NEPAL

NEPAL

In search of Mount Everest

We have 4 days to find Everest as we land in Katmandu, capital of Nepal.  We are greeted with colored bells and the smells of Nepalese cooking that wafts out of the storefronts.  In spite of an earthquake that took place 3 years ago, Katmandu has survived the worse of the damage in the area.

The Nepalese go about their daily tasks selling their wares, praying, and meditating on the streets of 

Katmandu where so many actually live.

Stupas, sights of prayer, come in all sizes, in the center of the city or on the top of a mountain. But they are all pretty much the same shape.  Those beady little eyes follow you everywhere and the monkeys enjoy showing off if you are lucky enough to witness them playing in large groups around the bases of the holy sites.

Michael decides to tease a resting bull who retaliates. He rises from the sidewalk and moves as Mike tries to outrun the bull.  Not so lucky, Mike, unfortunately,  gets in the bull's way and he gores Mike.  Surprisingly, the horn never penetrates but Mike does live with a souvenir of a huge black and blue bruise on his stomach for the rest of the trip.

Oh well, with 5 doctors on our tour I am confident that the Nephrologist will come in handy just in case a kidney is punctured.

Lesson learned, Do Not Disturb the Bulls.

Temples of worship abound all around us.  We peek down corridors, up to golden gated windows,

Shivas dancing in a courtyard and decorative wells that once were a source of life and water.

Bhaktapur, in the Kathmandu Valley is just like a suburb of Kathmandu only 8 miles from the capital.  The citizens of this holy city were not so lucky and sustained tremendous damage to their temples from the 2015 earthquake. They are in the process of rebuilding the temples and rubble lies everywhere in organized piles of timber, bricks, statues, and architectural decorative elements.  

These 2 are just a few that have not been completely destroyed.  But undaunted, many party at night as you can see below.  Crowds gather from it seems everywhere to watch the musical performance in Durbar Square that is suppose to start at 7 or 8 but I leave by 9 with nothing yet beginning when my ride returns me to the hotel.  

    

Time to leave civilization and head on to Nagarkot.  The mustard, which is a principle harvest in Nepal, dots the landscape and hillsides.

A view of the  Himalayas from our hotel balcony.

Among all the places for mountain viewing in the Kathmandu Valley, Nagarkot, 32 km, is usually considered to be the best. The views go from Dhaulagiri in the west to Kanchenjunga in the east. On a very clear day you can even see Mt. Everest far in the east. Other majestic peaks that you can view from here are Manaslu (8,463m), Ganesh Himal (7,111m), and Langtang (7,246m). Nagarkot is also famous for super sunrise and sun set views.

Enjoy the view!

This close to the moon you feel as if you can reach out and touch it. Luck was with us as many times the Himalayas are covered with fog.  But our entire time the weather was crystal clear and cool.











18 days since our trip began in Delhi we all go our separate ways to return to California. This journey to India and Nepal is not for sissies.  If you go, be prepared for some discomforts in traveling to one of the most exotic places on this earth.  I'm glad I made the effort to go even though there were some rough spots for many of us.