Day 144 - Kathmandu to Sharjah to Istanbul

After 4.5 months in Asia, I'm headed to a new continent finally! (...well I'll still be on the "Asian" side of Turkey, but I'll consider it Europe)

but I created an inconvenient situation for myself right before I left Nepal...on the very last day, I happened to lose my cell phone! (or have it stolen? I never really know)... so I'll have to find a cheap phone to buy when I get to Turkey.

The airport in Kathmandu was small, but pretty efficient to get through, maybe because there weren't really that many people there in the first place. I took an Air Arabia flight headed to Sharjah, U.A.E. It would be my first time in the Middle East, and I didn't know what to expect. I mean, the media has taught me to fear such places...and I can say it probably persuaded me not to even think about staying for a visit in any of these countries, but after landing there and seeing the possibilities and things to see, I wish I stayed...even for just a couple days just to get a small dose of the beautiful deserts and Arab culture.

Upon arrival in Sharjah, I noticed that the air looked hazy, probably due to the high level of dust and sand in the air. The airport was nice, and it was interesting to see some of the Arab men in their traditional attire, with the long robes (kaftan), head covering (ghoutra), and head circlets (igaal). There was a large presence of overseas Filipino workers at the airport, working for the airlines as well as the restaurants. I was excited to say "salamat" as thank you to them. I asked a McDonalds worker (yes I had a Big Mac) how often she was able to go home to the Philippines. She said she was able to go once, every two years, for two months. I think it's very brave of some of these young workers who travel to other countries to work in an unknown environment to help their families back home. I would think it would be stressful and lonely if things don't work out, but they do it to make things back home better for their families...

After a 4 hour layover, we finally headed to Istanbul. I went on another Air Arabia flight, and for the first time, I heard a Muslim Prayer before the plane took off on flight. I wonder if it was one of the 5 prayers that Muslims perform each day, or if it was just a prayer for a safe flight. Either way, it was quite interesting to see religion play a part in a commercial airline, much like other businesses who inconspicuously do so with their own owners' religions.

I landed in Istanbul just past midnight, took a bus and taxi to my CS Hosts' place, where he was also hosting another guy from Germany, and knocked out. The ride from the airport to the home brought me memories of my city in California. Maybe it was just because I was in a Western country, compared to all my travels in Asia, but it was nice to see clean highways, hotels, shopping centers, toll roads, etc...

Flight to Sharjah

Day 143 - Last Full Day in Kathmandu

It would be my last full day in Kathmandu. I've gotten so used to living here and it's been the country I've spent the longest time in so far on this entire journey, so it feels kind of bittersweet to leave, especially after traveling for three weeks with Aki and Niels, whom I'm gotten used to hanging out with. Aki left for Bangkok today, and Niels and I leave tomorrow, Niels leaving back to the Netherlands.

I spent the day continuing to finish my checklist, buying more souvenirs and finally shipping them home. Again, shipping stuff costs an arm and a leg. I think the total was around $85 USD to ship 6kg of stuff home, and I'm sure my backpack will still weigh a ton when I head to the airport tomorrow...

We had another amazing dinner at the hostel, our last dinner with the hostel... It was the closest thing to Mexican food that I have had all trip - Buffalo Chili with Roti (basically like tortillas). So delicious!!! Tomorrow I head to the airport around 11am, with a layover in the U.A.E., before arriving in Turkey!

Buffalo Sukutai (?)

Buffalo Chili with Roti

Swoyambunath

Day 142 - Shopping in Kathmandu

Honestly, I've been in Kathmandu for such a long time, taking walks through the city as if it were routine, that sometimes I forget what I did the previous day! I'll try to recollect...

It was another "administration" day as I made myself a checklist of things I had to do before leaving the country in a couple days. It included getting a haircut, purchasing some last minute souvenirs to ship back home, writing postcards, shopping for socks and underwear (it's cheaper here!), possibly purchasing some artwork, blogging, updating my budget, and planning my Europe leg of my trip.

