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The Maoists called off their blockade of Kathmandu one day prior to our arrival which we were both jolly pleased about. I flew direct with Thai but poor Darren had to endure a connection in Hong Kong plus a touchdown in Dhaka, Bangladesh meaning a late arrival into Kathmandu on Sunday night. I arrived at lunchtime and as I was pretty much expecting it was sensory overload as soon as I left the airport. I was met by the Kathmandu Peace Guest House 'rep' and transfered to our luxury $18 a night accomodation in a rusty old minibus which took 4 attempts to start and stalled 3 times enroute. It was a long transfer as traffic was hideous plus of course napping cows in the middle of the road always delay things a tad. The guest house is pretty basic but relatively clean and is located a 5 minute motorbike/rickshaw dodging stroll from Thamelwhich is the main tourist district in Kathmandu. Thamel by daytime is a very busy, noisy and at times claustrophobic area. It is packed with trekking shops. travel agents, internet shops and bakeries plus a wide array of restaurants. You cannot walk for more than 15-20 seconds without
Nepali Cuisine
Very nice Nepali meal on a Kathmandu rooftopbeing offered chess sets. tiger balm or trekking guides but usually its a whisper in the ear from a suspicious looking character 'maruijana? grass?'. If you manage to avoid that lot it's the glue sniffing 8 year olds that leave you somewhat disturbed as they tug on your arm asking for cash.
Having met Darren from his flight late on Sunday night we spent the day on Monday and this morning making preparations for our trekking departure on Wednesday morning. We had one small logistical challenge to overcome in that the trek starts in a place called Besisihar and finishes in Pokhara and Darren intended on leaving the majority of his gear either here in Kathmandu or in Besisihar meaning he would need to return after the trek to collect his gear. This was not an issue for me as I always intended on hiring a porter/guide to carry my pack and I didn't fancy the idea of backtracking to Kathmandu which is a good 6 hour bus journey from Pokhara. We have solved the problem anyway as the agency I hired the porter/guide from will arrange for Darrens pack to be bused to Pokhara and kept at a
Thamel
Hectic Thamel hotel ready for our arrival. That's the concept anyway, I guess we'll see if it turns out that way!
So it seems we are all set. 'Hari' is a veteran guide on the Annapurna circuit having completed it 29 times, his English seems fairly reasonable so I'm hoping his presence will enhance the experience for us and of course take a weight off my back! I think we have everything we need including Diamox tablets for altitude sickness and Iodine tablets for water purification. The bus leaves at 7am tommorow morning from Kathmandu Kantipath, it is the tourist bus to Pokhara but we will get off at Dumre and get a local bus onto Besisihar. The total journey time is likely to be 6-7 hours.
We checked out Dunbar Square in the old town of Kathmandu this afternoon. The old town is scattered with ancient buildings and temples which are not protected in any way, it is a little strange seeing washing hanging from a 1000 year old monument which is also sadly littered with grafitti. The rickshaw journey to and from the old town was quite good fun albeit a bumpy ride, the sight of large appliances
Kathmandu shave
Very tidy bit of workmanship being carried on the backs of the locals continues to amaze us both.
I've had a haircut and a shave tonight at the staggeringly high price of 250 rupees (about $2.50) so I'm in good shape to start the trek. We've just collected our trekking permits from the agency so all that remains is another great value dinner and then an early night and we'll be on the road in the morning. We'll have stayed in Kathmandu for 3 nights and I think we're both ready to leave hectic Thamel behind and head for the peace of the mountains. We're not quite sure how long we'll be trekking but as well as the full Annapurna Circuit we'll be fitting in Annapurna Base Camp so it's likely to be 21-25 days, we won't be rushing around! Thanks for all your messages, not sure when the next update will be it all depends on the internet capabilities of the teahouses in the mountains so don't hold your breaths! x
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Jo
non-member comment
Amazing Journey
Hi Rich, OMG what an amazing trip, really enjoyed the thai updates but Nepal looks far more interesting. Good Luck on the trek, can't wait to see all the photos in more detail.