the street, which means less light but also less noise. There is also a telly which has sports channels as well as HBO and BBC world service. Result!
In the Jeep is the driver, myself, Swiss guy, Austrian Lady and our Sherpa's. Austrian lady has two, one for lugging and one for guiding. Tammie and her guide are catching the bus back as it would appear all the people who came out for Losar, the 6:30 bus is already full by the time they try to get tickets and so they have to wait another hour for the next can on wheels turns up, I hope they don't get back too late and that unlike my journey out their bus isn't owned by 'The Red Hand Gang'.
I get to ride shotgun due to owning the longest legs. Not only do I have legroom but I also have a seatbelt, untill that is we hit the first of many very bumpy bits of road and the belt pings out of it lock proving itself to be as functional as a chocolate teapot. The journey back is fairly uneventful and I listen to my ipod as we hurtle down the hills, there is nothing like listening to David Yow yelp "Maybe, were never going to make it" whilst hurtling round blind corners on a small mountain road.
Just outside of Syabrubensi there are many men working on the side of the roads, either breaking rocks with sledgehammers or digging dirt with shovels. Their bright orange safety helmets glisten in the sun the rest of them is covered in dust. This becomes an even more ridiculous sight when you realize that all of them with no exceptions are wearing sandals. We also get held up by a gritting lorry, the lorry does not disperse the grit itself. This is done by young ladies in pollution masks carrying silver trays that are loaded up with grit that they then scatter on the hot tarmac it is a slow and hard process. A bit further along we see more and more children working by the roads. They are doing hard physical labour. It is a sad sight to behold.
The ride itself lasts a mere six hours and I am back at my hotel just after 13:00. I say my goodbye's to Geljin and give him a healthy tip, he has been absolutely brilliant the past week, before heading to my room to unpack.
I have been allocated a new room, it has a double bed and doesn't face out onto the street, which means less light but also less noise. There is also a telly which has sports channels as well as HBO and BBC world service. Result!
The Final Day of Walking.
I wake up a little early, get dressed and I have a wonder round and take some photo's (As well as the colour photo's I have posted on Facebook I am also taking some on high contrast black and white film. I will process these when I get home.) before slowly packing and heading for my last breakfast amongst the mountains. I have a cup of black tea and an omelet between two pieces of Tibetan bread. Mark was eating this the other morning and it looked and is delicious. When I asked Geljin for it the night before he couldn't stop laughing, not traditional tuck I guess.
I say my goodbye's to Mark as he is heading back up another mountain today to see the frozen lakes, the weather looks like it is only going to get worse, I'm sure he'll cope though its going to get bloody cold if it starts snowing.
The journey back is fairly uneventful, although we do see a lot of monkeys jumping around in the trees and hanging out on rocks, one was only a couple of meters away! We also saw some evidence of honey theft. A rope ladder had been left near a rock face, you could see where there was once large combs of honey there was now only angry bees.
We get back to Syabrubensi at about 11:30 I drink a couple of Sprites and wolf down a mixed chowmein. The Swiss guy and Tammie both turn up at the same hotel a little while later as does the Austrian lady we chat for a while before I head out to find some lip salve, my lips got quite badly cracked whilst in Kyangjin. I find a place just up the road selling tubes of Dr Lips. It seems to be doing the job. After that there is nothing to do but have a nap, listen to some music and get ready for the long bus ride home. The bus leaves at 6:30 next morning.
Hazaar! A man has turned up and he has a Jeep. He will drive us back to Kathmandu for about 1250 rupees each. This is a bargain no bus for me tomorrow and a slightly later start.
I say my goodbye's to Mark as he is heading back up another mountain today to see the frozen lakes, the weather looks like it is only going to get worse, I'm sure he'll cope though its going to get bloody cold if it starts snowing.
The journey back is fairly uneventful, although we do see a lot of monkeys jumping around in the trees and hanging out on rocks, one was only a couple of meters away! We also saw some evidence of honey theft. A rope ladder had been left near a rock face, you could see where there was once large combs of honey there was now only angry bees.
We get back to Syabrubensi at about 11:30 I drink a couple of Sprites and wolf down a mixed chowmein. The Swiss guy and Tammie both turn up at the same hotel a little while later as does the Austrian lady we chat for a while before I head out to find some lip salve, my lips got quite badly cracked whilst in Kyangjin. I find a place just up the road selling tubes of Dr Lips. It seems to be doing the job. After that there is nothing to do but have a nap, listen to some music and get ready for the long bus ride home. The bus leaves at 6:30 next morning.
Hazaar! A man has turned up and he has a Jeep. He will drive us back to Kathmandu for about 1250 rupees each. This is a bargain no bus for me tomorrow and a slightly later start.
Friday 11 March 2011
Down Down Deeper and Down.
It turns out that everyone had weird dreams last night. I had put my weird dreams down to my own consumption of Yak cheese before bed time, but it must have more to do with the thin air and strong winds.
After breakfast we make our move away from the mountains and back towards the river and trees. It gets easier as the air gets thicker and breathing is no longer so much effort. The group soon splits u pas everybody finds their own pace. We stop for lunch at River View a beautiful spot as you would expect right by the river. I walk down to the banks and sit on a rock whilst I wait for my lunch to be cooked and do a little Ki meditation.
Soon after I am back on the mainland Mark, Tammie and their Sherpas arrive. They all order Dhal Bhat which they tuck into in traditional Nepalese style with their hands. The sun is out but clouds are forming over the mountains. It seems the timing of the trip could not have been better. Last night at the Hotel I met a guy from the Lebanon, he was finding the trek tough going and had brought way too much stuff, he was looking extremely tired that evening and the next morning. I hope the clouds start to clear when he reaches Kyangjin.
As we head down we meet more and more people moving up, it has been very quiet whilst I was in the mountains and I am glad I managed to miss the start of the busy season.
We are meant to spend the night at a guest house just past Lama Hotel it has stunning views but unfortunately a large group are destined to be there that evening and we decide to move onto Bamboo, the village where I had lunch on day one, we have plenty of time.
When we reach Bamboo around an hour and a half later the Swiss man is there and he has nearly finished his book which he hadn't even started when we first met. He is heading back down and despite being obviously disappointed that his adventure was cut short he seems to be keeping his chin up, apparently some chicken was his undoing. There is also an Austrian lady on her way back down to Syabrubensi her and Swiss guy chat away happily in German.
Geljin informs me that we we have descended 1700m today. To put that into context that is twice the distance that Snowdon is above sea level. It hasn't been to tough due to the decreasing altitude but the sun is still out although the wind is picking up and people are starting to get their washing in.
That evening is a strange one. Mark and Tammie are staying in a hotel down from ours, I was planning on joining them but my mood was not a good one, I am not sure why. I stayed in my room and listened to music, went to dinner and then headed to bed hoping my mood will have lifted by the morning.
After breakfast we make our move away from the mountains and back towards the river and trees. It gets easier as the air gets thicker and breathing is no longer so much effort. The group soon splits u pas everybody finds their own pace. We stop for lunch at River View a beautiful spot as you would expect right by the river. I walk down to the banks and sit on a rock whilst I wait for my lunch to be cooked and do a little Ki meditation.
