Ah, exotic Kathmandu!

Home of shopping, momos, old buildings and fake northface jackets!

How you have grown sooo much, and become sooo crowded and dirty and dusty and polluted since I last visited 14 years ago.

You are still beautiful, don't get me wrong! I love your durbar square and how around every corner there is a new temple or stupa, usually with a market stall on it, just waiting to be photographed.

I love how, no matter how much I buy, there always seems to be more I want to buy..

I love how for such a big city, you are still quite clean, and you still have good quality local food. You haven’t let yourself become completely over-run by tourist cafes.

But we need to talk.

I think, you have become a little greedy…

I can understand charging a small entrance fee for some historical monuments. But charging 750 rupees just to walk through Durbar square?! When there isn’t really another way around it? And per day?? And 1000 rupees to visit Pashipatinath temple? Come on. That’s a little much don’t you think? Not to mention every other temple in the city has an entrance fee around 200 rupees as well! It’s all a little much.. And frankly, makes me feel like you are using me.  We actually decided not to enter Pashipatinath because it was just too expensive. I’m sure it was beautiful. I remember it being gorgeous last time I visited when it was free. Why do you need to charge so much these days?

And then there’s your health.. I think you need to see a doctor. You can barely breathe. After 1 week visiting you, I also lost the ability to breathe. So did Roh, So did Gypsy. Almost every tourist has the same “Kathmandu cough.” We met one guy who started coughing up blood after 5 days of visiting you. You really should try to do something about that.

Thank you though for providing a sneak peak of the Himalayas! It was nice to see them, even if it was through the haze that has encompassed you like a safety shield.

But, dear Kathmandu, I dare say I won’t be back. You were fun and all, but I miss your authenticity too much. I want to cherish the memories I have from the first time I saw you. When you were more city and less shopping mall. 

Most people go to Chitwan National Park to trek through the jungle in search of wild Rhino’s, tigers, crocodiles, deer and to ride elephants.

We had thought about doing a trek but with a toddler who never stops talking, we figured we wouldn’t see anything anyway. We spoke to one of the guides at our guesthouse and he confirmed, A)kids under 10 are not allowed, B) it cost waaaay more than we could justify, and C) Being just after the monsoon there is ample food in the park so the animals are mostly staying deeper and sightings were less common.

And so that was it, thankful for the honesty of the guides, we decided it was no trekking for us! Instead, we chose to chill out at our guesthouse, watch the elephants bath each morning, let gypsy pat every elephant/horse/cow that went past, and relax for a bit.

Well hello there!
Thanks for coming to see us!!




Feeling inspired we decided to go for a walk along the river and bam! Crocodiles!!

He was so calm, it was easy to forget that he was extremely dangerous and could quite easily kill us!! We went back the next day and he was in a different area, again not fenced in but just chilling and doing his thing. Lots of locals were walking past calmly so we figure he must be a regular. How amazing that such a wild and potentially dangerous animal is able to just go about its business without invoking fear into everyone!

So, without trekking we managed to see Rhinos, elephants, and crocodiles!! Who needs to trek!?!?!

(Note, the people we met who had done treks said they were really worthwhile.)


But on a serious note, we are super happy Gypsy was able to see a wild rhino although she probably won't remember it. The truth is, they are becoming rarer by the day due to poaching and their habitats being destroyed for farming.  I truly hope the efforts being undertaken by places like the conservation centre in Sauraha can have a positive impact on their numbers and that Gypsy will be able to bring her children and grandchildren back in the future to see them again. 

One of the often overlooked expenses of modern day travel is accessing your money while on the road. Gone are the days of travellers cheques and even currency exchange. Nowadays its 99% ATM. Some cards charge a fortune for accessing your moolah, others charge nothing (repeat after me CITIBANK PLUS!) however, you also need to taken into account fees that the local bank may charge.

In Sri Lanka every bank we tried was free!! FREE!

And in India most banks are also FREE!! Bank of India was our go-to bank.It worked well with our “plus” card and sometimes would let us take out more than 10,000 rupees at a time.

