Wednesday 19th Feb, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Up at stupid o’clock for our early flight back to Nepal. Very sad to be leaving the magical land of The Thunder Dragon. Bhutan was amazing!
To soften the blow of leaving the sky was clear, the windows were not scratched and the Himalayas were out in all their glory. So pretty. Huge rugged ridges running mainly NE-SW in the same direction as our flight, but a few ran crosswise and disappeared under the plane. And there was Sagarmatha AKA Everest standing tall and clear. Cannot believe I have seen it twice.
It was then back to the hotel for an early check in, a rest and a wander around the streets.
We went out to dinner with the owner of the company that did our package. Great food. Brillant ‘Chicken Soup’ that was a meal on its own.
On the walk back we took a creative route. No wonder when ‘maps’ tells you there is a road on your right and you walk past a tiny alley without seeing it. You go back and find it, tiny, scooters still come roaring up behind you.
But we saw great sites. We went up less touristy streets with all the little butcher and chicken shops chopping up their goods. The tiny restaurants with one cooking burner and maybe two seats. Fruit shops.
A low key but fun day. One to go.
Thursday 20th Feb. Kathmandu, Nepal.
Last day today. We needed a tour as the flight isn’t until 9 pm.
Of course the drive to where we were going was over an hour. So lots to see.
I had noticed that there are lots of motor bikes here. Only the women ride scooters. The men ride bikes.
We went up to Chandragiri Hills. One of the very large mountains surrounding the Kathmandu Valley.
It was at the top of this mountain that the last king of the Gorkha Kingdom stood and declared that he would untie the people. He became Great King Prithivi Narayan Shah the first King of Nepal.
You could walk up the many km trail with stairs or go up in the cable car. 2.5 km long.
At the top were all kinds of exciting things.
A sky walk – like a skinny version of the river crossing bridges, Bungie, Zip Lining, and sky cycling. They also had alluring ads for horse riding. In the first ad the horse is rearing. In the second the rider is bareback and the leader has the helmet.
It was very nice up there but of course it was cloudy so the Himalayas were hidden.
So we saw where all the mountains would be.
Up there Bottles of water cost 40 Aust cents for a little.
Then off to the hotel to grab gear and go to the airport.
What an amazing trip this was!
Then the long trip home.
The end!