Soon after I am back on the mainland Mark, Tammie and their Sherpas arrive. They all order Dhal Bhat which they tuck into in traditional Nepalese style with their hands. The sun is out but clouds are forming over the mountains. It seems the timing of the trip could not have been better. Last night at the Hotel I met a guy from the Lebanon, he was finding the trek tough going and had brought way too much stuff, he was looking extremely tired that evening and the next morning. I hope the clouds start to clear when he reaches Kyangjin.
As we head down we meet more and more people moving up, it has been very quiet whilst I was in the mountains and I am glad I managed to miss the start of the busy season.
We are meant to spend the night at a guest house just past Lama Hotel it has stunning views but unfortunately a large group are destined to be there that evening and we decide to move onto Bamboo, the village where I had lunch on day one, we have plenty of time.
When we reach Bamboo around an hour and a half later the Swiss man is there and he has nearly finished his book which he hadn't even started when we first met. He is heading back down and despite being obviously disappointed that his adventure was cut short he seems to be keeping his chin up, apparently some chicken was his undoing. There is also an Austrian lady on her way back down to Syabrubensi her and Swiss guy chat away happily in German.
Geljin informs me that we we have descended 1700m today. To put that into context that is twice the distance that Snowdon is above sea level. It hasn't been to tough due to the decreasing altitude but the sun is still out although the wind is picking up and people are starting to get their washing in.
That evening is a strange one. Mark and Tammie are staying in a hotel down from ours, I was planning on joining them but my mood was not a good one, I am not sure why. I stayed in my room and listened to music, went to dinner and then headed to bed hoping my mood will have lifted by the morning.
I Can Climb Mountains
I am woken in the morning by the thundering sound of yellow beaked crows landing on the metal roof, luckily it is only thirty minutes before I needed to get up anyway. Whilst waiting for my breakfast of porridge and honey (A good choice as it turns out as it is really cold this morning) a man puts out some cooked rice for the birds who swarm around and make short work of their meal.
This morning I am climbing up to Kyangjin Peak. It is around 4700m above sea level. That as far as I am concerned is pretty high up and certainly the highest I will go for some time yet. The climb is very steep and hard work I am really starting to struggle about halfway as the air gets thinner breathing gets harder. I left my backpack at the hotel I don't think I could have done this climb with it on. There are rocks and clumps of snow to navigate as well as mud to slip in but I make it to the top with only one rest break.
The views are simply stunning and Geljin takes photo's of me for posterity. There is a pole with prayer flags and dedications attached to it, a half full packet of cigarettes has also been left. Shortly after we reach the peak Tammie and her guide arrive and we take photo's for each other before taking more snaps of the surrounding mountains. Tammie's guide pockets the abandoned ciggies they are his brand and everything and we relax on the rocks for a bit as birds flap around effortlessly above our heads.
The way down is tricky, there are steep slopes and loose rocks as well as the aforementioned mud. I nearly go right over but manage to save myself at the last moment. When we arrive back at the hotel I have a black tea and momo's for lunch then pack my gear ready for the journey back to Langtang and 'The Peace Full Guesthouse'.
The journey back seems much easier but I still need to watch my footing as my ankle nearly goes over on several occasions. Along the way there are some Yaks blocking the path as we approach they slowly move up the hill away from the path, how polite. I give them a thank you as we pass and I notice that one of the younger Yaks looks terrified, maybe not politeness after all.
We make it to Langtang in good time despite stopping several times along the way to take photo's. As we arrive there are children playing in the courtyard and a man who I guess is the father is playing cards on a mat with some older boys. Two of the children are twins and they are wearing matching blue traditional dress, they look adorable I wish I took some photo's of them. I find a relatively flat space behind the kitchen (Most kitchens appear to be in separate buildings next to the lodges.) and do some Ki for health exercises. Turns out they can be quite tricky when one is wearing flip flops on an uneven surface.
I wash some of my clothes afterwards outside in a metal bowl whilst the children play a game where they try to balance a stick on their finger. An older girl in her mid to late teens is counting in Tibetan at one point she starts counting in English and sounds very much like 'The Count' from 'Sesame Street' which makes me laugh.
The game is briefly abandoned when I produce a Granola bar and I am suddenly very popular, I share it around until it is all gone. Later when I got to my room I am followed by one of the twins unfortunately for him all I produce is my notebook and a pen.
In the early evening Tammie and Mark arrive at the hotel, Tammie who is repeatedly told she look Nepalese had been bothered by two drunk local policemen, showering her with unwanted compliments last time she was in Langtang so they changed hotels. We have dinner and play the Nepalese card game as before but this time with a Joker valued at zero added. It turns out we are on the same timetable so we will all be heading down together. They are a nice bunch and I am glad of the extra company.
This morning I am climbing up to Kyangjin Peak. It is around 4700m above sea level. That as far as I am concerned is pretty high up and certainly the highest I will go for some time yet. The climb is very steep and hard work I am really starting to struggle about halfway as the air gets thinner breathing gets harder. I left my backpack at the hotel I don't think I could have done this climb with it on. There are rocks and clumps of snow to navigate as well as mud to slip in but I make it to the top with only one rest break.
The views are simply stunning and Geljin takes photo's of me for posterity. There is a pole with prayer flags and dedications attached to it, a half full packet of cigarettes has also been left. Shortly after we reach the peak Tammie and her guide arrive and we take photo's for each other before taking more snaps of the surrounding mountains. Tammie's guide pockets the abandoned ciggies they are his brand and everything and we relax on the rocks for a bit as birds flap around effortlessly above our heads.
The way down is tricky, there are steep slopes and loose rocks as well as the aforementioned mud. I nearly go right over but manage to save myself at the last moment. When we arrive back at the hotel I have a black tea and momo's for lunch then pack my gear ready for the journey back to Langtang and 'The Peace Full Guesthouse'.
The journey back seems much easier but I still need to watch my footing as my ankle nearly goes over on several occasions. Along the way there are some Yaks blocking the path as we approach they slowly move up the hill away from the path, how polite. I give them a thank you as we pass and I notice that one of the younger Yaks looks terrified, maybe not politeness after all.
We make it to Langtang in good time despite stopping several times along the way to take photo's. As we arrive there are children playing in the courtyard and a man who I guess is the father is playing cards on a mat with some older boys. Two of the children are twins and they are wearing matching blue traditional dress, they look adorable I wish I took some photo's of them. I find a relatively flat space behind the kitchen (Most kitchens appear to be in separate buildings next to the lodges.) and do some Ki for health exercises. Turns out they can be quite tricky when one is wearing flip flops on an uneven surface.
I wash some of my clothes afterwards outside in a metal bowl whilst the children play a game where they try to balance a stick on their finger. An older girl in her mid to late teens is counting in Tibetan at one point she starts counting in English and sounds very much like 'The Count' from 'Sesame Street' which makes me laugh.
The game is briefly abandoned when I produce a Granola bar and I am suddenly very popular, I share it around until it is all gone. Later when I got to my room I am followed by one of the twins unfortunately for him all I produce is my notebook and a pen.
