Blogs from Kathmandu, Nepal, Asia - page 4

Our beloved leader thinks that the sun shines out the Royal Enfield's exhaust pipe, well we don't and are thus negative and basically unworthy of travelling on the noble metal steed. Of course I knew that we'd be on this kind of bikes but that they were that underpowered and under braked, I did not know, well I should have guessed, old, or rather obsolete, British motorcycle technology made in India if you get the idea. We've been having some little talks on our different views on travelling and riding on bikes, we're not happy about him moaning and he's not happy, especially with me. Breakfast the next morning and back to the flea bag to suit up and yet again we battle the mud and the water crossings and the ever present rocks that want ... read more

Today we started out easy with a good breakfast (included in the price). We had fruits, eggs, coffee, potato and something else I can't remember and headed out around 11, with the guide from the previous day, Jay. Also present were Jarod (USA), who travels the world and teaches (mostly) English in S/SE Asia and Maynard from Minnesota, who chose to see the world after retiring, also hoping to escape the American bubble. So on we went to Bakhtapur, Durbar square, and the temples. In continuation of yesterdays education, I learned about some hindu gods and their transports. Each of the 33 million gods has their own unique transportation, which can be anything. I have some trouble reconciling the fact that there's only a couple of thousand words that can be used for that. I guess ... read more

Arrived safe and sound. After some initial trouble passing customs, finding the right truck and getting trough the busy Kathmandu traffic, we arrived at our destination: shangri-la boutique hotel and had a hearthy welcome from the manager, Bino. Had food (an Indian curry for me) at a place I think was called 'French kitchen', with Holly from England, who we met in the bus. The next day we arranged a driver and guide and went to see Patan and the royal palace. We would never have found all the small places that were interesting. Nothing is marked. No street names entryways, signs, etc. So on the way there, we dove into a small alley / square, took off our shoes and went up the stairs into a house. At the top, there was a small 2 ... read more

We got a hot and sticky bus back from the mountains back into civilisation which took almost the entire day. First problem was a huge section of the road had disappeared into the valley so there were 3 diggers creating a new route to drive along. That took about 2.5 hours, then we had to stop at garage for some reason or another and then we had a tyre blow out as we were snaking a hill. By late afternoon we were back in the hustle and bustle of Kathmandu. We showed Jaap Shantipur Hostel and he decided to check in too. We all headed up to the roof terrace and sipped Masala Teas watching the sunset over the bustling city. After a long day cooped up on the bus we wanted to stretch our legs ... read more

This morning we set off at 9am to Changu Narayan, we’d been advised the previous evening it would take a while to get there due to the traffic at the time we were leaving. As I imagined, it was absolute bedlam on the roads, I really don’t have a clue how people continue to live! I also learnt today that the law here states the driver of a motorbike/ moped (of which there are thousands) has to wear a helmet, whereas a pillion doesn’t - absolutely mental and it’s not unusual to see whole families on a moped. I was feeling a bit rough this morning as I started taking altitude sickness medication in readiness for arriving in Tibet on Wednesday, so I took a little nap on the way :-) We followed the main road ... read more