Kathmandu, Nepal

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The plane landed in Nepal 3 hours late and we had to stay out on the runway for an extra 20 minutes for who knows why! We finally got off the plane and into the airport where there was a huge mass of people all waiting to get temporary visas. This just meant, you are not getting in until you pay them some money! I had to get in line and wait for another 1 1/2 hours only to be told I needed to have a picture with me for the visa. In the back of the room is a place to get your picture taken and I was sent there. My luggage is waiting somewhere for me because I bought a huge suitcase in Krabi, to bring to Kathmandu, so I could buy clothes. This one is big enough that I will have to heck it, and now I need to worry about it because I was 1 1/2 hours past picking it up. I get my picture and head back to the same man at the desk, that waved me away. Finally, I get past the visa desk, past the checkpoint for passports and to the lost luggage where my suitcase awaited me. 5 hours late I exit the airport and across the barriers see Sos and some man waving their arms and yelling my name! I have never met Sos in person. We have talked on Skype and have been doing retail business through the mail. She was sending me goods to sell on ebay and we had established a relationship that way. Now, it was like a stranger running towards me giggling, and laughing that they finally picked the right girl coming out the door. Apparently every blonde leaving the airport for the past 5 hours has been approached and questioned. She was giddy and talkative. They led me to a small white car that the man apparently owned. She introduced us and he is the person she uses for all her export shipping. His name means King in Napalese but since I can't remember what it is we shall just call him King. Not THE King, as Nepal no longer has a King. Sos explained to me that the past King of Nepal was good but his brother and his army came in and killed his entire family. They took over the Kings castle, but the people didn't want him, so they revolted and won. Now there is a sort of democracy set up where they get to vote and every term there are 100's of candidates that run.

We drove through town to get to Thamel which is the part of Kathmandu that is for the tourists. I was surprised at the blatant poverty of Nepal as we drove through the streets. When we entered into Thamel there was a definite change. Things got colorful and were cleaned up and everything was set up for the tourists, including all the colorful clothes they sell there. No Nepal people actually wear these clothes, they are just for selling to other countries. There is a defined look about the clothes I refer to. They have a hippy style but also a swag of rasta. They told me they had arranged for me to stay at a hotel that is owned by a good friend of King. The hotel is called Samara Resort and the rooms include breakfast. There was a large lobby with a computer for tourists to use, marble staircase and around 5 stories high. I went over to the desk with me wallet out and asked how much I owed and the girl said it is taken care of. I was not sure what that meant, so I asked again and she said, "you don't owe anything it is taken care of."

I looked at King who smiled from ear to ear and whispered, "I told you he was a good friend!"

Sos grabbed me by the arm and whisked me away towards the staircase then up to the 4th floor, to my room. I put my luggage in and Sos looked over the room and quickly said, " I am going to take a shower real quick. Just a small one! "

Then she disappeared into the bathroom. King grabbed the remote to the television and declared it not working properly because he could not get a station. I freshened up my makeup a little and Sos finally came out in a towel and asked if I had a clean shirt. I went into my suitcase and took out a peach colored top that I had just bought to go with a new skirt. She grabbed it up saying that will do. After she changed we, all left and drove over to the restaurant/bar she owns. We parked outside of Kings office located just around the corner. Then we went in the building so King could show off his office to me and that is where he handed me a card and said if I needed anything to let him know. Then Sos and I walked over to the restaurant. I will refer to it as the bar from now on because that is shorter to type. We walked through an alley way that was lined with goods for sale and at the end was a hidden square of stores. There were several restruant s, a tour guide office, a beauty parlor (that offered up the fish that eat the dead skin off your feet), a trinket tourist shop, and a tattoo parlor. The name of Sos establishment is Hooters and it is on the second story over to the left when you enter. The square of shops is actually Thamel Square. That sounds like it should be in the most popular spot in Thamel but if you ask a taxi driver to take you there none of them know where it is! We went in and the decor of the place was very cute. There were tables low to the ground with cushions on the floor to sit on. There were candles lit on each table and on the bar and, a second area containing additional seating and the kitchen. I loved it instantly.

We sat and talked and I met the staff. Young boys from the ages of 16 to 26. There were 4 young ones under 20 that did the cooking. Then there was Sagar and Dipok. Sagar and Depok would become good friends and spend a lot of time with us. In the bar, was also a blond man that introduced himself to me, named Peter. I would soon find out that Peter was a part owner and shareholder of this place. He sat with a blonde girl named Heather, who was from England and was heading home in a couple days. She was crying because some Nepalese boy broke her heart. On the table in front of them I saw what appeared to be a hamburger and fries. I told Sos that I have not had beef since I left home and ordered a hamburger. We sat and chatted for a long time and I started to think that maybe they had forgotten about my order. Finally, Sagar came up to the table and put the plate in front of me. It was a deluxe steak sandwich in a hamburger bun, with tomatoes, lettuce, and a fried egg on the meat ?????? I stifled a chuckle and took a bite into the hamburger. I don't know what it is but again this did not taste like beef! It was closer than the mystery meat in Thailand and it was not hamburger but steak. I told Sos the difference and the difference there should be in the price. I ate around the meat and dug into the french fries and drank my coke. I told them I didn't want to be any kind of expense to them and insisted on paying the bill for it. I was charged $10! Now, that is not much for us but in Nepal a hotel is just $20! I didn't say anything but just paid it.

The boys decided I must go and see the disquotecs down the street tonight and I agreed to go. When it got late enough, we walked down a few doors to the Pink Lady, and went in. There was a woman singing Nepal music from a stage and a man that would get up and join her every once in a while. At fist, I thought it was karaoke, but later figured they were paid singers, and nobody else was getting up there to sing! They started singing a song with a beat and everyones feet started tapping. I asked "why is no one was dancing?" They said, "this is a singing bar, the next place we were going is the dancing bar. "

I laughed and said, " not for long !"

I grabbed Sagar's hand and pulled him up on the dance floor and we danced. At first everyone was really staring at me, trying to figure out who I was, but then they all started to get up and dance. Before long almost everyone in the place was dancing! There were several women there which was odd, I later learned. There were no women in the dance bar except me and Sos. The reason is because once a woman is married she can't go out and party at night. The men can so there are a lot of them, so they danced with each other. The whole idea of men dancing together is not strange in this town, nor does it mean they are gay.

At midnight when the singing bar closed, we all headed off to the dancing disquotec. They say that bar doesn't get started really until about 1 or 1:30 am, but I wouldn't know because by !:00 I was headed back to my room to go to bed. I am too old for this all night stuff!

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Photos

meat shop
with the lamb cut up on the counter!