In the early evening Tammie and Mark arrive at the hotel, Tammie who is repeatedly told she look Nepalese had been bothered by two drunk local policemen, showering her with unwanted compliments last time she was in Langtang so they changed hotels. We have dinner and play the Nepalese card game as before but this time with a Joker valued at zero added. It turns out we are on the same timetable so we will all be heading down together. They are a nice bunch and I am glad of the extra company.
Bigger Mountains, Higher Flags.
After a restless night due to a hard bed and cold evening I wake up at around 7:30 and brave the outside loo. This is basically a porcelain hole in the floor with added foot grips, all paper waste is put in a box by the toilet, it is pretty grim but all WC's up here are the same and I am starting to get used to it.
I wolf down a breakfast of bread and honey with a black tea and head out. The Swiss guy is having a day of rest and looks pretty dehydrated. I give him a few sachets of Dioralyte before I head off, I hope he starts to feel better, he seems in good spirits considering.
We are in the mountains proper now and it is two hours to our final destination the village of Kyangjin Gompa where we will be spending the night. Apart from a couple of windswept looking tea houses there isn't much to see apart from the scenery the odd flutter of birds (There are loads of different birds in Langtang Park, its a twitchers paradise) and the ever present Yak's. It is both hot and cold at the same time, the higher up we go the stronger the sunshine and the colder the breeze. Snow starts appearing in big white blotches and the reflection of the sun from the snow covered mountains that now surround us is very strong.
The best thing about this trek is the ever changing scenery. At the start it is all tree covered hill sides, bridges over a fast flowing river and lodges a plenty. The further up the valley you travel the more U-shaped it becomes and the tree's give way to barren rocks and snow covered peaks, the houses become more rural with far more traditional Tibetan style houses. Oh and of course 'The Bob Marley Tea Shop', he loved his Yak Curd did Bob.
As we head towards our final destination the pathways are lined with low and thick stone walls. The slabs of rock on the side of these walls have Buddhist mantra's carved into them, you must always walk with the wall on your right in a clockwise fashion as is the way with Buddhist monuments. There are also piles of stones in a pillars that are another offering to God to help bring peace and prosperity to the mountains.
Despite the short distance it is hard going, as the altitude increases breathing becomes harder and my chest starts getting tight, I drink more and more water to get hydrated, for Geljin this is a walk in the park he has been to Everest four times and is planning his fifth ascent this year, but it is a whole new experience for me.
The scenery is also breathtaking and when we reach Kyangjin Gompa the highest village in Langtang Park we are completely surrounded by snow capped mountains. We arrive at 11:00 and I order veg fried rice at the hotel which has fantastic views and is bathed in sunshine for most of the day. Later we are going to a monastery and the local Yak Cheese Factory. It will be nice to do some walking without a heavy backpack.
The Monastery is close by but first we stop at the Cheese Factory which is basically a small barn with two rooms one that stores the cheese and one that makes the cheese. A man is working away on his own when we arrive I purchase some cheese which isn't as potent as I thought and is not too dissimilar to Edam. It is said to be a good source of energy due to the Yaks diet of mountain grass.
We get to the Monastery only to find that it is closed for Losar, but the views from there are fantastic and the buildings some new some in ruins are interesting enough from the outside. Mark & Tammie are there with their guides and we decide to walk a little further up to get as better view of the ice cap that falls down the side of a mountain, who knows if it will still be there in ten years time. We also walk over to a nearby Stupa and Tammie and her guide build a snowman while everyone else rests and takes photographs before heading back to the hotel.
I do some sunbathing whilst listening to some post rock, which makes much more sense when surrounded by mountains and decide to have Dhal Bhat for dinner before grabbing an early night as tomorrow we climb up to Kyangjin Peak.
I wolf down a breakfast of bread and honey with a black tea and head out. The Swiss guy is having a day of rest and looks pretty dehydrated. I give him a few sachets of Dioralyte before I head off, I hope he starts to feel better, he seems in good spirits considering.
We are in the mountains proper now and it is two hours to our final destination the village of Kyangjin Gompa where we will be spending the night. Apart from a couple of windswept looking tea houses there isn't much to see apart from the scenery the odd flutter of birds (There are loads of different birds in Langtang Park, its a twitchers paradise) and the ever present Yak's. It is both hot and cold at the same time, the higher up we go the stronger the sunshine and the colder the breeze. Snow starts appearing in big white blotches and the reflection of the sun from the snow covered mountains that now surround us is very strong.
The best thing about this trek is the ever changing scenery. At the start it is all tree covered hill sides, bridges over a fast flowing river and lodges a plenty. The further up the valley you travel the more U-shaped it becomes and the tree's give way to barren rocks and snow covered peaks, the houses become more rural with far more traditional Tibetan style houses. Oh and of course 'The Bob Marley Tea Shop', he loved his Yak Curd did Bob.
As we head towards our final destination the pathways are lined with low and thick stone walls. The slabs of rock on the side of these walls have Buddhist mantra's carved into them, you must always walk with the wall on your right in a clockwise fashion as is the way with Buddhist monuments. There are also piles of stones in a pillars that are another offering to God to help bring peace and prosperity to the mountains.
Despite the short distance it is hard going, as the altitude increases breathing becomes harder and my chest starts getting tight, I drink more and more water to get hydrated, for Geljin this is a walk in the park he has been to Everest four times and is planning his fifth ascent this year, but it is a whole new experience for me.
The scenery is also breathtaking and when we reach Kyangjin Gompa the highest village in Langtang Park we are completely surrounded by snow capped mountains. We arrive at 11:00 and I order veg fried rice at the hotel which has fantastic views and is bathed in sunshine for most of the day. Later we are going to a monastery and the local Yak Cheese Factory. It will be nice to do some walking without a heavy backpack.
The Monastery is close by but first we stop at the Cheese Factory which is basically a small barn with two rooms one that stores the cheese and one that makes the cheese. A man is working away on his own when we arrive I purchase some cheese which isn't as potent as I thought and is not too dissimilar to Edam. It is said to be a good source of energy due to the Yaks diet of mountain grass.
We get to the Monastery only to find that it is closed for Losar, but the views from there are fantastic and the buildings some new some in ruins are interesting enough from the outside. Mark & Tammie are there with their guides and we decide to walk a little further up to get as better view of the ice cap that falls down the side of a mountain, who knows if it will still be there in ten years time. We also walk over to a nearby Stupa and Tammie and her guide build a snowman while everyone else rests and takes photographs before heading back to the hotel.
I do some sunbathing whilst listening to some post rock, which makes much more sense when surrounded by mountains and decide to have Dhal Bhat for dinner before grabbing an early night as tomorrow we climb up to Kyangjin Peak.
Thursday 10 March 2011
Photo's
I have put a load of photo's on my facebook page. You should be able to see them by clicking on the link below. Let me know if you can't.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=343413&id=621006137
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=343413&id=621006137
Thin Air.
After a breakfast of pancakes and honey we are off. Another six hours of walking today and I will go over three thousand meters above sea lever.
