Saturday, April 1st, Kathmandu, Nepal

Greetings!

This morning, we flew Yeti Airlines from Pokhara back to Kathmandu.  Our earlier stay at the Radisson Hotel was useful, as we were able to leave one bag of gear and lighten our flight load on the small plane to Pokhara.  Returning to the same hotel, we were able to get one last glimpse at the magnificent Himalayan range before boarding our plane.

Our walkabout today consisted of a couple of hours in Bhaktapur's Durbar Square.  A former royal palace, it housed the Malla kings of Nepal from the 14th to the 15th century and the kings of the Kingdom of Bahktapur from the 16th to the late 18th century until the kingdom was conquered in 1769.  

The Square hosts a nine-day new year festival in spring called Bisket Jatra, dating from the fifth century.  For it, images of Lord Ganesh, Goddess Lakshimi, Goddess Mahakali, and a chariot dedicated to the God Bhairava are towed through the very narrow streets.  Good fortune comes to those patrons of successfully navigated streets, and the route is often fought over. 

This is probably the last post of the trip.  Tonight, our group will have its farewell dinner, and tomorrow we'll head home.  Our path takes us to Delhi around 11am, and we'll hang out at a hotel near the airport until 4am on Monday.  An Emirates flight will then take us through Dubai, and over the pole to SFO at 2pm.   

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Saturday, April 1st, Kathmandu, Nepal.

Friday, March 31st, Pokhara, Nepal

Greetings!

Above the Pwewa Lake, in the Sarangkot and Kaskikot hills,  we walked through a village talking to Nepali families.  They showed us milling machines, with which the rice, millet, and maise for the village was processed.  We also met a village jack of all trades, whose skill at creating and fixing everything in the village amazed us all.  He was most proud of a bluetooth-enabled audio speaker system he had fashioned out of a large water bottle.

Back at the Lake, we boarded a small boat to carry us out to a temple in the middle.  A bolt of lightning reminded us that the weather can change quickly, and our captain rowed us back to the crowded dock.  

Our lunch today was at the Dunga Restaurant at Lakeside, and was excellently prepared and served.  We met the chef, and Denny said he spotted him near the table with a big smile on his face.  "I could tell he loved to eat".  We were pleased to see that Gail had joined the clean plate club.

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Friday, March 31st, Pokhara, Nepal

Thursday, March 30th, Pokhara, Nepal

Greetings!

Last night, at dinner, our guide (Nabu) asked how many wanted to take the early morning flight to see Mount Everest.  Pat and I were the only ones not enthusiastic.  We later questioned why so blase, and couldn't figure it out.  I was toying with the other options we had (zip-lining, bunjee jumping, para-sailing, etc), but we finally concluded that the combination of another great group adventure, and actually seeing the Himalayas, was too good to miss.

Once in the air, and seated in all the window seats, our flight attendants helped us figure out which peaks were which.  It's too bad that my cell phone telephoto still can't be attached (the company that makes the case it screws into hasn't finished the one that fits onto the newest Google Pixel).  

That left peak with the cloud hanging straight out to the right is Everest.  But we got to see six of the highest ten peaks in the world also.  A majority are in Nepal, with a couple more in Pakistan.  It was a pretty awesome flight, and the flight over here to Pokhara which followed the early morning flight made the rest of the day seem less exciting.   Nabu took us on a tour of our hotel neighborhood (Da Yatra Courtyard), some of the group walked a suspension bridge bigger that the one we crossed in Bhutan, and we visited a museum dedicated to the Gurkha soldiers who have been heroically defending Nepal for 200 years.   

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Thursday, March 30th, Pokhara, Nepal.

Wednesday, March 29th, Kathmandu, Nepal

Greetings!

Gregory "had a spell" at breakfast - electrolyte imbalance, I think.  I got him in the room, and plied him with said stuff, and he dropped off to sleep.  The group went across the river to the Patan area (different city).   We walked to the Temple of the Kumari Ghar - the living Goddess  - believed to be a manifestation of the goddess Durga.  The current goddess is a 10-year old, selected at age 5 by Buddhist priests and priestesses.  She serves until her menstruation.  The belief is that Durga visited the King once a tear to grant him his power.  His queen believed he was cheating on her, so Durga said she chose a young girl to inhabit.  Today, no king, so once a year she blesses the Prime Minister.  She must show no emotion, be carried everywhere, wear red and not leave her temple home except to participate in 16 festivals/year.

