We chose the rocky path. Halfway up, under a relentless sun, three of us decided to turn back. I was disappointed our stamina had waned. I didn’t want to miss the Rimpoche’s blessing. We had come this far, but Jim assured us, “Save your energy for tomorrow’s ceremonial dances.” I demurred. The following day we [...]
Few people stumble into Nepal by accident. Jim had an ongoing love affair with the mountains and its Sherpa inhabitants. Susan had begun a jewelry business in California. Rick was Buddhist so for him coming to Nepal was a pilgrimage. My husband, Chris, and I were just plain curious. I had one problem (aside from [...]
Friday 17th November The last day of my holiday has come. Time flies by so quickly but I do feel that I have had a proper break. Not once has work entered my mind since I have been here. I got up at the late hour of 7.30 a.m. Breakfast was porridge and croissants at [...]
Thursday 16th November During the night I only went to the toilet once. The alarm went off at 5.45 a.m. After settling the bill, I waited outside at the front of the hotel for the bus to pick me up. Several shops had started to open up and a couple of croissants and cinnamon rolls [...]
Wednesday 15th November There are just two more days until I go home. I finally succumb to Kathmandu Quickstep! At 4 a.m. I woke up with a cough and stomach cramps. Within minutes I was on the toilet. It was 5.45 a.m. when I got up for the sunrise. After a quick wash I made [...]
Tuesday 14th November At 5 a.m. I woke up but turned over and went back to sleep. Three hours later I got up. After a nice long hot shower I felt much better. Perhaps it was the pizza I had back in Kathmandu after all. It was off to the Boomerang Restaurant to eat breakfast [...]
Monday 13th November At 5.45 a.m. I got washed and dressed. All that was needed for my excursion to Pokhara was packed in my Lowe daypack. At reception I put my rucksack in storage and paid for my room. It was cool and overcast as I made my way to Kantipath to catch the bus. [...]
Sunday 12th November This morning I was up at 6 a.m. and had breakfast at Le Bistro. It was 8.15 a.m. when I boarded a minibus at Rani Pokhri for Bhaktapur. Bhaktapur is the third major town of the valley after Patan and Kathmandu, and in many ways is the most medieval. There is a [...]
Saturday 11th November During the night a call of nature made me get up. It had finally stopped raining. The stars were visible in what was now a cloudless night sky. Someone up there must have been listening! Hopefully it will last so that we can fly back to Kathmandu in the morning. There was [...]