As we make our way moving past a herd of animals that are half cow half yak (yow?) we wind our way alongside the river still amongst the tree's. After seeing yet more monkey's dangling from tree's we come across some very tall and straight tree's. These are Himalayan pine tree's ad they only grow in the Langtang Park. It is illegal to cut these tree's down. A little while later Geljin points to some dug up earth "Wild boar did this" he exclaims "Are they dangerous?" I ask "Oh yes" he replies and carries on walking. I find out there are lots of dangerous animals in Langtang Park including the Black Bear although they are few and far between. Geljn tells me that when he was about fourteen he was with his brother collecting leaves for their families livestock when a black bear dropped on him. He ran and ran without looking back and escaped unharmed.
It is the Buddhist New Year today. and every lodge we stop at offers us Tibetan bread and tea, their brand new prayer flags flapping in the breeze. It is custom to replace these flags every new year. Our first break is at Ghoda Tabela which at three thousand meters is the highest I have ever been with my feet on the ground. It is a beautiful clear day with not a cloud in the sky. The further we walk the fewer the tree's and the greater the yak. I see lots of baby yaks they are very cute.
We lunch at Thangsyap. I have vegetable noodles and black tea. The sun is out but the wind is strong up here. We have climbed one hundred and fifty meters today and it was easily the hardest section yet. I was more than happy to break for lunch.
Shortly after lunch just outside of Langtang village at a place called Gumba we are invited in to have tea and bread. The last hour has been fairly easy going allowing time to adjust for the altitude. The family at Gumba are very friendly and the oldest boy insists on posing with his bow by their new prayer flag and the lady that offered us tea poses by their New Year offering of food that every house has in its dining room.
It is not long to Langtang and we stop at a hotel just outside the main part of the village called 'The Peace Full Guesthouse' it almost lives up to its name but the strong winds in the night make it far from peaceful. The rooms are nice and clean and after more bread and tea I have a quick wash and give my clothes a clean. I hope my trousers dry in the sun as I will freeze in the evening if I only wear shorts.
There is a Swiss guy doing more or less the same hike as me with his own Sherpa, as well as a couple who are either German or Austrian who are doing it all off their own backs and were on the same bus as me from Kathmandu. They all seem very nice and I have chatted with the Swiss guy a lot. He has a bad stomach probably food poisoning but is carrying on regardless, after Nepal he is off to Australia. We are also joined at the lodge by a friendly French family. I am really starting to enjoy this trekking lark. Like all the lodges the dining room has a table offering special bread and cakes as well as drinks to God in return for peace and prosperity for their families and village. I feel quite lucky to have been here during Losar seeing all the brand new prayer flags waving in the blue sky and getting to see some of the rituals.
At this moment the sun is out in force and I have spent the day surrounded by snowcapped mountains. It doesn't get much better.
As we make our way moving past a herd of animals that are half cow half yak (yow?) we wind our way alongside the river still amongst the tree's. After seeing yet more monkey's dangling from tree's we come across some very tall and straight tree's. These are Himalayan pine tree's ad they only grow in the Langtang Park. It is illegal to cut these tree's down. A little while later Geljin points to some dug up earth "Wild boar did this" he exclaims "Are they dangerous?" I ask "Oh yes" he replies and carries on walking. I find out there are lots of dangerous animals in Langtang Park including the Black Bear although they are few and far between. Geljn tells me that when he was about fourteen he was with his brother collecting leaves for their families livestock when a black bear dropped on him. He ran and ran without looking back and escaped unharmed.
It is the Buddhist New Year today. and every lodge we stop at offers us Tibetan bread and tea, their brand new prayer flags flapping in the breeze. It is custom to replace these flags every new year. Our first break is at Ghoda Tabela which at three thousand meters is the highest I have ever been with my feet on the ground. It is a beautiful clear day with not a cloud in the sky. The further we walk the fewer the tree's and the greater the yak. I see lots of baby yaks they are very cute.
We lunch at Thangsyap. I have vegetable noodles and black tea. The sun is out but the wind is strong up here. We have climbed one hundred and fifty meters today and it was easily the hardest section yet. I was more than happy to break for lunch.
Shortly after lunch just outside of Langtang village at a place called Gumba we are invited in to have tea and bread. The last hour has been fairly easy going allowing time to adjust for the altitude. The family at Gumba are very friendly and the oldest boy insists on posing with his bow by their new prayer flag and the lady that offered us tea poses by their New Year offering of food that every house has in its dining room.
It is not long to Langtang and we stop at a hotel just outside the main part of the village called 'The Peace Full Guesthouse' it almost lives up to its name but the strong winds in the night make it far from peaceful. The rooms are nice and clean and after more bread and tea I have a quick wash and give my clothes a clean. I hope my trousers dry in the sun as I will freeze in the evening if I only wear shorts.
There is a Swiss guy doing more or less the same hike as me with his own Sherpa, as well as a couple who are either German or Austrian who are doing it all off their own backs and were on the same bus as me from Kathmandu. They all seem very nice and I have chatted with the Swiss guy a lot. He has a bad stomach probably food poisoning but is carrying on regardless, after Nepal he is off to Australia. We are also joined at the lodge by a friendly French family. I am really starting to enjoy this trekking lark. Like all the lodges the dining room has a table offering special bread and cakes as well as drinks to God in return for peace and prosperity for their families and village. I feel quite lucky to have been here during Losar seeing all the brand new prayer flags waving in the blue sky and getting to see some of the rituals.
At this moment the sun is out in force and I have spent the day surrounded by snowcapped mountains. It doesn't get much better.
Are you ready boots?
Day one of the trek proper see's us leave the hotel at 7:30, Geljin informs me that the bus was so full because people were traveling home to be with their families for Losar (The Buddhist new year). I feel bad for dragging him away from his family during such an event but he tells me not to worry.
We are not far from Tibet it is only a mere three day walk from Syabrubensi and the road we start on is the only one that leads from Nepal to Tibet. There are many suspension bridges on the walk today, they ae all made of metal and thankfully are not too far up, they do however wobble a lot but after yesterdays bus journey I have little fear left.
It is cold in the morning and we get a steady pace going, we are following the river to Langtang through the jungle that lies on the mountainsides. Some Himalayan monkeys are jumping through the tree's, they have long white tails and flat black faces, very different from the monkeys at Swayambunath and much shyer. Further along I could see where wild bee's are making honey, high up on a rock face. Large dollops of honeycomb are visible as the bee's swarm around them. It is illegal to take this honey from the park and it is supposed to be extremely good for ones health and fetches a high price on the black market.
We stop for lunch at Bamboo it is 11:30. I refill my water bottle and add the little iodine pill to kill off any germs. There are a lot of lodges along the way where families have been living for centuries. I am told that the path that we are on is at least two thousand years old and would have been used as a trade route between Tibet and Nepal.
There is a small family living at Bamboo with two children. A boy who is merely a toddler no older than three and a girl of around seven or eight. I had to rescue the boy from a livley black puppy that had him pinned to the ground and was playfully trying to bite him. The same puppy nipped at my hand as I was eating, my knee smashed the table and almost sent my dinner flying.
Lunch took about an hour and the walk afterwards was much harder. The sun had come out and it was nearly all uphill, although the path seems to go a hundred meters up and fifty down. It was hard and hot work but there were plenty of lodges to rest at along the way and I even bought pair of yak wool fingerless mittens.