 
Nepal on the other hand is a different story. Every ATM in Nepal charges a 400 rupee surcharge for international transactions. This means that, regardless of what your card costs are with your bank back home, you will be charged an extra 400 rupees. They do this by adding it onto the withdrawal amount. So if you are trying to withdraw 10,000 rupees, in actual fact you are withdrawing 10,400 rupees but the ATM only dispenses 10,000.  It’s sneaky and completely unavoidable.


To add salt to the expensive wound, every bank except Nabil bank (green sign) allows only a maximum of 10,000 rupees to be withdrawn at each time. That’s about $4 for every $100. Ouch.

Our beloved Nabil bank however, allows you to withdraw up to 35,000 rupees at a time for the same 400 rupee fee. Saving you about $10. That might not sound like much, but considering that $10 is more than we spend on food a day for a family of 3, it’s a lot here.

You know whom I’m talking about..

THAT traveller who complains about being over charged even though ultimately it is only by $1 or $2…

THAT traveller who walks out in a huff saying it is ridiculous and they are never coming back…

THAT traveller who cancels their order because it’s taken too long to arrive..

THAT traveller who complains when their food comes out cold or not how it was ordered, even though the restaurant is super full because it’s the only one open on a public holiday and they clearly just can’t cope with the number of orders…

Yep.. that’s us.. Somehow, for 1 day, we became THOSE travellers..

Cringe..

It all started when I (Robyn) asked if the veg burger (120rupees) had cheese or not. The staff member pointed to the cheese burger (160 rupees) and so I asked if it was just cheese or if it had a veg pattie as well. She said, and I quote “Ok, veg, cheese burger.”

It was delicious mind you, when it finally arrived over 2 HOURS later. Then the bill came. They charged us 280 rupees!! They charged us for BOTH a veg burger and a cheese burger, even though we had only been given 1 burger, and they could not see how ridiculous it was that we had to pay for an entire extra burger, just for a slice of cheese… Frustrated and exhausted after waiting so long, we stormed out in a huff.. (embarrassed and knowing everyone was looking at us with “THAT traveller” glares, but feeling like it was justified. It was after all, TWO whole dollars extra! (Which goes a looooong way here in Nepal.)

That night we went to a different restaurant. Actually the only other restaurant open as it was the final night of Diwali. We waited about half an hour to actually be served, and then ordered a veg curry with no chilli and waited and waited. Nearly 2 hours later (and with Gypsy already asleep), out came our curry. STONE cold and covered in chillies. We sent it back and were told it would take another hour to make a new one as they were so busy. So we cancelled our order and left. Again, feeling like “THAT traveller” but actually getting sympathetic looks from the other customers, some of whom had been waiting even longer than us..

Were our outbursts justified? After reflection we think they were, and they weren’t. It’s a yes and no. Yes, I believe anybody is entitled to complain when the service is soo slack, or when they are so clearly ripped off.  But No, to expect 2 restaurants to be able to feed the entire tourist population and to get it right was no doubt having too high of expectations.

Lessons learnt.

We hope to never be “THOSE travellers” ever again.

What do you think? Should we bury our heads in shame?

Diwali is known as the festival of lights. All over India and Nepal, for about a week beforehand, houses and shops started to be decorated in hundreds of fairy lights. It really is beautiful to see.

In Janakpur, Nepal where we celebrated the main day, as well as fairy lights, every shopfront and house was decorated with Banana tree branches, with bridges of bamboo stuck into it on which candles were lit. They also used a rainbow of coloured sand to paint intricate pictures in front of their shops and houses. It was truly beautiful and made even the dodgiest and dirtiest street look amazing.

Here are some photos. It was a really beautiful festival that we are thankful we were able to experience.

The markets were pumping and full of colour and we were greeted over and over by locals “welcoming” us to Nepal, and little kids who just wanted to hang with us because we were cool. 

After safely arriving in Dharan thanks to the kungfu tout (see previous blog) and having spent a pleasant afternoon exploring the market and town, we packed our bags again ready to take the 9:30am bus to Janakpur the following day to celebrate Diwali. We had already confirmed with the bus touts that there was not only a 9:30 bus to Janakpur, but an 8am and an 11am bus too.

