Tag Archives: kathmandu

Kathmandu Part Deux

We’re back in Kathmandu, and though it was difficult to leave the countryside, it’s nice to have the comforts of home and to be in one place for an extended amount of time.  Once again, we are staying at the Hotel Courtyard and it’s just so comfortable here.  We’ve been borrowing DVDs and spending long lazy days recuperating.  Seth’s knee is hurting a bunch so we’re trying not to walk too much.  Luckily we don’t have to do too much walking because Thamel is so convenient.  We’ve been buying souvenirs and frequenting our favorite restaurants, like New Orleans, Fire and Ice, and Green Organic Cafe.  Like I said, we’ve been enjoying having a ‘home’ for the past week.

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McDonalds

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One evening we had dinner at the hotel.  We noticed that the group of people we were hanging out with seemed to be pretty close.  Eventually it came out that these people were expedition groups that had just gotten back from Manaslu (the mountain that seems to be the precursor to climbing Everest).  But, they happened to be on the mountain at the base came when the recent avalanche hit at 4am one morning.  That happened just before we left on our trek.  Some of them had continued on, but for some the tragedy had been too much and they decided to come back to Kathmandu.  Either way they all had some pretty intensely horrifying stories.  Two guys told of how they were catapulted 30 feet and when the movement stopped the top of their tent had been ripped off and all they could see were the stars.  When they got up they found that they were mere feet from a huge crevasse.  Though these expeditioners made it out with scary stories to tell, many died and some are still missing.  What a difficult decision to make, to continue on or to head back.  So many factors at play.

One day we revisited Pema’s clinic where I got a massage while Seth received acupuncture on his knee.  I thoroughly enjoyed my massage and wondered how Seth was enjoying his acupuncture.  I imagine that acupuncture, though being stuck with needles, is quite relaxing as well.  Otherwise, why would people do it? It’s supposed to make you feel good.  So I got the run down from Seth afterwards.  Apparently it is not relaxing and doesn’t feel good.  He says it feels just like sticking needles into you.  He said they stuck a bunch of needles into his knee, and every once in a while they would twist them and push them in a little farther.  Then they hooked electrodes to a few of the needles and zapped him.  He said that his knee felt better for about a half an hour after that, but then it was back to hurting like normal.  But staying off of it has helped it a bit this past week.  That and Tiger Balm and some pain relieving ayurvedic oil being massaged into his knee at least two times a day.

berkleyMassage

We’re getting ready to fly to Japan tomorrow.  I’m going to be sad to leave Nepal.  It’s a beautiful country with nice people.  And, because we’ve gotten to stay in one place it’s turned into a home away from home.  This said, we are SO excited for Japan. And we are really happy that Joan and Steve are joining us.  That’s going to be so much fun.  We’re looking forward to bring in a very clean, polite, safe country.  This isn’t to say that Nepal isn’t polite or safe, or even clean.  But we’re expecting a lot from Japan.  Anyhow, we’re moving right along!

Solu Khombu Trek – Day 8 (Berkley)

I woke up feeling much better, but still quite weak.  I was really excited because, if all went according to plan, I would see seth in the late afternoon!  So, I head downstairs with my Kindle to have some breakfast.  I was absentminded and made a breakfast mistake.  Nepal doesn’t really do dairy products.  And, I”m going to go out there on a limb and say that they don’t eat yogurt.  So, when they try to serve it, it’s just not right.  Their yogurt may even be dry from a packet.  It kinda fizzes like soda and almost melts any other food item it touches.  Anyhow, I was debating between muesli and yogurt  and porridge.  I figured that the muesli and yogurt would be lighter than the porridge, and my stomach still wasn’t all the way better, so I went with that.  I should have gone with the porridge.  

As I was sitting outside at my little picnic table reading, listening to donkeys with their bells tinkle past on the mountain side, when people started coming in from the front street. About twenty Australians ascended upon me in my quiet solitude.  A nice woman named Ana sat down with me and chatted me up for the next hour.  It was nice.  Eventually they left, but soon thereafter another plane landed and another large group of people ascended upon me again.