We reach Lama Hotel where we will be spending the night. Lama Hotel is actually the name of the village and our lodgings is called 'Friendly Guest House'. It is still hot when we arrive at about 15:00 but as the sun goes down it starts to cool considerably. A lot of the lodges have solar power one going so far as to declare 'Solar Shower, Best In Langtang. There is also a sign for a 'Special Home-Made German Bakery Shop' but I am not sure of its authenticity..
There were a few people staying at the guest house. A girl called Tammie from Australia who's parents are both from Hong Kong, a Dutch guy called Mark and their Sherpas. I learnt a Nepalese card game from them. Everyone is delt five cards the aim of the game is to end up with cards totaling no more than five. Every turn you have to lay down at least one card and pick one up from either a card tyhe person before you layed down or the pack, you can place cards in either numbered pairs, triplets, fours or in runs of the same suit, just like poker. Aces are low. You can only declare your hand on your next go and if somebody has a lower value hand than you, you lose. It is a simple game and good fun, far more tactical than you might imagine.
We are not far from Tibet it is only a mere three day walk from Syabrubensi and the road we start on is the only one that leads from Nepal to Tibet. There are many suspension bridges on the walk today, they ae all made of metal and thankfully are not too far up, they do however wobble a lot but after yesterdays bus journey I have little fear left.
It is cold in the morning and we get a steady pace going, we are following the river to Langtang through the jungle that lies on the mountainsides. Some Himalayan monkeys are jumping through the tree's, they have long white tails and flat black faces, very different from the monkeys at Swayambunath and much shyer. Further along I could see where wild bee's are making honey, high up on a rock face. Large dollops of honeycomb are visible as the bee's swarm around them. It is illegal to take this honey from the park and it is supposed to be extremely good for ones health and fetches a high price on the black market.
Along our journey we keep seeing a man carrying two large panels of wood down his back via a strap around his forehead. His pace is slow but he keeps catching us up and overtaking us when we rest. From time to time all you can see is a panel of wood slowly making its way along the path.
We came closer to the river and there was a distinct smell of sulpher in the air that comes from a nearby hot spring. Geljin asked me if I wanted to take a look and we headed of to the other side of the river via a rather unstable looking wooden bridge with nothing stopping you from falling over the side. By the pool you could se the steam rising up and there were white prayer flags hanging up next to it. I put my finger in the water it smelt nasty but was pleasantly warm.
We stop for lunch at Bamboo it is 11:30. I refill my water bottle and add the little iodine pill to kill off any germs. There are a lot of lodges along the way where families have been living for centuries. I am told that the path that we are on is at least two thousand years old and would have been used as a trade route between Tibet and Nepal.
There is a small family living at Bamboo with two children. A boy who is merely a toddler no older than three and a girl of around seven or eight. I had to rescue the boy from a livley black puppy that had him pinned to the ground and was playfully trying to bite him. The same puppy nipped at my hand as I was eating, my knee smashed the table and almost sent my dinner flying.
Lunch took about an hour and the walk afterwards was much harder. The sun had come out and it was nearly all uphill, although the path seems to go a hundred meters up and fifty down. It was hard and hot work but there were plenty of lodges to rest at along the way and I even bought pair of yak wool fingerless mittens.
We reach Lama Hotel where we will be spending the night. Lama Hotel is actually the name of the village and our lodgings is called 'Friendly Guest House'. It is still hot when we arrive at about 15:00 but as the sun goes down it starts to cool considerably. A lot of the lodges have solar power one going so far as to declare 'Solar Shower, Best In Langtang. There is also a sign for a 'Special Home-Made German Bakery Shop' but I am not sure of its authenticity..
There were a few people staying at the guest house. A girl called Tammie from Australia who's parents are both from Hong Kong, a Dutch guy called Mark and their Sherpas. I learnt a Nepalese card game from them. Everyone is delt five cards the aim of the game is to end up with cards totaling no more than five. Every turn you have to lay down at least one card and pick one up from either a card tyhe person before you layed down or the pack, you can place cards in either numbered pairs, triplets, fours or in runs of the same suit, just like poker. Aces are low. You can only declare your hand on your next go and if somebody has a lower value hand than you, you lose. It is a simple game and good fun, far more tactical than you might imagine.
Festival
Something I forgot to mention previously. The day before I left for my trek there was a Hindu festival, I have no idea of its name. It seemed to involve children holding a silver tray on which was placed red rice and pictures of deities singing in shop doorways and demanding money, there were also children pulling ropes across roads and asking for a toll.
As I was leaving one shop a group of kids started singing at the door tray in hand. As I walked past a young girl of no more than ten turns to me and says in an abrubt voice "You! Give me money!" She did this with so much gusto I very nearly did.
There are not as many people directly begging on the streets as I thought there might be. I had only one previous encounter when a small boy with a bag of rubbish slung over his shoulder grabbed my elbow and kept asking for money for food. It is not good practice to give directly to beggars and I plan on donating some money to charities that help street kids before I leave. I ended loosing the boy in the crowd, I felt awful.
As I was leaving one shop a group of kids started singing at the door tray in hand. As I walked past a young girl of no more than ten turns to me and says in an abrubt voice "You! Give me money!" She did this with so much gusto I very nearly did.
There are not as many people directly begging on the streets as I thought there might be. I had only one previous encounter when a small boy with a bag of rubbish slung over his shoulder grabbed my elbow and kept asking for money for food. It is not good practice to give directly to beggars and I plan on donating some money to charities that help street kids before I leave. I ended loosing the boy in the crowd, I felt awful.
Up Up and Away!
After meeting with my guide Genjin outside my hotel we catch a taxi to the bus station. It turns out that this is merely a road where buses stop and tickets are brought. After a short wait and seeing the sun come up over the horizon our bus arrives. It is small rickety and has several people on the roof and even more jammed inside, I just about fit into my seat. Our route takes us through the mountains. Winding narrow roads, steep drops and a Nepelese driver who looks about 17 do not fill me with confidence. It is not long after I have been assured by Geljin that the driver knows these roads like the back of his hand that we smash head first into a minibus. We have no choice but to wait for the police to arrive, this takes about an hour and a half and the road is completely blocked the entire time and there are lots of people milling about inspecting the damage. The scenery is beautiful, there are worse places to get stuck.
Once the police arrive it is a matter of seconds for them to make a decision and everyone jumps back into there vehicles and continues on with their slow and bumpy journey. All along the mountain sides giant steps have been dug out, these platforms are used for building on, growing crops and building pools for fish farms. By the looks of the houses the fish farms seem to be the more lucrative than crops. Nearly every house along the way is the same, large stone walling and a corrugated iron roof weighed down with large rocks.
W stop for lunch at Dhunche and I have the first of many Dhal Bhats. This is a Nepelese dish of rice, black dhal and vegetable curry, it is very good indeed. The same cannot be said of the rest of the journey, it takes hours and the bus seems to somehow just get more and more full at every stop, at one point the person I am sitting next to has a baby thrust at her, a crazy way to travel. We finally reach our hotel in Syabrubensi just after 18:00. I order some momo's and curry for dinner, after eating I let it settle before heading to bed, I have an early start and a lot of walking ahead of me tomorrow.
