Nepal is finally becoming reality. I am sitting in front of
gate 10B of the ultra-modern Delhi airport, waiting for my onward flight to
Kathmandu. The flight from Mumbai to Delhi was uneventful and the first day in
Mumbai yesterday went very smooth (for details see my new Mumbai blog). But now
with the KTM sticker on my bag and the Kathmandu sign at the gate, the Nepal
and Mount Everest Khumbu Valley adventure really begins. Out of a sudden, most
passengers wear hiking boots and sports gear instead of flip flops and shorts.
Will be great to meet Randy again after almost one year! He is really thrilled by our hiking tour and
just shared an e-mail welcoming me to the Nirvana Garden Hotel. Ok – still need
to travel 1500Km and to pass immigration.
View of the new Terminal of Dehli airport:
View of the new Terminal of Dehli airport:
Two hours later I arrive at Kathmandu Airport. Thank god the airport is open again – it was closed for 4 days as a Turkish Airlines Jet crashed last week (nobody was injured) and as the runway was totally blocked. The jet is still parked close to the international terminal and we can see it from the aircraft. Immigration is very smooth as I have a passport photo ready (10 years old J) and some US dollars in cash (I always take some USD in cash with me on international travels) while most tourists struggle with the ATMs / Credit Cards as they try to pay their ‘visa on arrival’. And wow – my trekking luggage arrived, too! Just outside of the airport I meet Dorjee, our tour guide who picks me up. It is so convenient if everything is arranged; again a big thanks to Randy, our friend from Vancouver! Our way to the Thamel district of Kathmandu where our hotel is located takes roughly 30 minutes – and my first impression is that Kathmandu and the traffic is probably even more chaotic than at most of the places I have seen so far, including any place in South America, Africa or Asia. Frankly – I would never even think of hiring a car or a motorbike here. In addition the Nepali drive on the left hand side - at least in theory, as they drive everywhere where just a stretch of road is free…
Just as I check in at the hotel, Randy arrives and gives me
a big hug. It is soooo great to finally meet here! The hotel has a lovely
garden with palm trees (yes, in Nepal) and we enjoy the sun and the warm
weather (22 degrees Celsius) in the garden while we discuss the final details
of our tour with Dorjee.
Randy and Dorjee in the garden of our hotel in Kathmandu:
Randy and Dorjee in the garden of our hotel in Kathmandu:
Later, Randy and me start to explore Thamel and
Kathmandu at night – but we fail miserably as we try to find the famous Durbar
Square after dark. Anyway – this gives us the possibility to see tiny streets in
the medieval part of the town with super basic restaurants where probably only
4 or 6 people would fit in.
Lost in Kathmandu at night:
We decide to stay on the ‘safe side’ and enter the pretty basic, but renowned ‘Yak Restaurant’ just around the corner of our hotel. Food there is simple but good. As always I like to try out s.th new and therefore I order a “Tongba” which is a hot Tibetian beer based on fermented millet put into a wooden pot. Ufff – ok, nice try, but I think this time I went too far. No more experiments, let’s have a local ‘Everest’ lager instead before we go to bed…
Trying "Tongba" at Yak Restaurant - quite an experience...
Lost in Kathmandu at night:
We decide to stay on the ‘safe side’ and enter the pretty basic, but renowned ‘Yak Restaurant’ just around the corner of our hotel. Food there is simple but good. As always I like to try out s.th new and therefore I order a “Tongba” which is a hot Tibetian beer based on fermented millet put into a wooden pot. Ufff – ok, nice try, but I think this time I went too far. No more experiments, let’s have a local ‘Everest’ lager instead before we go to bed…
Trying "Tongba" at Yak Restaurant - quite an experience...
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