Nepal Day 1 With Commentary by Randy

Monday 13:45 BANG! I opened my eyes with a start, only to realize it was just our plane touching down in Kathmandu. I was chilling out listening to some Doobie Brothers on my head phones and the flight attendant had not bothered to ask me to remove them or to even unrecline my seat. We had arrived early at the airport in Delhi for our JetLite flight to Nepal and were actually the third group in line for check in which had not even opened yet. In spite of that it still took almost 30 minutes to check in due to them having some 'computer problems'. Eventually they actually checked us in using hand written boarding passes - the first time I have ever seen that. We were traveling light having left our suitcases at the YMCA and just taken along our carry-ons with the basics and a change of clothes.
14:00 We deplaned on the tarmac to board a bus for the ride to the terminal. Being near the front of the plane we made it on to the first bus. An elderly gentleman was still boarding, when the doors started closing and the bus jerked ahead, the driver laying on the horn as he tore across the tarmac, weaving through vehicles and workers towards the terminal building. Less than 2 minutes later he braked to a stop and the doors opened. One door was blocked by the back of another bus which he had cut in to close behind. We managed to make it into the building to find people crowded around counters filling out yellow forms. They turned out to all be in some other language but we eventually found some white forms which were in English. Then it was on to the visa line. There we learned there was a second white form which also needed to be filled out. Oops – it is a visa application and is asking for a picture. Off in the corner we spy a photo booth where a gentleman takes our picture and hands us 2 copies in a couple minutes for about $5. Glasses on? Sure. Smile? Why not? Hat still on? No problem! Best ID picture I’ve had in a long time. Back to the visa line, pay some more money to one fellow; take the receipt to another line and finally our visas in hand we head out to the parking lot. We are now the last ones leaving even though we were off the plane first.
15:30 Standing in the parking lot waiting for the hotel shuttle. We took so long getting out of the airport that it left. We are being swarmed by offers of taxis or tours. Deepak, a nice fellow with decent English says he can get us a car to take us for a long tour the next day for $45 – not each but total. We keep his card just in case. The shuttle finally arrives and we pile in. The main impression of Kathmandu is dust – DUST everywhere! It covers the streets, even when they are paved. The air is thick with it. Lots of people are wearing masks over their nose and mouth. The streets are horrible – pot holes everywhere. The driver suddenly cuts down a back alley telling us it is a shortcut. It is jammed with traffic too and is even worse pavement than the main road. Store wares displayed just a couple feet from the vehicles are coated with dust. We meet a vehicle on this street only wide enough for one and somehow they squeeze by each other. Then we turn into a driveway and are delivered to the peace and calm of the Kathmandu Guest House (KGH).
17:00 We are checked into our rooms which are located on the5th floor – the top of the hotel. There is no elevator – not that it would do much good as the power is only on for 8 hours a day. The rooms are basic but clean. No air conditioning, just one fan mounted on the wall. It is hot but the power is supposed to come on at 8 PM which should help for sleeping.
18:00 We go out to take a look at Kathmandu. KGH is located in the heart of the Tamel district, the tourist area of Kathmandu. We see more foreigners here than we saw in either Bombay or Goa, the majority of which seem to be European. This is an area of streets, each about 10 feet wide, which are lined with stores on both sides and teaming with vendors. James has the ‘look’ as vendors seem particularly attracted to him. We are all made offers of hashish multiple times. We eventually settle on a restaurant and have some supper.
20:00 Phil has determined Deepak’s offer is pretty good so phones him and lines up our tour for the next day. James has stumbled on to a place with a good band playing so he takes Phil and I over to see them ( Merv is busy chatting with a young fellow in the hotel gift shop.) The band is great! Actually there are several places with live local bands. We stop briefly on the way at one where they are playing some AC/DC – good but too loud. Back at the place James originally visited we listen to a 20 min jam of the Pink Floyd song “Another Brick in the Wall”. They do a great job. The place is an interesting though sad place to observe people. It is mostly foreigners, sitting around tables on cushions on the floor. Some are definitely doped up pretty good. I wonder what the stories are of the various lives. On one side there is an attractive young blond hooked up with a middle aged Nepalese man. Strange! What is that about?
22:30 We head for bed as it has been a long day. The power was supposed to come on at 20:00 but it did not actually come on till about 21:30. While the hotel has a generator, it only serves very basic lighting in the halls with one light in each room. The fans do not qualify for generated power so we are glad for the return of regular power.

Outside the Kathmandu airport waiting for the shuttle van from the "Kathmandu Guest House".

The dude outside the airport, a quick talker, hustler, nice guy who we ended up renting a taxi from for a tour the next day.


Street scenes on the way to the hotel.

"Nothing...just laying here! What's it to you?"

Please buy some grapes from me.

Lots of stuff for sale everywhere.

James and Phil's hotel room. What do you expect for $34 USD/night?

Vendors followed James everywhere. He found it hard to say no ... especially if they were very nice or very cute...or both! ha ha ha ha

I ended up buying some stuff too. Check out the burried finger!

Come on...only 350 rupees...no 200 rupees...300 my best price...250....sold!

Holy man in training??? Waz up dude?!!

One of the streets outside the hotel. They all looked like this.

Randy ....wondering what the heck Merv is up to!

"I'm just trying to fit in Randy!" ......

"What are you going to do about it? Do you want a piece of me? Ya...that's right..I didn't think so tough guy!!!"

"This is funny....I love it when guys fight to impress me!"

"Have you seen James? I've heard he likes to buy things from cute girls!"

Cooling down after a long day.

Selling bootleg music and movies out in the open. No copyright in Katnmandu!

The carpet I should have bought. Too late now!

A Lufsthansa flight attendent we met on the plane from Delhi to Nepal who we ran into again on the street that night. She is in Nepal for the 5th time, going on a 10 day trek.