Once the police arrive it is a matter of seconds for them to make a decision and everyone jumps back into there vehicles and continues on with their slow and bumpy journey. All along the mountain sides giant steps have been dug out, these platforms are used for building on, growing crops and building pools for fish farms. By the looks of the houses the fish farms seem to be the more lucrative than crops. Nearly every house along the way is the same, large stone walling and a corrugated iron roof weighed down with large rocks.
W stop for lunch at Dhunche and I have the first of many Dhal Bhats. This is a Nepelese dish of rice, black dhal and vegetable curry, it is very good indeed. The same cannot be said of the rest of the journey, it takes hours and the bus seems to somehow just get more and more full at every stop, at one point the person I am sitting next to has a baby thrust at her, a crazy way to travel. We finally reach our hotel in Syabrubensi just after 18:00. I order some momo's and curry for dinner, after eating I let it settle before heading to bed, I have an early start and a lot of walking ahead of me tomorrow.
Sunny, Honey, Money.
During my briefing I was given a small shopping list of items I would need for my trek to the Himalaya's. Walking shoes, a water bottle, iodine tablets and iodine neutralizing tablets, sun hat, sun block and some snacks. I hit the streets in search of bargains. I needed to take a chunk of money out as there are no ATM's in the mountains and besides I needed cash to the aforementioned items. The first hole in the wall (More accurately over here small cupboard) I went to gave me no money and a message popped up on the screen 'Please contact your branch'. #*!!!. I headed to the nearest internet cafe to obtain the the correct phone number for my bank. Once obtained I hunted down a shop were I could make cheap international calls. After going the necessary automated phone responses I c\got to speak to a human who told me that no block had been put on my card and I should try using a different ATM. I did this and everything was fine, what a faff!
Once I had haggled my way to some bargains (I think they were bargains, certainly cheaper than the original price, but I'm still not sure how much I should be paying and how much I am being told things cost.) I headed back to my room to pack, sort out storage and settle the bill for my first few days. It turns out my room is cheaper than expected which is nice.
I met Lee-Ann for dinner at a fancy Italian place called Dolce Vita. Fancy layout, great food and disinterested staff, it was almost like being back home. My bus leaves tomorrow at 6:30. An eight hour trip to Syabrubensi awaits.
Tuesday 1 March 2011
Motorcycle Madness
So this morning my guide met me at the hotel as we were going to get the permit I need to go trekking. It is a few km he says, so we go on bike. On I hop, mask on no helmet. At first it was quite surreal like a computer game almost but I settled into it and it was clear he knew what he was doing so I felt perfectly safe.
We drove past a massive military display and I am glad we did as it gave me less of a jolt when massive explosions started to echo around the streets. People were out in their thousands to watch; lining the pavements and fences to see their army at work. We stopped briefly and saw some choppers flying around and smoke grenades being chucked. The first port of call was closed so we had to go to another office more bike riding. I was enjoying it though.
I am off to my briefing now. I am not sure if I will post again before my trek so there wont be any new posts until March 10th. That said if I have time I will try to upload some photo's later today.
We drove past a massive military display and I am glad we did as it gave me less of a jolt when massive explosions started to echo around the streets. People were out in their thousands to watch; lining the pavements and fences to see their army at work. We stopped briefly and saw some choppers flying around and smoke grenades being chucked. The first port of call was closed so we had to go to another office more bike riding. I was enjoying it though.
I am off to my briefing now. I am not sure if I will post again before my trek so there wont be any new posts until March 10th. That said if I have time I will try to upload some photo's later today.
Things I Am Trying To Get Used To
1. Spitting - Everyone does it. Men, women, children even monkeys. It is not so much the act of gobbing more the noises people make beforehand. It's gross!
2. The Roads - There are no rules here and the traffic very rarely stops. This would be less of a problem if there were pavements but there are very few. I am getting fairly used to this now though and I am finding the Aikido principles of 'performing with confidence' and 'knowing your partners mind' are extremely handy when out and about on the roads.
3. Pollution - It is pretty bad also there is dust everywhere and I am developing a cough. Because of this I have started wearing a mask if I am going to be out for a whole day. I look pretty bad ass in it. A lot of folk wear them so I don't feel very self conscious when I have it on.
4. Dogs - Strays are everywhere. They all look fairly well fed and none of them have bothered me. You mostly see them lying on the street during the day and hear them barking in the evening. The first time I saw one I thought it was dead until its foot twitched and its eyes blinked. Everyone in Kathmandu lets sleeping dogs lie.
5. Meat - Raw on a table out on a hot and dusty street. It absolutely reeks and its organs as well as joints. I think I may well go veg for this trip.
2. The Roads - There are no rules here and the traffic very rarely stops. This would be less of a problem if there were pavements but there are very few. I am getting fairly used to this now though and I am finding the Aikido principles of 'performing with confidence' and 'knowing your partners mind' are extremely handy when out and about on the roads.
3. Pollution - It is pretty bad also there is dust everywhere and I am developing a cough. Because of this I have started wearing a mask if I am going to be out for a whole day. I look pretty bad ass in it. A lot of folk wear them so I don't feel very self conscious when I have it on.
4. Dogs - Strays are everywhere. They all look fairly well fed and none of them have bothered me. You mostly see them lying on the street during the day and hear them barking in the evening. The first time I saw one I thought it was dead until its foot twitched and its eyes blinked. Everyone in Kathmandu lets sleeping dogs lie.
5. Meat - Raw on a table out on a hot and dusty street. It absolutely reeks and its organs as well as joints. I think I may well go veg for this trip.
Some Proper Sight Seeing
01/03
This morning I had a meeting and it looks like I wont be able to start volunteering as soon as I expected due to the main member of teaching staff going on holiday. This means I have several days to kill in Nepal. Not too hard a decision, trekking it is!
Before I went to B to get this all booked I decided I would go and check out Swayambhu Nath Stupa. Otherwise known as 'The Monkey Temple'. On the way there I saw a boy passed out on the street covered in dust, these are the sort of sights you will see in this city even if you don't want to.
The temple is up a lot of steps, seriously A LOT OF STEPS. Rocky Balboa would have got about halfway before stopping for a breather and having a man coming up to him asking where he is from and giving him a brief history lesson before trying to sell him a singing bowl or intricately carved Mandala.
There are monkeys everywhere! This is of course brilliant. There are also lots and lots of prayer flags hanging from tree's and rooftops flapping in the breeze. The main reason for climbing all this way however is the panoramic views. They are amazing, the whole of Kathmandu sprawling across the valley all the way up to the mountains.
I was also very fortunate in that I got to see some Buddhist Monks chanting in a prayer room. To enter you had to take your shoes off. This room is covered top to bottom in colourfully decorated cloths and paintings with hangings from the ceiling as well as on the walls. Down the middle of the room a row of monks chant mantra's whilst banging drums above their heads on sticks with long curved drum sticks. Visitors sit or stand to the left being careful not to block the windows. To the right of the entrance two monks were sat with long horns and down the right hand side of the room there was another row of monks chanting. I stayed there quietly watching and listening to these monks pray for a good ten minutes at which point the chanting ended. It was quite the experience.
