How exciting! I’m in Katmandu, Nepal. I’ve always thought how great it would be to visit Katmandu especially after having visited Tibet a few years back. I wanted to see where the Tibetans had escaped to when the Chinese took over and finally here I was!
It took us an hour to fly from Varanasi and we arrived at The Crowne Plaza Soaltee Hotel which by the way I totally recommend! Then after a nice dinner we got settled in.
The next morning we visited the major temple towns in the Kathmandu Valley at the foot of the Himalayan Mountains. We also went to The Hindu Temple of Shiva and the Buddhist shrine at Bodhnath.
Then I took an optional tour to the countryside (way up in the mountains!) and boy did I luck out.
That day was the Lhosar (festival) of the Tamang People. These are the people who were lucky enough to escape Tibet and who settled as farmers in this region. It was their New Years and it was being celebrated in a big way in the Naldum (Nagarkof) area.
(Yes, that’s me joining in the festivitiesLOL in the white pants in the middle!)
It was a good time had by all, what lovely people and being part of their festival made me feel that I was part of a PBS documentary about the area. It was great!
Well, the next day was the icing on the cake.
I booked an optional tour for a flight over Mount Everest in a 16 seater. Scary!
Here are some photos that document the experience and let you see Mt. Everest from above.
The triangular peak is Everest.
So what a glorious experience and one I will never forget!
And so all good things must end and this evening we had our farewell Nepalese dinner garnished with some great authentic Nepalese folklore entertainment.
What a great experience! I loved Kathmandu and completely recommend you visit!
Kathmandu-Crowne Plaza Soaltee Hotel
