An American Abroad: Nepal on a Budget 2011

Once again I have to apologize for not keeping up with this blog. Several people suggested I create this blog, as a way for others to experience some of my travels. However, I have been so caught-up (and busy) with my life here, in the United Arab Emirates, that I have lost touch with one of my biggest goals . . . and that is travelling. So, as I take a step back and prepare for my upcoming holidays and the new school year, I hope I can maintain this travel blog for you all.

Nepal
Where do I begin? I suppose the best place to begin is at the beginning . . .
(even though this is being posted 6 months later)

Sitting in my bed several months back, a few friends and I were talking online discussing where it is that we would like to venture to over our ‘winter’ break. A few friends suggested Southeast Asia. I was interested; however I knew that S.E. Asia is such a diverse area, that I would probably want more than 3 weeks there. So, I looked further into a tour of an area that I wanted to visit, but could do just 2 or 3 weeks of. That’s how I came upon India. It is a country that has always interested me, but being that I practically live in the ‘Little India’ of the Middle East (migrant workers helping to build Abu Dhabi’s 2030 Vision) I was willing to only visit for 2 weeks. I was also willing to do it through a tour company since it is such a big country. I suggested the idea to a few of the ladies and they were in agreement that a tour of India for 15 days was a nice way to spend our break. Knowing that I would be flying over Nepal, I also decided that I would do a stopover in Nepal for a few days beforehand, to see the majestic Mt. Everest. A friend, who I live across the hall from, asked if she could join in on the Nepal adventure and that evening we booked our trip (or should I say fate).
As the trip started to approach and work became even more of a challenge I began to wonder if travelling for 95% of my break was really the smartest decision. I planned the holiday with the best of intentions and the old mindset of my earlier travelling escapades (ten years ago). However, ten years later with many countries visited under my belt, I started to doubt my mad travelling skills. “What? Twenty days in two third world countries staying in budget accommodations I the middle of the winter? No problem! I am woman, hear me roar!” Yeah, um . . . woops.
Now before I go into any detail or description of the past three weeks, I want to preface the story by saying that I had some great people accompany me on the trip, which really made the experience. I also want to say that I saw some pretty amazing sights and experienced some pretty amazing places that not many people can say they’ve done. That being said, I also want to remind you that I had to finish off my trip at the Goa Marriott Resort and Spa rather than doing two more nights at a budget hotel. Age is a bitch, but I am pretty happy now. I also had to break the Nepal and India blog posts into two different posts, because I did not want you falling asleep half way through.
I guess I could say that my holiday did not begin on the greatest of notes; I was told I would be switching grades (KG1 to KG2 – there is a difference, don’t laugh) on the last day of school, even though it was known for a month. This threw a kink in the works, because I had not given myself any space for planning to start all over again. However, I am very lucky to still be in the same school with great teachers and the knowledge of Kindergarten from the states (with the best mentor a teacher could have). It is going to be okay . . . insha’allah. Anyway, I left school that last day of school and headed right over to visit friends in Al Ain before I flew out. I was jealous that one of my friends, who I was visiting, would have a week before she left to meet me in India, to relax and enjoy herself. After a fantastic weekend in my home away from home, I drove to the airport at 4am and dropped off my rental car. I met up with my travelling companion and brave soul, Daisha. We headed into the airport, checked-in and waited for our flight into Kathmandu.
Etihad Airways is such a nice airline, that we were very happy with the flight and amenities that came with it. After landing in the very modest (I am going to try and be as positive as I can in this travel blog – wink) Kathmandu Airport (that’s Nepal btw, for my geographically challenged friends) airport, our first order of business was to get a Nepalese visa. Luckily the country is kind enough to let the tourists get their visas at the airport. Not realizing where I was, I forgot that one of the tips of travelling to Nepal, is to have cash upon arrival. Old Nicole would have remembered this. Well, it slipped new Nicole’s mind . . . woops. Needless to say, after walking around to three out-of-service atm’s my faithful travel companion found some extra money in her wallet for me. We paid, got our passports stamped and entered into the world of Nepal. Not having lost all of my travelling sense, I asked a girl at one of the many run-down airport kiosks how much I should pay for a taxi to my hotel. She gave me a cost, and it was lucky that I asked, because the driver (or his assistant, I should say) asked for more than that. After