That all happened at the front of the temple but this place is huge and stretches a long way back. There are many small shrines, temples and stupas along the way as well as stalls selling everything from water to prayer flags. I spent a good few hours taking a look around before making my descent.
I have sorted out my trekking I will be spending 7 days trekking in Lang tang. An eight hour drive awaits me the day after tomorrow and I will be going with the same Sherpa who picked me up from the airport. Due to not thinking I would have time to trek I didn't pack any decent footwear so I had to go and buy some new shoes. After traipsing around the bazaars I realised that the chances of finding any shoes big enough was slim and decided to head to The North Face shop. I was worried that this was a very costly option but I managed to get a pair half price, and cheaper than the poorer quality shoes I saw in the bazaar. Tomorrow I will sort out all the paper work for the trip and get briefed. I'm pretty excited about seeing some of Nepal's beautiful countryside.
This morning I had a meeting and it looks like I wont be able to start volunteering as soon as I expected due to the main member of teaching staff going on holiday. This means I have several days to kill in Nepal. Not too hard a decision, trekking it is!
Before I went to B to get this all booked I decided I would go and check out Swayambhu Nath Stupa. Otherwise known as 'The Monkey Temple'. On the way there I saw a boy passed out on the street covered in dust, these are the sort of sights you will see in this city even if you don't want to.
The temple is up a lot of steps, seriously A LOT OF STEPS. Rocky Balboa would have got about halfway before stopping for a breather and having a man coming up to him asking where he is from and giving him a brief history lesson before trying to sell him a singing bowl or intricately carved Mandala.
There are monkeys everywhere! This is of course brilliant. There are also lots and lots of prayer flags hanging from tree's and rooftops flapping in the breeze. The main reason for climbing all this way however is the panoramic views. They are amazing, the whole of Kathmandu sprawling across the valley all the way up to the mountains.
I was also very fortunate in that I got to see some Buddhist Monks chanting in a prayer room. To enter you had to take your shoes off. This room is covered top to bottom in colourfully decorated cloths and paintings with hangings from the ceiling as well as on the walls. Down the middle of the room a row of monks chant mantra's whilst banging drums above their heads on sticks with long curved drum sticks. Visitors sit or stand to the left being careful not to block the windows. To the right of the entrance two monks were sat with long horns and down the right hand side of the room there was another row of monks chanting. I stayed there quietly watching and listening to these monks pray for a good ten minutes at which point the chanting ended. It was quite the experience.
That all happened at the front of the temple but this place is huge and stretches a long way back. There are many small shrines, temples and stupas along the way as well as stalls selling everything from water to prayer flags. I spent a good few hours taking a look around before making my descent.
I have sorted out my trekking I will be spending 7 days trekking in Lang tang. An eight hour drive awaits me the day after tomorrow and I will be going with the same Sherpa who picked me up from the airport. Due to not thinking I would have time to trek I didn't pack any decent footwear so I had to go and buy some new shoes. After traipsing around the bazaars I realised that the chances of finding any shoes big enough was slim and decided to head to The North Face shop. I was worried that this was a very costly option but I managed to get a pair half price, and cheaper than the poorer quality shoes I saw in the bazaar. Tomorrow I will sort out all the paper work for the trip and get briefed. I'm pretty excited about seeing some of Nepal's beautiful countryside.
Settling in with the madness
27/02
Had a nap this afternoon as I was far too tired to deal with all the street hawkers despite there politness. Today was total sensory overload and a good forty winks was the best way to deal with it.
I met up with my fellow volunteer for something to eat at Hotel Uts which does some lovely momo's. She is from South Africa and has been travelling around India for the past month or so. She showed me around Thamel after dinner and told me where I could get a sim card for a mobile. I will probably pick one up tomorrow. I am a little bit outside of Thamel the main tourist area and it was good to see where everything is. It made me feel a little more at home, that said this town will take some getting used to.
Earlier I had met with B who is looking after me while I am over here. He was very helpful and was extremely pleased to get a hello from Frances, Tom and Tim. I'm glad he is here to help me out.
28/02
I had breakfast in the cafe next to my hotel. I had balck tea and honey on toast. The toast was really thick, at first I thought they had given me four slices rather than just the two.
Today I went to get my mobile. B had given me a hand drawn mapo for directions which was good as I found my way to New Road with out too much difficulty. I managed to get a decent cheap phone and decided to head back towards my hotel so I could find my way to the place where I needed to get my sim. This is when I got horribly lost for most of the day. I say horribly but it was good to walk around the streets and get used to the bustle. I ended up in Durbar Square for a couple of hours. Thios is where all of Kathmandu's biggest temples can be found. A man called Rajan ushered me into one of the temples as shortly Kumari would be appearing at the temple window. Kumari is believed to be the incarnation of the Godess Taleju, she is six years old and it looked like she had just woken up.
Rajan is an independent guide and he showed me around the square for (after a bit of haggling) a small fee. Once the tour was done I climbed the steep steps of Maju Dega and had a rest whilst taking in the view, I then decided to try and get back to Thamel and grab something to eat. This time I really did get completely lost.
Whilst demonstrating my complete lack for any kind of sense of direction I found myself in a quiet square with a Stupa in the middle, whilst looking at some Buddhist art work known as Thangka one of the artist called Ajay came and talked to me about the work and bought me a cup of tea. He was very informative and the paintings were beautiful, he was very keen for me to buy or at least reserve one. I told him it was too early on in my trip to start buying such things and that I may well be back. That is if I can work out where it is again, it was so quiet and a good place to get away from it all.
The main problem with navigating ones way around Kathmandu is that the streets are very crowded, they are narrow with no pavements and they have bikes and cars weaving in and out of them. Most streets look very similar and the stores are all selling either groceries, hiking gear, clothes or general tourist souvenir's. You also get roads that fork off in similar directions so it is easy to make a wrong turn. If you stop for more than a second to get your bearings you will get hassled by rickshaw drivers or other locals trying to trade a little information in exchange for money or food. It is all done very politely but can become exhausting especially if you have been lost for a few hours. I finally made it back despite darkness falling (there is no street lighting in Kathmandu) I dropped off my bag at the hotel and got a little money for dinner. I ended up in a pizza place called Fire & Ice. It was very tasty but a bit pricey for Nepal. I will have to find somewhere more reasonable to eat regularly if I am going to make my money last.
Had a nap this afternoon as I was far too tired to deal with all the street hawkers despite there politness. Today was total sensory overload and a good forty winks was the best way to deal with it.
I met up with my fellow volunteer for something to eat at Hotel Uts which does some lovely momo's. She is from South Africa and has been travelling around India for the past month or so. She showed me around Thamel after dinner and told me where I could get a sim card for a mobile. I will probably pick one up tomorrow. I am a little bit outside of Thamel the main tourist area and it was good to see where everything is. It made me feel a little more at home, that said this town will take some getting used to.
Earlier I had met with B who is looking after me while I am over here. He was very helpful and was extremely pleased to get a hello from Frances, Tom and Tim. I'm glad he is here to help me out.
