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After what seemed like an eternity in the plane we were flying into Nepal and all the boredom was totally forgotten as we got our first glimpse of Mt Everest. It was magical flying above the clouds and seeing the massive mountain at eyelevel. It was every bit as beautiful as I imagined. Kathmandu on the other hand was a very very very big culture shock. From the burnt out planes at the airport to the rubbish and rubble on the streets we were not sure if we would survive but after only a day we love it! The only way to describe it is to liken it to an Indian city. Its bustling and lively streets filled with people and traffic. It's hard not to get swept up in it.
Our hotel is basic and despite the horror bathroom it's pretty comfortable. We have a lovely pet turkey pigeon that likes to fly onto our window sill (I call it a turkey pigeon because it looks exactly like a pigeon but sounds exactly like a turkey. There are thousands everywhere).
Our fist day was pretty much spent cruising the streets adjusting to the pace of life here. We had an amazing Nepalese dinner at this awesome backpackers place which was all you can eat with a drink for AUD $4.50 each! Everything is SO cheap here. Its ridiculous.
Today we had a morning sightseeing with Gyan our trek co-coordinator. He is my new best friend. We went to Dunbar Square and Monkey Temple which are both UNESCO world heritage sites. We learnt lots about Buddhism and Hindu. The temples are amazing they are all wood carved and the detail is astonishing. One was even carved using one tree and it was about 25 meters square. Must have been a pretty big tree! I was terrified of Monkey Temple fearing the monkeys would be as aggressive as those on Monkey Island off Phuket but thankfully they seemed a little scared of me so I safely walked the 365 steps to the top of the mountain. Yes 355 steps, 70 meters high. It was very steep but it was good practice for our trek.
The power was out for a while today which is apparently pretty normal. I was craving some momo's so we found a tiny little momo place for lunch. They are my favorite. They are pretty similar to Chinese dumplings but with a more spicy filling. So yummy plus the whole lunch cost us AUD$1.40 each!!! (Dom you would love the bargains you can get here). Anyway the rest of the avo we spent walking around the streets. I love watching what goes on around you. The things you see are just crazy. They just dig up all the bricks in the road so that there is a ton of bricks and a giant hole but the cars just scoot around it while the people are working. There were some people just pulling down an electricity pole with their hands grabbing the wires and lowering it into a truck. Cars were just beeping at them to hurry up. There is really no health and safety practices here.
Tonight we are preparing for our trek as we have a flight to Lukla at 6am tomorrow where we will start walking from. We are totally pumped and ready to conquer Everest! Well maybe not all of it (or really any of it) but I'm pretty sure I can already here it shaking in its boots (or is that me???) Anyway Right now I am sitting on the roof of our hotel eating bananas and looking down across the city. Its so peaceful looking down on the chaos when you're not in the middle of it. Tomorrow we start our 9 day trek so I may be without the internet for that time but I will write again when we get back. Cross your fingers, toes, arms and legs for us! Hope everyone is well. We miss you all lots.
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Ray Thanks Laura. You could get a job on Foreign Correspondent. You didn't mention the weather so we assume it is not too cold in Kathmandu. Have fun on the trek. Love Ray and Leanne.
Granny I feel tired just reading !!! I like the bit about cheap stuff for your dad!!! Lots of love. Have a good time. Granny