Arrived in Kathmandu yesterday afternoon from an overnight in Bangkok. The Lilac-Relax Residence in BKK was very cool. Run by an ex-Thai International cabin crew - Oil. Got to KTM Suvarnarb about 30 min behind the rest of the team. US$40 for visa at Immigration.
Waited for ~15 min for pick up by Ishwari and joined the team at the hotel. Hotel Manaslu is pretty nice.
Power on and off about 4 times in the arvo. General strike on in Kathmandu so roads pretty deserted and not a lot open. First impressions of the city is dirty and incredibly run-down. Brick buildings that you can't tell whether they are going up or coming down.
Had a swim in the pool and some Everest beers at the hotel before walking downtown to Thamel. Outside an outdoors shop a little Nepalese man spotted my leather boots with a loose side. He insisted that he reapair them. I stood in the street while he glued and stitched my boots for US$10!! Didn't even barter with the guy 'cos he did such a great job.
Had dinner (tikka masala) at Kilroys restaurant, then went to Tom & Jerrys for pool and beer. Rickshawed back and had a go at driving, racing Mike and Rachel with Darryl in the back Rooming with Rob.
Feeling excited and apprehensive about the trek; Awed about being in Kathmandu!!Going to miss family.
Met a couple of Aussies (Paul & Scott) and a Malaysian team in Bangkok. Will be interesting to see whether we see them on the trail. We have an amazingly cool Nepalese sherpa Angnuru joining us on the trip. Has summitted Everest three times, once without oxygen!!
PM
Spent the day shopping for last minute items: sleeping bag, walking poles & gaiters. Loads of outdoor shops but got most of our gear from Shona's.
Kathmandu is a sensory overload: Smells, rubbish, crowds, tooting!! traffic, kids running around, signs.
We've only been here a day and it seems so much longer. Tourism is a huge part of Kathmandu, so I feel obliged to spend money to support this desperately poor economy. We had drinks and dinner again. This is agreat team and I'm looking forward to the next few weeks.
Had dinner (tikka masala) at Kilroys restaurant, then went to Tom & Jerrys for pool and beer. Rickshawed back and had a go at driving, racing Mike and Rachel with Darryl in the back Rooming with Rob.
Feeling excited and apprehensive about the trek; Awed about being in Kathmandu!!Going to miss family.
Met a couple of Aussies (Paul & Scott) and a Malaysian team in Bangkok. Will be interesting to see whether we see them on the trail. We have an amazingly cool Nepalese sherpa Angnuru joining us on the trip. Has summitted Everest three times, once without oxygen!!
PM
Spent the day shopping for last minute items: sleeping bag, walking poles & gaiters. Loads of outdoor shops but got most of our gear from Shona's.
Kathmandu is a sensory overload: Smells, rubbish, crowds, tooting!! traffic, kids running around, signs.
 |
| Police cell in the street |
No comments:
Post a Comment