I decided that I should try to go on a walk and check out a bit more of Phalpu.  I was still so weak that all I could muster was between five and ten minutes and I was exhausted.  Still not 100%.  At about ten o’clock I decided to head up to my room to make myself presentable for Seth when he arrived.  Though he was supposed to show up between 12 and 1pm, I got a knock at my door from Cook at about 10:30am.  Apparently Seth must have been running to get to Phalpu.  I trotted down the stairs to meet him.  It was so nice to see my sweaty, dirty husband.  Though I was happy to see him early and in one piece, I was dismayed to find that he’d slipped in yak poo and scraped his arm really good, and he was walking with a bit of a limp.  No good.  We scarfed down some noodle soup and caught up a little bit.

Pretty soon Purba came to tell us that we could get on the flight at noon to Kathmandu.  We ended up running onto the plane and were two of four passengers.  It was a bit scary getting on the plane.  I think I failed to mention in an earlier post, but during our trek there was a plane crash of a plane that followed the same flight path as ours.  So, we were nervous to fly.  But, we ended up receiving an unexpected treat on the flight.  Other than the little coconut caramel candies, we were able to catch an above the clouds view of Everest and the surrounding major peaks.  Pretty astounding.  

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We picked up our extra bag from Hotel Manaslu and made our way to Hotel Courtyard, where we will be staying for the rest of our time in Kathmandu.  It’s a really comfy, reasonably priced hotel.  It’s clean, has great internet, comfortable rooms, decent breakfast, and each room has a DVD player for the giant DVD library downstairs.  We both took nice, long, hot showers that were much appreciated, before resting and eating. Aahhh, Kathmandu!

Yoo Hoo Kathmandu!

We’re still in Kathmandu, but we’re so close to heading out on our trek.  We met with our Nepal fixer Thomas Kelly, and mutual friend of August Thurmer.  He and his friend Lakpah met us at our hotel to give us the rundown on our trek.  We found out that we needed to gather up a few more things before we could consider ourselves trek ready.  So we headed back to Thamel, the tourist center,because that is where all of the outdoor equipment stores are concentrated.  These are places where you can find anything from a fluffy, down North Fake jacket, some Pseudogonia fleece long underwear, or some Nullgene water bottles.  But, all the stores are bargain-able.  And if you find the right shopkeeper, you can cut a good deal, especially if you level with them, reminding them that it’s not really the brand name gear.  But there are actual brand name stores as well.  I found my t-shirt at the Mountain Hartwear store.  It turned out that we needed a lot more gear than we had expected, but we wouldn’t have been able to carry all of it anyhow.  So, we went shopping.  

That day we, also, ate at two wonderful restaurants.  For lunch we went to Chez Caroline, which Thomas recommended.  We were in heaven.  Thomas told us that they were known for their salads and that we were safe eating there.  Seth and I split a BLT and we each ordered a Caroline Salad.  Man oh man.  It had been a while since we were able to eat a salad, and it happened to be a great one.  And the BLT was wonderful as well, with proper bacon.  The only thing missing was the Crystal hot sauce for the sandwich.  For dinner we went back to New Orleans, the restaurant from our first evening in Nepal.  It’s still beautiful, and the food is still delicious.  But, I don’t think they know what a smoothie is, or perhaps their blender broke.  The first time Seth ordered a milkshake, but ended up with chocolate milk, and this time he ordered a fruit smoothie, and ended up with fruit juice.  Both were nice options, but not what he had ordered.  Hmmm…

The next day our planned part of Nepal began.  We were picked up from our hotel by Lakpah and taken back to Budah Stupa (maybe called Budahnath in another post), that’s the place where the Buddhists circumambulate around the stupah in prayer.  It was a very different experience from our first visit.  The first time it was nice to just take in the scenery and make conjectures on what was going on.  This time, we were given a wealth of information from Thomas who explained everything we asked and more.  And he speaks Nepali, and loves to shoot the shit, so he has a lot of friends anywhere he goes.  It’s neat to watch him interact with the locals.

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Very close to the Budah Stupa lives Pema, Thomas’s foster daughter.  She runs a sort of clinic where they have herbal medicines, acupuncture, and massage therapy.  Thomas had set up a massage for Seth and I.  It was so wonderfully welcome.  And we both agreed that it was probably one of the best massages we’d ever had.  Following our massage, we found our way upstairs to the kitchen where we would help to make momos.  Momos are Nepali dumplings.  The are delicious.  We made chicken momos and potato momos.  They were served with a peanut and tomato sauce that was quite tasty.