Spent the day in Thamel again, meeting with a friend at my Hostel who was with her group of American and Canadian friends. They were all English teachers in Korea for a couple years, saving enough money to travel and explore the world. Seems like a perfect option for someone who wants to travel! I hope in the future, it won't be too difficult to gather a group of friends and/or family to travel somewhere far away, but it only seems harder the older we get. I would love to come back to Nepal and do a trek with all my close friends and family!

At night, I had dinner with a friend back home in Los Angeles! He was in between jobs and decided to come to Nepal to do some trekking, rock climbing, and other adventurous activities before jumping right back into the corporate world. We shared some of our similar experiences in Nepal, as we both pretty much did the most popular touristic things. It's always nice to see a familiar face back home...so come visit me!!!

Rarely any Street Lights in Kathmandu...

Chapati Lunch Set

Dinner with Matt!

Day 140 - CS Meetup in Kathmandu

Today was an "administration" day as I spent the morning planning my trip to Europe, figure finances, and write some postcards. We weren't able to go rock climbing again today, probably due to the festival. No one picked up the phone when we called.

By chance, a CSer, originally from Turkey, wanted to meet up with me since he was working in Kathmandu and wanted to meet more people. Funny how things work out that way...since I was going to Istanbul in a few days and would love to pick his brain on some of the things to do there. We ended up having coffee and shared our experiences in Kathmandu as tourists. He also told me of standard routes to take in Turkey, and which cities to visit. I think I will make a circle around western Turkey, starting first in Istanbul, and then heading to the Aegean Coast, to Southern Turkey, and finally to Cappadoccia before leaving turkey by flight in Istanbul.

Afterwards, we headed to a CS Meetup at a dreadlock shop, where I met a bunch of other CSers from all over the world. Surprisingly, there were many others from the United States. We sat around in the shop and learned how to make dreadlocks, which really takes a lot of time and patience. I asked how long it would take to make one dreadlock, and the owner, Zen, told me it would take around an hour! I don't know too much about the dreadlock culture, but I don't think I would ever get them, just seems too difficult to maintain and keep clean...

I told many of them about my plans to bungee jump tomorrow, and of course, it only made me even more nervous. But even with my nerves, it seemed like everyone else was getting more worried about it than me, but they would say that I looked extremely nervous, despite the fact that I felt that I was pretty calm about it. I don't think I will lose sleep over it, but the 3-hour bus ride tomorrow will be another story... 

A Warm and Beautiful Day in Kathmandu Atop Our Hostel

A Russian Couchsurfer with Some Nice Dreads

CS Dreadlock Making Workshop

Day 139 - Shopping in Thamel

We needed to get out of the hostel since we'd been so lazy the past two days, so Neils, Aki, and I headed to Thamel in search of a rock climbing wall to release some energy. I had finished my book The Alchemist, which I absolutely loved and decided I would read some more of Paulo Coelho's books. His stories are so effortlessly depicted, and there are so many questions the reader asks himself. It's always great to finish a book contemplating the things you are doing with your life and how to make it better.

We found the rock climbing wall, but they didn't have any shoes that were big enough for Niels' feet, and I didn't know how to belay yet, so we couldn't really do anything unless we found some shoes. We were unsuccessful searching for shoes in Thamel. They had a lot of mountaineering shoes, but none for basic rock climbing. We will try again tomorrow at another rock climbing facility and hopefully they have bigger shoes... I spent the rest of the day just perusing the shops and buying small gifts for people.

Day 138 - Dashain Festival Laziness

It was another day of laziness as most businesses remained closed for the Dashain festival. Spent most of the day enjoying reading the Alchemist and also planning the rest of my trip. I anticipate being home by late December or early January, ending my trip in NYC during Christmas and New Years. Things change suddenly though. A couple days ago, I planned on visiting Greece and Brazil, but now those two are not a part of the plan, since I don't think I have enough time or money to visit them this time around. Tickets to South America are so expensive!

My intended plan as of today is to fly to Turkey and explore the country for a couple weeks, then fly to Prague and explore for a week, head down to Rome and Venice with my cousin, explore southern Italy afterwards, and head to Spain for my last leg before heading back to the United States. I made a rough budget of my remaining spending money, and I'll be overspending even with this plan.

