Greetings from Kathmandu

---

Hello everyone! Following Chris and Simon's unprecedented success with their blogs, I thought I might give it a go myself. I realise without Chris to take the piss out of it's not going to be quite as easy, but hopefully some of you might find it mildly interesting...

We arrived in Kathmandu on the 1st of February after a 14 hour flight stopping over in Abu Dhabi. I think it's fair to say that Kathmandu is about the most different place possible from Llanrhaeadr-ym-mochnant. Having only managed an hour's sleep on the plane at most (the quiz game was too good), the claustrophobic streets, crazy traffic and trekking touts didn't persuade me that Kathmandu would be a great place to stay, so we head off by bus to Pokhara pretty much the next day...

Travelling by bus here is an experience in itself. It definitely helps if you haven't got ridiculously long legs as there's less space than on a Ryanair flight. As far as I can work out, if you overtake in Nepal then you immediately have right of way, meaning that oncoming traffic either has to slow down or stop completely to let you through. A blind turn doesn't discourage drivers from overtaking either and, coupling that with some pretty sheer drops, makes for an interesting ride... It's not uncommon to see goats strapped to a bus roof either, something you don't tend to find with Tanat Valley Coaches.

A friend of ours put us in touch with a Nepalese trekking guide and good friend of his named Lal (for which we are very grateful!) and he was there to meet us off the bus in Pokhara. Pokhara is essentially the gateway to the Annapurna range of the Himalayas, which form a pretty awesome backdrop to the town. We arrived with the aim to hike up to the Annapurna Base Camp (ABC) and after a couple of days relaxing and looking around Pokhara we set off by taxi to Nayapul.

I've just got to say a quick word about the taxis here. They are all Suzuki Marutis - tiny little cars with what appear to be 10 inch wheels. Don't begin to think that that is a disadvantage though. Honestly some of the roads we went down wouldn't even be considered in a 4 x 4 in the UK. Unsurprisingly out taxi's suspension was absolutely knackered...

This is probably stating the obvious, but the Himalayas are just huge. With some of the peaks over 8 times the height of Snowdon, I think it's impossible to comprehend how high they really are and your brain just concludes that they are a painting or something. To think people climb them (voluntarily) is pretty unbelievable.

The trek itself lasted 13 days and was a combination of (in no particular order) scorching heat, freezing cold, ascending steep valleys, descending steep valleys, monkeys, eagles, waist deep snow, hot springs, rhododendron forests, sunrises, milk tea, beautiful villages, steps and more steps, kerosene heaters, barking dogs and just the most spectacular views I have ever seen.

We fell short of ABC by 300m due to a ridiculous amount of snow and poor visibility. However we did make it to Machhapuchhere Base Camp which, at 3700m, was the highest I've been by nearly 2000m. It was an amazing experience.

The days we spent back in Pokhara following the trek consisted mostly of drinking masala tea in cafes, rowing on the lake and cycling on the crazy roads (a bit mental). We also went to Lal's house for dinner where we had dal bhat (Nepalese staple dish), momos (steamed dumplings - so spicy) and buffalo meat (surprisingly tasty).

I decided to have a long-awaited haircut (Nepalese style according to the ticket lady in Durbar Square this morning so..). This also included a half hour back and neck massage. Can't complain. Anyway the result is that I now look 15 again (oh and I've decided not to shave my head as promised as this would make me look even younger and I might get sent home. Very sorry.)..

We stopped for two nights in a village called Bandipur on the way back to Kathmandu. Sadly the spectacular views of the Annapurna and Manaslu range that this place promised were missed because it was cloudy for the whole time we were there... With its winding streets, centuries-old houses and massive cave, it was definitely still worth a stop.

My opinion of Kathmandu has been turned on its head over the past couple of days. It is fascinating. There are an infinite amount of hidden shrines, temples and ancient buildings simply living alongside the mobile phone shops, mopeds and tiger balm sellers. Each one of which would definitely have an admission fee in the UK.

We leave for Delhi tomorrow, having managed to escape any mishaps so far, e.g. all bank cards still safe and sound (Chris). Somebody who probably prefers to remain anonymous (not me), managed to drop the camera in the toilet but somehow it has survived.

Not quite sure how I've managed to condense a month into that space but there we go. I guess that's the sign of an accomplished writer (or not).

Anyway hope all's well in England,

All the best for now,

Lewys

---

Comments

[Tristan Curteis]

Brilliant Lewys, sounds like you're having a cracking time. You're quite funny sometimes actually too.