So when we arrived at the bus station at 8:30 and were told that, in fact, the only bus to Janakpur had already left at 5am, we were a little frustrated.

Over breakfast we consulted with the restaurant owner we had just befriended and he advised us to take a local bus to Itahari, from where there would be a bus every half an hour to Janakpur. Or, that we might in fact, be able to make it all the way to Narayangadh (for Chitwan National Park). And so we boarded a local bus with a few chickens and a pig, and headed to Itahari, in 2 minds about where to go.

At Itahari bus station we casually enquired about the next bus to Janakpur only to be told it wasn't until 3 pm!! WHAAT? What happened to every half an hour? Where were all these other buses going? After telling them we were planning on going towards Chitwan if we couldn’t go direct to Janakpur, we were instead advised to take a bus going to Birgunj and get off at a random junction town that wasn’t on our map. And so we did.

Once aboard the bus a stranger struck up a conversation with us and told us he was going to Janakpur! So we were on the right bus afterall? Although we would still have to change buses again. So do we go to Janakpur then? Or continue on to the random junction town on the way to Narayandagh? Hmmm.. We let the stranger convince us.  Apparently Janakpur was THE place to experience Diwali in Nepal. And so we decided for the 3rd time that day to change our destination and head to Janakpur with him! And then he changed his mind and said he wasn’t going to Janakpur afterall, but to a town near to it. lol

After 6 or so hours we were dropped off at a tiny junction town with no more than a handful of huts. We were soon surrounded by a curious crowd who told us where to wait for the bus and even hailed the bus for us!! With no English spoken by them, and no Nepali by us, we communicated with smiles and got on the bus when we were told to.

A further 30 minutes later and we were dropped off by the side of yet another road with only a handful of shops. Was this Janakpur? 2 guys from the bus started haggling with a rickshaw driver for us, and after the price was settled upon, got back on the bus and continued on their way. We couldn’t believe the bus had actually waited for them to haggle for us!!

As soon as we sat in the rickshaw another guy came running over and joined us. He was a doctor and gave us a guided tour of the town and surrounding villages, as well as an explanation about Diwali and what we should do.

What an adventure of a day. 3 buses and a rickshaw later and we were finally in Janakpur, apparently the most amazing town in Nepal to celebrate Diwali and it didn’t disappoint. It was a truly beautiful experience. The whole town was lit up with candles, and banana tree leaves and coloured sand adorned every shop front. We walked the streets for hours. Streets that normally would seem dirty or dodgy, suddenly seemed beautiful as the shadows danced in the candle light and locals danced and sang and played with fire crackers. We met many lovely people and were “welcomed to Nepal” countless times. It was a truly amazing experience and made the arduous journey more than worth it. 

But most of all, it was an amazing lesson in trust. Trusting our sixth sense. Trusting locals who were trying to help. Trusting in ourselves. And surrendering to the adventure at hand. 

Nepal, whilst not a difficult place to travel, is certainly a lot raw-er and, so far, off the beaten path than India or Sri Lanka were. And we are LOVING it!

It was our first morning in Nepal. After a lovely nights sleep at our friendly guesthouse in the not-so-dodgy border town of Kakarbitta, we headed to the bus station to grab a bus to Dharan. Our guesthouse guy had told us there was a bus every 10 minutes, so we declined his offer to help us find a bus.. How hard could it be?

No sooner had we arrived at the bus station when we found ourselves surrounded by people. Some touts, some curious bystanders, all of them shouting at us questions and directions. The more we weren’t able to hear, the louder they got. 2 touts were quite vehemently trying to get us onto 2 different buses and each had it’s own team of bystanders trying to help them to convince us. We stood there bewildered and getting deafer by the moment.

And then he appeared.

The kungfu bus tout.

Out of nowhere he appeared and landed a flying kick into the chest of tout number 1.

He then swiftly turned around and gave tout number 2 a forceful push to the chest sending him flying.

And then, in almost a Victorian English accent said “Excuse me sir and maam. How may I help you today?”

We replied we wanted to go to Dharan. To which he told us “Then I suggest you board this bus here. Have a pleasant journey. Welcome to Nepal.” And then he was gone.

Never to be seen again.

True story.