At the end of the night, there was a small celebration at the top of our hostel for the Dashain Festival. People drank and played music happily. I met a fellow accountant from the UK who also quit her job and plans to move to South Africa with her husband. We all told stories about our adventures so far in Nepal, including some of the accidents and dangers we heard about. We laughed a little just at how many accidents we had all heard about or witnessed, whether it be from planes skidding off small runways, trekking accidents, vomiting on buses, and broken legs from paragliding. All before my bungee jumping trip...

Hostel Lounging

One of our wonderful chefs

Chicken Breast with Garlic Butter Rice

Buffalo Meatballs with Garlic Mayo

Day 137 - Lazy Day in Kathmandu

I've had many lazy days so far in Kathmandu, but today was the ultimate because most of the shops and restaurants were closed for the festival. I spent most of the day reading the Alchemist, which is such a fitting book for someone in my situation right now. Maybe I should just continue traveling to figure out what my destiny is...but I'm a little weary and homesick, still a little fearful of the unknown, and wanting to come back to somewhere comfortable.

At night, we decided to head up the Monkey Temple since it was right next to our hostel and we needed some sort of exercise for the day since we spent the majority of it sleeping or reading or surfing the web. We took a back way to the temple to avoid paying the entrance fee again. There were so many more monkeys on this route. Luckily I wasn't attacked. They say you should never smile at a monkey because they look at it as an aggressive action on your part and may attack you...

The views were incredible again, overlooking all of the Kathmandu Valley at night. Even the top of our hostel provides good views of the valley and the homes in the area. Sometimes that's all you need to see to admire the beauty of any city. I see photos of all the homes in Kabul or Santorini and tell myself I'd love to visit these places, but every city has a plan that is unique in it's own way, including Kathmandu.

Day 136 - Garden of Dreams in Kathmandu

The next couple of days would be lazy days, as most of the city would remain relatively quiet due to the Dashain festival. I headed to the Garden of Dreams, which was the number 1 recommended activity in Kathmandu based on Tripadvisor.com reviews.

Just outside of Thamel, the Garden of Dreams is a renovated garden area where people come to just relax, sit around the gardens, nap, have a bite to eat, and just enjoy the surroundings, a stark contrast to the noise and grime right outside. It reminded me very much of my visit to the Peace and Wellness Labyrinth Gardens in Los Angeles that I wrote about prior to my trip. Both were quiet and beautiful places to relax and reflect, right in the middle of an urban jungle. They had a photo exhibit that displayed before and after renovation pictures. Much of the garden could have been lost, had the government not done something to prevent it. The architecture of the area was beautiful with elements of symmetry throughout.

Afterwards, I headed around the commercial shopping area of Thamel, since it was the last day many of the shops would be open before a 3-4 holiday break. There were a lot of bootleg shoes, and it was hard to tell the difference between a genuine Nike vs a fake one. Even fake shoes were sold in some pretty legitimate clothing stores, but I guess you could tell by the outrageously cheap prices that they were fake. I ended up purchasing some Puma sneakers from the official Puma store. It's nice because unlike many of the other countries I'd visited, the prices here were cheaper or similar to what I'd find in the U.S.

I headed back to the hostel, but not before finding a book to read, since my Kindle decided to break down...good thing it is still under warranty, although I'd like to get my hands on one of the newer ones that were recently released. I purchased The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I heard many good things about it from friends, and it is a popular book to read while traveling.

On the way back, I saw what appeared to be the beginnings of a goat sacrifice. A group of people, including many children, were gathered around a goat that was tied to a string. They were all loud and excited, anxiously petting the goat on the head. One of the older men dragged the goat towards their village, and everyone followed, helping to push the helpless goat forward. I didn't stay to see if it was sacrificed, but I assume it was.

Late at night, a group of us at the hostel decided to head to Durbar Square to see if we could find some more slaughterings. Everyone kept telling us different times and dates to go see it, so we decided to go tonight. Of course, when we got there, the square was quiet. There was barely any activity, although we did come across a small area that appear to be where a couple goats were sacrificed, with blood spilled over the pavement.  