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After that, we walked with Lakpah to Pashupatinath, which is a Shiva Temple complex.  So, we were switching from Buddhism to HIndu.  The feel of both places were quite different.  At the buddhist temple there was a warm happy feeling and an overall sense of love.  Though the Shiva temple complex was pretty, it was quite dirty, filled with monkeys, and absent of people.  There were people there, but way less than at Budah Stupa.  From the Shiva temple we made our way down to the Bagmati river where there are cremation ghats.  The hindu people have a tradition of cremation, but it involves the holy river as well.  First, they wrap the loved one in a cloth and bring them to the river.  They strategically place the body on a ramp that leads to the river so that the person’s feet are in the water.  They allow the river to wash the deceased’s feet for some time before lifting them from the water to rest them on a funeral pyre, where they set a butter lamp inside the mouth where the fire will start to burn.  Once the person is fully cremated their ashes are scattered in the river.  We were able to see different stages of this ritual during our visit.  I think it is a nice way to lend some closure. 

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BUT, there’s a reason why there is a problem with water contamination in India and Nepal.  HIndus use the rivers for way too much.  I’ve just mentioned what they do with their deceased, and on top of that they bathe, wash clothes, potentially go to the bathroom, and throw their trash in this holy river.  The water is horribly polluted.  That part is hard for me to digest, and that is why I will not touch a river near human habitation.

After the ghats we went over to a hospice center run by Mother Teresa’s nuns.  It was a really nice place for the elderly who were not able to grow old in the care of their families.  It was very nice to see, but you should not picture an old folks home like in the US.  It was quite different from that.  But the elderly here are quite different from in the States.  They are a functioning part of the community until they no longer can be.  These old ladies are tough.  The place had good vibes.

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Kathmandu Will Do!

We’re really enjoying Kathmandu. This is our third night in Kathmandu and it feels nice to stay put, to really get to know a place.

Our first night, I mentioned finding the magic.  What I neglected to mention was my glorious hotel find, ahem…  I no longer think I can trust the opinion of TripAdvisor.  I found Hotel Silver Home on TripAdvisor and it was rated at 4.5 out of 5 stars, and the reviews mentioned large rooms, comfort, and cleanliness.  Well, the room was a nice size.  It was large enough for a twin and a double bed, a table, and a couch.  But that’s where the review’s reliability ends.  I couldn’t get comfortable in the room due to the uncleanliness.  The carpet was gross, the bathroom was even grosser, and the sheets were definitely not clean.  The toilet seat was an abomination, and there was a hole in the wall of the bathroom that lead to nastiness.  And if that wasn’t bad enough, as we were getting comfy in our travel sheets (a must while traveling) Seth found a roach trying to snuggle with him.  Yuck! So we shook out our sheets and tied the top opening in a knot.  Fire hazard, maybe, but at least it was effective in keeping out the bugs.  At the end of the day, it was really my fault.  No matter where you go, a ten dollar hotel is still a ten dollar hotel.  I had set my hopes too high on the exchange rate and put too much trust in TripAdvisor.  Never again!

The next morning we made our way to Hotel Courtyard, which is much better.  Clean and comfortable, it has it’s own quiet courtyard and it’s far enough away from the busy section to have a quiet night’s rest.  Ahhh…