hopping into the scary and yet, interesting taxi, we headed into town with, by the way, a random Nepalese dude who thought he could swindle us into a 3 day tour of Kathmandu (I may be western, but he chose the wrong western chic). We weren’t off the plane for more than 30 minutes and we were already asked for more money than was fair and almost taken advantage of. At this point, I think this is where it started to hit me. Nepal is one of the poorest and most underdeveloped countries in the world. Coming from the UAE, the richest country in the world (although they are still very young and aren’t finished developing) and the United States, one of the most developed countries in the world . . . I was brought back to travelling reality. Just the drive from the airport to the hotel was astounding. Being that I was in a predominantly Hindu country, I was reminded of their affinity towards cows. They LOVE cows, and not in the way that cattle ranchers and meat eaters around the world love ‘em; I mean, they worship cows to the extent of the cows roaming the streets aimlessly in all their glory. After 3 or 4 days of walking alongside large heifers and bulls, you get used to it. Although, I almost crapped myself when a bull (like Toro! Toro! Sized bull) came walking up beside me and acted as if I didn’t even exist. Now I know what people mean when they say, “When I die, I want to come back as a cow in India (well, a Nepalese cow does just as well)”. I digress . . . the drive through the streets of Kathmandu . . . well, it was crazy. I will say, that I don’t want to insult the Nepalese people by my description of their proud country. But, from a westerner’s perspective, it was something that even the worst corner of the U.S. could not compare to; and it was everywhere. Seeing it on T.V. and seeing it first hand are very different and so humbling. The smells, the poverty, cows, emaciated dogs, tin shacks with people bathing in black water from a communal tin wash basin in the street, child running alongside the car begging for money, streets that I can’t even believe a car was able to navigate . . . women dressed in brightly colored saris with tan colored skin and beautiful gold bracelets, young students getting out of school mouths gaped open staring at us drive through town in their school uniforms, random Nepalese people smiling waving to us in amazement. It was an attack to the senses, good and bad. Welcome to Nepal.
After eventually finding our hotel, we headed up to the reception and checked-in. The owner, Ram, immediately came out to greet us and offer us some tea, which was welcomed since there was no heat or hot water in the hotel (and there wouldn’t really be for the next 3 weeks of my travels). We filled out some paperwork and headed up to our room (ignoring the Nepalese dude who came with us in our taxi, convinced he was going to lead us around Kathmandu). The room was simple, yet very cute. We relaxed for a few minutes and then headed back down to reception to speak with Ram about getting a flight out to see Mt. Everest. We stepped into his office and set up a tour of the city with a local friend of his and a flight to see Mt. Everest. He was very kind and we had a good feeling about his help (instincts were a big asset on this trip). He then offered to take us to a local place to eat and we headed out for dinner. We had our first Thali, which was delicious and enjoyed the evening. Realizing, after dinner, that we would be cold for the next few days, we headed over to the restaurant next to our hotel (I don’t want to mislead you into thinking it was an actual hotel, I just don’t know what else to call it – budget B&B, maybe?). They had a small fire, coffee and dessert. We sat, enjoyed ourselves, talked to a couple visitors and headed back to the B&B for a good night’s sleep . . . yeah, um or so we thought. Considering I haven’t had a good night’s sleep until I arrived at the Marriott in Goa, I’ll just leave that topic alone...
As not to drag this blog on to lengths that would shame War and Peace, I would consolidate my diatribes to the interesting bits. Over the course of the next few days in Nepal, we walked the city with a great local man, who spoke amazing English, saw a traditional Hindu funeral, walked the Hindu and Buddist temples and even managed to get caught in throngs of monkeys. We had the distinct pleasure of taking a plane to catch a glimpse of the indescribable Mt. Everest and witnessed a hospitable and kind culture of Nepalese people. The religious shrines, the streets, the experience of master monks painting traditional Thankas (Google it), it was all so fantastic. But after 3 or 4 days of sensory overload, no heat, bartering for everything, freezing cold water, unsanitary conditions and dirty western hippies that make the boys at Folk Fest look clean (which apparently we didn’t get the memo on, since we were probably the cleanest white girls there), we were ready to move on to our next adventure. I am so very happy that I saw Nepal and was even happier to have checked off Mt. Everest on my ‘Life List’. It was a good visit. Tips, you may ask? Check into a western hotel where you are guaranteed heat, hot water and filtered water (Montezuma’s Revenge doesn’t only exist in Mexico). Willing to ‘rough it’? God bless...