Garden of Dreams

Animal Sacrifices in Durbar Square

Day 135 - Durbar Square in Patan-dhoka

We took a two hour walk south of Kathmandu to another Durbar Square in the Patan dhoka area. It started to rain and flood through the big city halfway through our walk. It was funny to see the traffic jam caused by the flooding, and the pedestrians all trying to find little islands in the puddles to step over to get from one place to another. I wore flip flops so I just walked through the flooded areas without too much trouble.

The Patan dhoka area, another UNESCO site, was nice to explore, with small mazes of alleyways throughout, and old traditional style buildings still intact. The Durbar square was similar to the one in the Kathmandu Valley, but a little bigger and with more appealing temple structures. We walked around for about 30 minutes, but I think Niels and I got a little tired of seeing some of the same sort of things since we've been traveling for so long.

At night, we headed to Thamel and got another steak dinner, meeting up with my CS friend Sylvia from Austria. She was headed to Pokhara the next morning to trek a little and we shared our experiences with her over dinner.

We were going to head to Durbar Square early tomororw morning to see some animal sacrifices during the Dashain Nepalese Festival (it's like Christmas for the Nepalese) but were told that it would occur another day. One of the workers at our hostel already sacrificed 11 goats during the day at his home by beheading them. The festival lasts 15 days, so I'm sure I'll come across some special things while exploring the city this next week.

Golden Temple

Durbar Square

Day 134 - Walking through Thamel

Today was a recovery day walking through the congested streets of Thamel. The first thing we decided to do was book a bungee jumping excusion off a bridge 160m into a gorge near the Tibetan/Nepalese border. The tour company is called The Last Resort...not sure if that is at all comforting to hear... I went back on forth about whether I wanted to do this, some of it out of fear, and some of it out of wanting to share in such an exciting activity with close friends, but again, it' a rare opportunity to do it in such a location as Nepal/Tibet that I couldn't miss out! Last night, I researched on what common accidents occur with bungee jumping...not sure if that was smart to do either! Most accidents occur with harnesses that aren't properly worn, with bruises and burns occurring. I also read about a guy in Thailand whose bungee cord broke off and he fell into the river below. He survived because he landed on his chest and not on his head, but sustained some pretty bad injuries... Let's hope all goes well when I do it!

Afterwards, we headed to lunch, but not before I tried to get cash out with my debit card...I ended up locking my card because I entered my pin incorrectly three times! I'll have to contact my bank to see how to fix this. Hopefully I won't have to jump through hoops to access cash or I'll have a problem in the next few weeks. If you know me, you know I'm not going to use my credit card to get cash advances and sustain heavy interest rates and bank charges.

I got my first haircut in over 2 months by a Nepalese barber. He did a great job, and only used scissors and razor blades to cut my hair, and it only cost 100 rupees! It was probably the best haircut of the three times I'd gotten them. Nepal>Thailand>Vietnam.

The rains came in the afternoon, and I had to make a couple stops at teashops to dry off and get out of the cold. It seems that monsoon season just won't go away. Kathmandu suffered an earthquake and some massive flooding when I was in Pokhara and Sauraha, but the monsoon season should have been over earlier than now.

At night, I stayed at the hostel and had some more incredible food. This time, it was a Buffalo Masala with rice, and a pumpkin vegetable soup. I'm definitely in food heaven. I've been so spoiled with all the food options, from the local momo stalls and dal bhat, to the western steakhouses, to the masterchef dinners at my hostel.  

Rainy Days in Kathmandu

Buffalo Masala with Rice

Jam Sessions at the Sparkling Turtle Hostel

Day 133 - Sauraha back to Kathmandu

It's been a while since I didn't have to wake up in the early wee hours to catch a bus! We had time for a comfortable breakfast before heading on a bus back to Kathmandu at 9:30am. The bus was rather comfortable for Nepalese standards, a notch above in quality compared to the other two buses I'd already taken.

