Kathmandu: where the streets have no name...

Arriving in Nepal is a bit like a full-fronted assault on one's senses. Lots of colour, lots of noise and lots of interesting smells (both good and bad). Despite being a tad on the tired side after our 7-hour flight from Hong Kong to Kathmandu (which included an unscheduled stop in Dhaka, Bangladesh to pick up more passengers), we just had to go out for an evening stroll round the central Thamel area, a 10 minute walk from our B&B. It was just how I imagine walking round some Indian cities to be – you really don't know which way to look! From the colourful stores selling locally produced items such as pashminas, jewellery and all the North Face gear any hiker in the world could ever need (not all of which could be described as the real McCoy), to the incense burning from the vibrant Buddhist shrines scattered across the city to the many noisy rickshaws, motorbikes and taxis (almost all of the taxis in Nepal are these white, tiny cars no bigger than a mini metro most of which look like they have seen better days. I think they only thing the owners have serviced is the horn! Amazingly, groups of people squeeze in to these things, cases on the roof and the suspension somehow copes) it is utterly chaotic but very entertaining! It is possible to spend hours killing time wandering Kathmandu’s streets, not just because there is so much to see and do but also because finding your way around is a challenge in itself because most of the streets themselves, as well as maps of the streets, have no names!

There's no escaping some things!

Taking it easy, Nepali style!

Kite flying is popular in Kathmandu

Spellcheck has yet to catch on in some parts...

Electrics, Nepali style

Once again Sarah had found a great little B&B called Asmita B&B, a tiny little family-run place tucked away on a street corner with just four guest rooms. The owner of the B&B, Dharma, is a keen trekking guide and has climbed all of the major peaks in Nepal, however, in 2008 whilst assisting the oldest person ever to climb Mount Everest (a 77 year old Nepalese man) he lost all of his fingers to frostbite. It was a particularly sad story – he was part of a large group and, having succeeded in reaching the summit with the rest of the group, Dharma took off his gloves to assist the 77 year-old man in tightening his clothing (the 77 year old man was himself too cold) and succumbed to frostbite. The story gets even more tragic – when we spoke to Dharma he told us that the insurance company refused to pay out and he maintains that, had he been treated properly at the time, he would not have lost his fingers. What struck me when we spoke to him was, despite what has happened, he is not angry or despondent in any way and has sought to get on with his life as best he can (he still enjoys trekking (albeit that he can no longer climb the most challenging peaks) and has opened a successful B&B). Like all Nepalis we met, he was a very friendly, humble and good-natured person.



Power cuts are a very common, almost daily occurrence in Nepal

View from rooftop terrace of Asmita B&B

Our first full day in Kathmandu was dedicated to organising our trek. Our hearts were set on an 18-day circular trek in one of Nepal's most famous trekking areas (the Annapurna massif) which had been highly recommended to us by our friends Rob and Lauren. Rob and Lauren had organised their trek last year through a company called Cold Feet so we decided to also use this company. After Lauren had emailed us directions, we eventually managed to find Cold Feet's offices, tucked away down a small side street. We were greeted by the Company's owner, Sunil, who spoke very good English and offered us tea and coffee whilst we considered our options. In the end, we opted for the 18-day trek (it is possible to do the trek in a shorter period of time or even to miss out certain sections, but we wanted to do the complete circuit) with a guide and a porter. Sunil arranged for us to meet our guide (Bhuwan) and porter (Padam) that evening. Once we had met, Padam took us to a trekking gear shop where we hired down jackets and gloves for a very reasonable price – haggling in Nepal is the done thing and, strangely enough, very good fun too! We managed to get good discounts on other essentials for the trek – headtourches, socks, thermals etc – each time the shopkeeper did not seem to take offence that we were seeking to negotiate on the price, in fact in each shop we bought goods we were also offered coffee! By the end of the shopping spree we looked like an advertisement for the [counterfeit] North Face company!

With our trek organised and all necessary gear and essential energy food items (well, mainly Mars bars, Haribo sweets and liquorice allsorts) purchased and somehow squeezed into a back-pack and one small rucksack, we took it easy on our last day in Katmandu before the trek. This included checking in to our “luxury” hotel in Thamel for one-night (the B&B was full for our last night) and enjoying a rickshaw ride (great fun) to one of Kathmandu’s main attractions, Dhurbar Square. How on earth there aren't more accidents on Kathmandu’s congested streets is beyond me!

Knowing that meat and wine would be scare on the trek, we treated ourselves to a steak and a bottle of wine on our last night before hitting the sack in early wondering what on earth the next few weeks would have in store for us!