28/02
I had breakfast in the cafe next to my hotel. I had balck tea and honey on toast. The toast was really thick, at first I thought they had given me four slices rather than just the two.
Today I went to get my mobile. B had given me a hand drawn mapo for directions which was good as I found my way to New Road with out too much difficulty. I managed to get a decent cheap phone and decided to head back towards my hotel so I could find my way to the place where I needed to get my sim. This is when I got horribly lost for most of the day. I say horribly but it was good to walk around the streets and get used to the bustle. I ended up in Durbar Square for a couple of hours. Thios is where all of Kathmandu's biggest temples can be found. A man called Rajan ushered me into one of the temples as shortly Kumari would be appearing at the temple window. Kumari is believed to be the incarnation of the Godess Taleju, she is six years old and it looked like she had just woken up.
Rajan is an independent guide and he showed me around the square for (after a bit of haggling) a small fee. Once the tour was done I climbed the steep steps of Maju Dega and had a rest whilst taking in the view, I then decided to try and get back to Thamel and grab something to eat. This time I really did get completely lost.
Whilst demonstrating my complete lack for any kind of sense of direction I found myself in a quiet square with a Stupa in the middle, whilst looking at some Buddhist art work known as Thangka one of the artist called Ajay came and talked to me about the work and bought me a cup of tea. He was very informative and the paintings were beautiful, he was very keen for me to buy or at least reserve one. I told him it was too early on in my trip to start buying such things and that I may well be back. That is if I can work out where it is again, it was so quiet and a good place to get away from it all.
The main problem with navigating ones way around Kathmandu is that the streets are very crowded, they are narrow with no pavements and they have bikes and cars weaving in and out of them. Most streets look very similar and the stores are all selling either groceries, hiking gear, clothes or general tourist souvenir's. You also get roads that fork off in similar directions so it is easy to make a wrong turn. If you stop for more than a second to get your bearings you will get hassled by rickshaw drivers or other locals trying to trade a little information in exchange for money or food. It is all done very politely but can become exhausting especially if you have been lost for a few hours. I finally made it back despite darkness falling (there is no street lighting in Kathmandu) I dropped off my bag at the hotel and got a little money for dinner. I ended up in a pizza place called Fire & Ice. It was very tasty but a bit pricey for Nepal. I will have to find somewhere more reasonable to eat regularly if I am going to make my money last.
Sunday 27 February 2011
Planes, Trains & Automobiles
26/02/2011
Heathrow.
10:20
It feels like its my first day at school. Kind of glad that nobody was here to see me off I'm no good at goodbye's, I never knew you could get a fry at Wagamama's, probably th last egss on toast I have for a while.
10:50
In the departure lounge, it is raining. I'm trading these grewy skies for blue at least for a few weeks. I am feeling a lot calmer now that I am here, watching the slow back an dforth of luggage and yellow jackets. Only the passengers seem to be in a rush. If I was th size of the man who ran for the lift and then the train to his gate I would leave the house a little earlier or eat a smaller breakfast. Probably both.
27/02/2011.
New Delhi
2:55
The flight to Delhi went fairly smoothly. I had a seat imbertween two Brazilian ladies who were part of a much larger group. They wasted no time in telling me how cold Britain is and how they are looking forward to the warmer climbes of India. It seems I dislike small talk more than I like talking to Brazilian ladies and I spent most of the flight reading my book and watching movies (due date, pretty funny & social network, better than expected) whilst stretching my legs out in front of the emergency exit.
At Delhi airport there are two statues of elephants, parent and child. It appears they are there for hippies to coo over and tenderly touch (mostly trunk and tusks). I worry that if they ever met a real elephant it would all proove too much for the poor souls. Staff at the airport where a little short which meant that I wondered around somewat aimlessly trying to work out where to get my bags and make it back to the departure lounge which is where I am writing this from. Four hours and thirty minutes untill I fly to Nepal. I must try to get a seat with a view.
Kathmandu
12:31
Having a seat with a view made no difference as I slept for the whole flight. It was odd leaving a cloudy Delhi behind and only an hour later being greeted by the blue skies and sunshine of Nepal. At the airport I found the man holding my name (I have forgotten his, very bad) and he took me to my hotel.
Kathmandu is nuts! I have never experienced so much going on in one place and gives the place an energy I have never experienced before. I certainly feel a long way from home. My room is basic but nice and overlooks a busy road, the family that own the hotel seem very nice in fact so far everyone has been very nice. I'm glad that I am finally here and that I don't need to see an airport again for a good while yet.
Heathrow.
10:20
It feels like its my first day at school. Kind of glad that nobody was here to see me off I'm no good at goodbye's, I never knew you could get a fry at Wagamama's, probably th last egss on toast I have for a while.
10:50
In the departure lounge, it is raining. I'm trading these grewy skies for blue at least for a few weeks. I am feeling a lot calmer now that I am here, watching the slow back an dforth of luggage and yellow jackets. Only the passengers seem to be in a rush. If I was th size of the man who ran for the lift and then the train to his gate I would leave the house a little earlier or eat a smaller breakfast. Probably both.
27/02/2011.
New Delhi
2:55
The flight to Delhi went fairly smoothly. I had a seat imbertween two Brazilian ladies who were part of a much larger group. They wasted no time in telling me how cold Britain is and how they are looking forward to the warmer climbes of India. It seems I dislike small talk more than I like talking to Brazilian ladies and I spent most of the flight reading my book and watching movies (due date, pretty funny & social network, better than expected) whilst stretching my legs out in front of the emergency exit.
At Delhi airport there are two statues of elephants, parent and child. It appears they are there for hippies to coo over and tenderly touch (mostly trunk and tusks). I worry that if they ever met a real elephant it would all proove too much for the poor souls. Staff at the airport where a little short which meant that I wondered around somewat aimlessly trying to work out where to get my bags and make it back to the departure lounge which is where I am writing this from. Four hours and thirty minutes untill I fly to Nepal. I must try to get a seat with a view.
Kathmandu
12:31
Having a seat with a view made no difference as I slept for the whole flight. It was odd leaving a cloudy Delhi behind and only an hour later being greeted by the blue skies and sunshine of Nepal. At the airport I found the man holding my name (I have forgotten his, very bad) and he took me to my hotel.
Kathmandu is nuts! I have never experienced so much going on in one place and gives the place an energy I have never experienced before. I certainly feel a long way from home. My room is basic but nice and overlooks a busy road, the family that own the hotel seem very nice in fact so far everyone has been very nice. I'm glad that I am finally here and that I don't need to see an airport again for a good while yet.
Tuesday 15 February 2011
A Brief Introduction
Soon enough I will be traveling to Nepal for a month to do some voluntary work.
I will do my best to have daily updates and keep you all informed. This will be the furthest I have ever traveled on my own, my first time in Asia and it will also be the longest period of time I have ever spent outside of the UK.
My journey starts on February 27th 2011.
I will do my best to have daily updates and keep you all informed. This will be the furthest I have ever traveled on my own, my first time in Asia and it will also be the longest period of time I have ever spent outside of the UK.
My journey starts on February 27th 2011.
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