The only problem was the accidents that caused traffic jams a couple times on our journey. What should have taken maybe 4 hours took 7 hours total. The drivers in Nepalese are pretty wreckless, even though most of the buses have slogans on their bumpers saying “drive safely.” Cars try to pass other vehicles on windy roads around mountains and end up crashing at blind spots when they don't anticipate another car coming along ahead. There was one head-on collision that I saw with a compact car and a bus. Hopefully nobody got hurt!

The entire day was almost completely spent on the bus. When we arrived in Kathmandu, we headed to a backpacker hostel about 30 minutes away from Thamel, the main tourist area. It was a good decision to get away from the noise and pollution in the area. It was also nice to get away from all the touts trying to sell us guesthouse rooms, taxi rides, trekking tours, hashish, and marijuana. The hostel, called the Sparkling Turtle, was Canadian owned, and just opened 2 months ago so the place was pretty spotless. The best thing about it was that one of the owners was a former master chef, and every night, cooks special Nepalese dinners. I had some of the best food in a while. A good meal really makes me smile afterwards, and I don't think I smiled as big as I did today in over a month! We had a buffalo stew with pasta and a cucumber salad. So delicious!

Rainbow over the Swayambhunath Temple 

Head-on Collision with a Bus

Days 127-129 – Relaxing in Pokhara

I may have been the least productive these past three days in all my travels so far, partially as recovery from the last 6 days of trekking, but also partially because the city of Pokhara is such a relaxing and clean city compared to Kathmandu.

The days were spent sleeping in, relaxing and walking around the city, and shopping for some warm clothes for my time spent in Prague in November.

Tragedy struck in Nepal during these few days after our trek when we heard that a small Buddha Air airplane crashed, killing all the passengers who took the short flight to see the views of Mount Everest and the other parts of the Himalayas.

Kathmandu also had a major earthquake right before we started our trek, and it has been flooding in the area due to heavy rains as well. It seems the monsoon season isn't going to stop as soon as people have thought.

Despite all this, Pokhara has been very welcoming and calm. Tourists still haven't been arriving in droves yet, and it was nice to read a little, get an Ayervedic massage, and have some more Western food, along with fried chicken momos from my favorite Tibetan local restaurant!

Tomorrow we head to Chitwan National Park to check out wildlife in the area.

Nepalese Tea Shop

This Japanese man traveled in Goa for 6 months, and plans on going back for another 4. I think he probably fit in in India more than I did...

Our favorite steaks in Pokhara

Probably not the best advertisement given the current news in Nepal...

My favorite fried chicken momos!

Day 119 - Kathmandu to Pokhara

Another early day wakeup to catch a tourist bus to Pokhara. The ride was bumpy and the bus had weak suspension as we climbed up and down the mountains and valleys to Pokhara, which is lower in elevation compared to Kathmandu. The drivers here are pretty fearless as they pass each other on the roads, and I saw a couple accidents on the ride there.

Upon arrival in the city, we met with a guy from Finland who was also planning on doing the Annapurna Base Camp trek. Since he was alone, we asked if he would like to join us. Other people on the bus were already in groups or had hired their own porter and guide. We were told we wouldn't need a guide on this trek since it was fairly easy to navigate and the locals were more than happy to help us with directions.

The city of Pokhara itself was a lot more calm compared to Kathmandu, as expected. It is located next to a huge lake called Fewa, where most of the tourist area is located. Similar to Thamel, there were tons of trekking shops, restaurants, and guest houses, but since we came right before the busy season (which starts in October), there wasn't much activity in the shops.

We spent the day relaxing before having dinner at a Japanese restaurant, which was a little pricey, but it was the first Japanese meal I'd had in a while. We met up with our new trekking buddy, Aki, who was in a similar situation as both Niels and me. We all quit our jobs and were on a 6-month traveling excursion. Niels was nearing the end of his trip, with Nepal being his last stop, and Aki was just starting his own journey in southeast Asia, with Nepal being his first stop. Tomorrow we'd all get our Annapurna Conservation Permit and TIMS (Trekkers' Information Management System) Cards before we begin our trek.

Early Morning in Durbar Square

Drink like a Gorkha Soldier?