Nepal Kathmandu - Nov5-7 Pokhara - Nov8-9 Annapurna - Nov10-Dec4

The Kathmandu airport can be a bit overwhelming if you've never had 5 people tugging at your sleeves and 20 others yelling at you to take their taxi. Lon and I watched in amusement as another couple stepped outside the airport doors, only to come running back inside. They actually asked us to go outside with them and help them get a ride ...which we did, only we ended up getting separated in the crowd. We can only hope they made it out of the airport and are enjoying their time in Nepal.

I was surprised to see so many Nepalis of Indian heritage in Kathmandu. But after taking a closer look at the geography of Nepal, it makes sense. India borders Nepal on the west side, and the land is very flat, so it's easy to migrate over. It's not until you get to the east side of Nepal that you see the Himalayas. China (Tibet) borders Nepal on the east side ...and the Himalayas are much harder to cross.

Nepal appears to be a mixture of Indian and Tibeto-Burmese (of the Himalayas) ...you can really see the difference when you look at people's faces. On the mountains, there are even more ethnic groups depending on the area. Nepal is about 90% Hindu, 8% Buddhist, 2% Muslim, and a handful of Christians.

We rented bicycles and toured the city. Kathmandu has some beautiful, old buildings and temples ...unfortunately, the air pollution makes it difficult to enjoy the sites (our eyes and throats really bothered us). The first place we went to was the Swayambhunath buddhist temple. This temple is one of the symbols of Nepal ...on top of hill overlooking the city. The central stupa has the colorful eyes of Buddha. There's also a third eye (between and above the 2 eyes) which symbolizes Buddha's clairvoyant powers. The "nose" is actually the Nepali number ek (one) ... a symbol of unity.

There were lots of monkeys running around this temple ...they just mingled in and around the people. Occasionally, a monkey would try to steal things off a tourist (usually food). There were beautiful prayer wheels all throughout the temple. We had a good time spinning these wheels!

After touring the Swayambhunath temple, we cycled all around the downtown area and stopped at Durbar Square. There were hundreds of vendors at the square. The temples and buildings were made from wood and brick ...a unique Nepalese style.

We could spend a lot more time here in Kathmandu, but the main reason for our trip here is the trekking! We plan to hike the Annapurna circuit (about 21 days). Besides, I'm about ready for some clean air. We leave for Pokhara tomorrow.

"Om mani padme hum..."

region	lodging	$US / night	rating	notes
Kathmandu	Tibet Guest House	$13.0		Best double room for the value in Kathmandu