The group entered the room and got the blessing of a red smudge on their foreheads.  Next door, a previous Goddess resides.  She's 20-ish and speaks excellent English.  She spoke of her transition (to re-learning to walk).  She is studying and hopes to be a flight stewardess, and plays a traditional 21-string instrument.  She has a YouTube channel, and her older brother is her manager.  She has been recruited to join a political party trying to restore the Monarchy and pressure traditional Nepali culture.  Kumari is her title.

Next, we walked to the Patan Darbar Square, a magnificent multi-temple square and 17th century King's Palace (now a lovely museum with copper and brass castings/statuary and wood carvings.  The doors, windows, and surroundings contained elaborate carvings.  There were about five five pagodas 

We also went to a shop selling bowls: seven layers of metal hammered by the full moon(clear sky).  We each experienced a treatment (head or back).  Back at the hotel, Gregory is up and having lunch.  Whew!

At 5pm, we gathered to hear a presentation from, and meet, Maya Sherpa - the first female Nepali to summit Everest and first female Sherpa guide.  She came from a small mountain village farm family, but always dreamed of a bigger life (too many rules for girls).  Started working as a trekking guide (to base camps).  Then, was given a chance to climb and guide.  She's done Everest from both Nepali and China/Tibet sides, the first K2 all-woman Nepali assent of K2, and about a dozen other mountains.  She'd like to climb all the highest mountains (2 left in Nepal, 5 in Pakistan).  Well-spoken English and unassuming.  She married a mountain climber, and has a 10-year old daughter.  We bought her book on the K2 assent (autographed!).  Remarkable day.  We had our welcome dinner at Opium Pesto on a glitzy drag in town.  Tomorrow, we fly to see Everest!

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Wednesday, March 29th, Kathmandu, Nepal

Tuesday, March 28th, Kathmandu, Nepal

Greetings!

Flight from Varanasi to a wait in the Delhi Airport, to a flight to Kathmandu.  The only thing worth photographing was the sunset on the roof of the hotel in Kathmandu.

To see a couple more photos, click on Tuesday, March 28th, Kathmandu, India

Monday, March 27th, Varanasi, India

Greetings!

Sarnath was the city in 526 BC where Gautama Buddha delivered his first sermon upon achieving enlightenment at Bodh Gaya.  It's one of the top four pilgrimages, according to Buddha.  Most popular east of India, especially as Islam swept in from the west, the site underwent major restoration in in 19th century.  One of the outstanding statues, which is on display in the nearby museum, is the four-headed lion portrayed on all Indian currency.

The main name of the City (Varanasi) comes from the names of the two Ganges tributaries on whose confluence it sits (Varuna and Assi).  Fronting on the river are Ghats, world renown embankments made in steps of stone where Hindu pilgrims perform ritual ablutions.  There are 84 of them, most of which are used for bathing and the spiritually significant Hindu Puja ceremony, while a few are used for used exclusively for cremation.   

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Monday, March 27th, Varanasi, India 

Sunday, March 26th, Varanasi, India

"Get out of the way, the Americans are coming"  as the five new white SUVs honked their way across northeast India on its newest highway toward Varanasi.  The most adept drivers navigated our way through every form of transportation used for centuries.  One couldn't help but be embarassed, if we weren't too scared of hitting someone to complain.

At the midpoint of the day, we stopped to see how trillions of bricks are made.  In million-brick batches, they are formed, and dried, and fired in smokestack kilns that belch out dark black smoke into the Indian air.  And one by one, they pass through the hands of India's future.

Varanasi (or Benares) is one of the world's oldest continually-inhabited cities.  Mark Twain wrote in 1897 " Benares is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice as old as all of them put together" 

To see all of the photos taken today, click on Sunday, March 26th, Varanasi, India.