Nepal
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The word for the day is “vibrant“. We began
the day with TD and AD rushing out for a quick few games of
bowling and with me on the computer instant messaging Deb. I
also did some research on travel plans while in India. There
is a lot to choose from and I quickly became overwhelmed. Our
taxi to the airport came at 11:30 and we began another day of
travel. The flight to Katmandu left at 2:10 and takes 3 ½
hours. It was as usual, uneventful.
Our hotel accommodations, which we found via Mary Jon, a
former student of mine who spent two months here last summer,
are very nice. However, as has been our experience in the
past, hotels forget we have AD along and gave us a two person
room. So for today we are in small quarters with only walking
room. A three person room will open tomorrow and we will
change rooms then.
We arrived in the late afternoon and enjoyed a relaxing game
of cards on the fourth floor balcony. It is a lovely balcony
with views around the area of Thamel and stone walls that are
lined with potted flowers.
As night settled, the temperatures decreased from the mid 70’s
to low 40’s. We needed our slacks and sweaters for the first
time in the last three months. It feels wonderful. We strolled
down the street and toured the area. There is an amazing array
of colorful shops selling the wares of the Nepalese people.
The women are covered from the neck down and look very similar
to pictures that I have seen of women from India. Fashions are
vibrant and multicolored. Banners are seen hanging from the
temples and rooftops calling to their gods while adding to the
exciting appeal of the city. We ate dinner at a nearby
restaurant and settled in for the evening.
The rock hard beds didn’t provide us a
comfortable nights sleep. Crows started cawing outside at
daybreak. All the mattresses in Asia have been very firm so
you would think that we would get used to it, but we aren‘t.
We ate a good breakfast on our rooftop patio. The hotel has a
travel service which we decided to use for planning our days
in Nepal. One of the representatives suggested a trekking
program which we nixed even though it was only for a few days.
Instead we chose to drive to visit the staging area where, in
clear weather, you can see Mt. Everest. The longer part of our
time is going to be in Chitwan National Park and at a lake
area called Pukhara. Annapurna peaks are visible from Pukhara.
The visa available when entering Nepal precludes any volunteer
work, so we are just touring.
The hotel driver took us to the American Embassy to call on
the Ambassador. A friend of Debbie’s is a friend of his. I got
into the guard office to start a series of calls to try and
leave my message of “hello”. Before we left I had talked to
Ambassador Mike Malinowski and were invited to a cocktail
party at his house tonight. Not bad for a cold call!
We walked back to the Thamel area of Kathmandu. The shops were
all shuttered up due to Maoist threats of violence. There was
still traffic on the streets and we wrongly assumed it was
just lunch time. We had a lousy lunch at a place on the corner
near our hotel. Then we walked down to the Kathmandu Durbar
Square.
Along the streets the tourist shops were open displaying their goods. The streets are very narrow and people have to walk in them because there are no sidewalks. Cars, motorcycles and bikes weave through the crowds honking their horns. It’s utter chaos.
We stopped at a few temples along the walk
before finding our way to the Durbar Square. It is a
collection of old temples that surround a palace. We let a
guide talk us into his services and he showed us different
temples. There are lots of begging people and others hounding
you to buy their goods. Many won’t give up and accept your
“NO”.
We got back to the hotel to do studying, get cleaned up and
relax before the party. Two Marines were leaving their post
this week so a cocktail party was being given for them. Mike
and Karen Malinowski were very gracious hosts to have invited
strangers to their home. The Ambassador’s residence is a large
property within the city that is surrounded by a high wall
with guards at the gate.
The party was out on the rear patio. We
were the first to arrive so had a brief opportunity to visit
Mike and Karen. Everyone attending was from the staff and they
were all very friendly to us. Waiters circulated the crowd
with trays of drinks and hors’ d oeuvres. We had a wonderful
time and found conversation very easy. It was 11 before a
bicycle rickshaw got us back to the hotel.
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