Good luck Nepal to your way from monarchy to ‘democracy’ within the next days!

Having a great time in Asia… great and impressive.

I wish, my days would have more than 24 hrs., the weeks more than 7 days… 

Too short… too short to see to discover more… Now it can go on: Through Nepal to Tibet, through China, visiting Buthan, Bangladesh. Heading in the direction of SEA: Laos, Northern Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia back to India with Andaman-Islands, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan…

There’s so much more outside… So many different people, at the end we are all the same. With same needs and wishes. So many different values. So many different faces with smiles. So many different religions living in one country… (will have to read more about this when I am back… Sikh. Hindhu. Tibetens. Muslim. Buddhism…)

The first days in Kathmandu/Nepal. Interesting and different to the places I have seen in India. Kathmandu is a quite touristy place and I have never met so many tourists before then here during this trip. A lot of temples and interesting places…

Here is everything: Internet on every corner, shops, restaurants, bars, rikshas, tourism - the business is running! Also the people are a little bit different and quite “western-styled”. The prizes are low and its possible to have a complete lunch with drinks under 1 US-$. Trekking-Clothes, jackets, T-Shirts, shoe, hats and coats on every corner - faked brands quite cheap…

So far my first impressions from Kathmandu.

I made a long walk through the city today and after having this internet-break I am off to Pashupatinath - a Hindu-place in Kathmandu next to the river. Tomorrow I am planning to go outside of Kathmandu, visiting some smaller villages.

Darjeeling to Nepal

So, I did not mentioned, that on the drive from Darjeeling to Nepal, we had another flat tire somewhere in the mountains. So, waiting and had another rest. Was OK.

Kakarbhitta

The place in Kakarbhitta was nice, although it was quite near to the border. I walked a little bit outside of the small village and found nice green places. I stayed there at Hotel Mechi and the bill says, “yes, of course, I am from Australia!”.

Airport Kakarbhitta

I took the plane from Kakarbhitta to Kathmandu which took me 40 Minutes instead of 18-19 hrs.  by bus. I planned to go by bus, but there is not time for this anymore unfortunally… The flight was OK, there have been 24 passagiers in the small machine from YETI-Airlines (I like the name…). I had no chance seeing the himalaya mountainas through the clouds.

Next time, I am sure :)

This is funny…

I just saw Peter Habeler in the streets of Kathmandu. I had to laugh, because last year I managed a “A trip to Nepal-Blog” for Wolfgang, where he met Peter Habeler in the Himalaya-Mountains (Cho La to Lobuche) and made a short Podcast with him…

Podcast with Peter Habeler from “A trip to Nepal”-Blog:
http://www.sugarmelon.com/nepal/?p=94

Wolfgang, Roberto - this is for you :)

Cool, can’t really believe, but I suceeded in arriving my last point on my trip this morning by plane: Kathmandu (Yeti-Airlines) from Bhadrapur, where I stayed over night. There are some poliotical strikes and protest at the moment in Kathmandu, many shops are closed, many people on the street… I am feeling save. More about Kathmandu the next time…

Now a short GPS-Update from the flight from Bhadrapur to Kathmandu in Google Maps. I asked for permission to track this, so - everything is OK…

If you have got Google Earth, you can maybe find out and see the altitude of the flight, etc. - I have no idea, if those data have been convertetd too: User this KML-File for Google Earth…

 

Größere Kartenansicht

Tea, tea, tea, tea, tea, tea, tea, tea, tea, tea.

After seeing the sunset this morning, I went to the tea-fields in Darjeeling. Interesting, as I have never seen tea-fields in real life before. The plants are very low and look like “Schwarzbeerstauden” (Blueberry plants). A nice green. Went to a tea-factory…

After having a short sleep I was woken up by a thunderstorm with heavy rainshowers. When I am sleeping I am sleeping. Normally I am not waking up by loud noise or sth like that. But this time I was woken up by the water, which came down on me from the ceiling :)

5 o’clock tea

Then I went for another tour through Darjeeling and after a while I stopped at a coffee-shop to have 5 o’clock tea and a blackforrest pastry… Good good! I think, my stomach will do it.

The temperature in Darjeeling is OK, although I am wearing a fleece-pullover. In the night I need two blankets as it gets colder… It”s OK, compared to 44 Cels. in the other regions :)

Tomorrow: Kathmandu

Tomorrow morning I am leaving to Kathmandu/Nepal. Going by jeep down to the Shiliguri, then by jeep to the border - crossing it - then with another jeep to the airport or by bus to Kathmandu.

Soo much to see……..

More images?

Check here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sugarmeloncom/sets/72157604536603810/

Went to the Nepal embassy in Vienna (Akazienstrasse 30, 1230 Vienna) to get the Visa for Vienna. Everything went fine. After paying a fee, leaving a photo and filling out a form, I received my Visa within 10 Minutes.

Today I met Robert and Wolfgang - both had been in Nepal last year (check Wolfgang’s Nepal-Blog here: www.sugarmelon.com/nepal). Robert showed me his pictures from his trekking-tours and with Wolfgang I had some chats about India and Nepal.

There are two possible routes, travelling through Nepal and arriving in Kathmandu.

Route 1 is from Darjeeling, passing Kakarbhitta and then 200 km in the south of Nepal to the Royal Chitwan Nationalpark, where I will start Route 2 (coming from Patna in India) and going forward to Kathmandu. Depending on time and transport and my personal condition.

In Kathmandu I am currently thinking about 2 things:

• Either flying with Yeti-Airlines to Lukla, staying there for one night or 
• doing a round-flying-trip to see the Himalaya-Mountains (Mt. Everest, Makalu…).

Fascinating - it would be great to see those landscape and those mountains about which I read about in Wolfgang’s Blog.

On Monday Morning I am going to receive my Visa for Nepal…

Ok, I am focusing on a more defined route. I will focus on the northern part of India and will join parts of Nepal:

Delhi - (Agra) - (Jaipur) - Rishikesh - Bareilly - Kanpur - Varanassi - Patna - (Darjeeling) - Kathmandu - Delhi

The idea is starting from Delhi. I am not sure, wether it’s a good idea visiting Taj Mahal and the palace in Jaipur. I will make my decisions in Delhi. My plan is going north - where the Ganges has its source. Going to Rishikesh and going further into east by following the Ganges: Bareilly, Kanpur, Varanasi, Patna.

Depending on transport, time and my personal condition, I will decide in the area of Varanasi/Patna wether I will travel to Darjeeling or directly to Kathmandu in Nepal. If I am visiting Darjeeling, then I will travel to Kathmandu via Darjelling by jeep and bus. Should be an adventure. Crossing the borders…

Yesterday I succeeded in the second part of my rabbies vaccination. Same symptons as last time: A little bit cold, a little bit hectic and a “hot” night, which means, that I felt, that my body was struggeling with some side-effects of the vaccinations. Interesting, as it was the same last week after the first rabbies-vaccination.