In Old Kathmandu is Durbar Square.  After walking through twisting narrow streets, lined with shops, we made our way to the sectioned off part of the town.  The asian influence in this area is quite strong.  The architecture shows it.  We meandered through countless temples, pausing to take in the sights of various depictions of gods in the various forms.  The highlight for me was seeing the living goddess of Kumari Chowk.  Yes, you heard me.  The cult of Kumari worships a living prepubescent girl who is said to be the incarnation of Taleju.  There is a selection process in which girls aged around three to five from the buddhist Shakya clan of goldsmiths are interviewed a lot like how the Tibetans choose their incarnation of the Lamas.  Apparently there are 32 auspicious signs of the Kumari which include odd things like a neck like a conch shell, and eyelashes like a cow.  Horoscope is, also, rigorously checked to see that it is not in direct conflict with that of the king (though at this point in time there is no king in Nepal anymore).  The Kumari’s feet never touch the ground, and she is not allowed out except on special occasions, like festivals, where she is carried upon her throne.  Though photos are strictly forbidden, we were lucky enough to show up right as the Kumari decided to make a short appearance at one of the courtyard windows, where she looked around for about half a minute before returning inside.  This Kumari was chosen in October of 2008 at the age of three, making her about 7 years old.  It is said that when the Kumari bleeds, whether from menstruation or otherwise, the goddess’s spirit leaves the body, and therefore she retires and a new Kumari is chosen.  Becoming a mere mortal can be difficult, even to find a husband, because it is said that whoever marries a Kumari will die young.  So, Seth and I saw the incarnation of a goddess.  I thought the whole situation was weird and really interesting.

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On a side not, this has to be the most awesome cutout we’ve ever seen.

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In the evening we went to a fancy shmancy restaurant in a super fancy hotel.  In this restaurant you get to choose anywhere from a six to twenty two course meal.  We opted for twelve and it was definitely too much food, but you better believe that I finished most of it.  I think the experience was way more exciting than the actual food.  Though I did like the momos, little dumplings, and the pureed fruit and yogurt dessert was good.  It was nice to be dressed up, in a country that we, so far, like, and drink wine with my husband.  

dressed up

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Today we did a bit of shopping, or at least browsing.  Then we went somewhere really cool.  We went to the Buddhist temple.  It is like walking into it’s own little world.  There is a large domed temple in the center and people walk clockwise around the temple on the path.  There are tons of restaurants and shops selling prayer beads and other handicrafts.  The temple area and the maze of streets that spiral outwards consist of a little Tibetan community.  The architecture and everything else inside reflected that.  

We ended up finding a basement restaurant called 3D.  We had delicious Tibetan food.  Buff momos (buff = buffalo), and Seth ordered hot and sour soup, and I ordered egg thukpa (a noodle soup).  The food was really delicious.  We also ordered honey, lemon, and ginger tea, which was perfect.  We were really jonesin for some warm liquids to soothe our throats.  Kathmandu has a lot of road construction taking place right now, which causes a lot of dust to be in the air.  Today we bought face masks, but the soup and tea were needed and enjoyed.

I’ve Found the Magic

Like Seth mentioned, India was easier for me to handle than for him.  But, that doesn’t mean that I wasn’t confounded or appalled at times.  As a matter of fact, upon leaving India I ended up becoming so infuriated that I was barely holding myself together.  If I were a different person I would have started punching people, but luckily I have a thread more of patience, but really it was only a thread.

We began to see enormous mountains peeking through the clouds from the airplane.  It was really exciting.  But the real excitement came when we began to walk around the area surrounding our hotel.  We, luckily, booked a crap hotel in a good area.  Thamel is the super touristy area, but that means that food is basically safe wherever you go.  There are tons of shops, overpriced of course, but many things to look at.  Bustling streets, live music, and the best part… no cows!  And when there are no cows, there are no cow patties.  And, on top of that, the streets are clean!  I can walk without looking down.  I can look at shops as I walk past.  It’s amazing.  But, what I really found here in Kathmandu on our first night, was the magic that was missing in India.  It was clean, safe, and smiling.  I felt as if a huge weight, that I didn’t even realize was there, was lifted from my shoulders.  I’m not going to say that I completely disliked India, because there were parts that I enjoyed.  But, I don’t think I felt as relaxed, comfortable, or happy one single day while in India, as I felt this first night in Nepal.  

See ya later stink town!

So, Berkley has been a bit more kind about her description of India than I would have. The last month in India has been above and beyond the most frustrating, and at times perplexing, portion of our trip so far. I don’t even have the energy to write about India. Lets say it took quite a few of these to make me someone Berkley wanted to travel with.

Kingfisher Strong

We left Delhi (after an infuriating situation at the airport) and took a short 1:45 minuet flight to Kathmandu, as soon as the plane touched down it was like the monkey on my back had jumped off. (pun intended)

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It feels great to be out of India, Kathmandu has been a wonderful change.

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