First Report

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Arrived Kathmandu yesterday.

We arrived yesterday which was one of the biggest Hindu festivals of the year - there gridlock throughout the city which was lucky since our taxi driver was drunk and the taxi had a faulty break cable! Armed soldiers were staioned on every street corner with macine guns and AK47s. After our taxi hit a van we got out and had to walk to the place we are staying at - along the way we had to get off the footpath as 20 soldiers with riot shields and helmets ran past us - the King's motorcade had just passed after he visited the temple and was stoned as angry worshippers were barred from entering while he was there. The day before had seen a demonstration of 80,000 Maoists commemorating the 11th anniversary of the uprising which left 12,000 dead and resulted in massive political change.

We are staying with the Treasurer of Youth Action Nepal - who also happens to a Commander for the Maoists. We have discussed much already about the current political situation, economics and development in Nepal. The population seems optimistic about the future and new opportunities afforded by transferring the parliament to a constituent assembly and a proportional representation system that will probably include ethnic and linguistic minority groups who have traditionally been excluded. At present the defacto government is administering an otherwise anarchistic society and new opportunities for radical change are emerging daily.

We were due to go to the Eastern region tomorrow but it is subject to a bandt (regional strike that shuts down all transport and most shops) so we are planning to head to the mid-West border town of Nepalganj instead.

My two young travelling companions are coping well with the culture shock and 17 year old Troy recognises many parallels between the family we are staying with and his Nuien gradfather's family. Today is Mariana's 20th birthday and we are celebrating with a special meal of ethnic cuisine provided by our hosts this evening.

Today we have a planning meeting with the leadership of Youth Action Nepal confirming our intinerary (subject to a range of factors) and reconfirming priorities for our visit.

Oh and I lost my ATM card last night - fortunately I still have a credit card - not a great start to 10 days in Nepal.

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Photos

Army Day
Soldiers on the streets of Kathmandu.