Dominic

Today we met Dominic. I have known his father for some years. He lives in Fredericton but has worked internationally a lot. When his father heard I was going to Kathmandu, he suggested that I look Dominic up. Today was the day. We shared tea at Mike’s Breakfast.

Dominic works for a non-government organization that promotes democracy by helping to build institutions around the world. He has worked in several parts of Asia, but will be heading back to Ottawa shortly to start working with a similar organization. In Nepal he has been working with the some of the new parties.

He said that Elizabeth Weir is scheduled to arrive next week, but that her flight goes through Bangkok, so whether she in fact gets here is uncertain. Mumbai is no longer a good option. I’m sure glad my flight returns home via Doha.

After meeting with Dominic we headed to New Road and Durbar Square. I needed a new battery for my watch, had not yet seen Durbar Square this trip, and wanted to tidy up shopping. The shop where they replaced the battery was a tiny little thing. I can’t think of a space small enough to compare it with. But it is certainly smaller than our upstairs bathroom. And there were 2 guys in this stall, one squatting on a stool, who knew how to do these things.

It now costs a small entry fee to get into Durbar Square, and I don’t know if that is good or bad for the vendors there. Certainly there was not the crush of people I remembered from our last visit, but the vendors were just as pesky. If they decide they want you to buy something they just don’t leave you alone. It gets exhausting after a while.

We walked from Durbar Square to Thamel, past the vendors that cater to the locals – the vendors with fresh fruit, onions, mushrooms, greens, track suits, sneakers, winter jackets, saris, pots and pans, spices, street food. Then stopped at the Big Belly for beer and something to eat. Gabriel has had stomach problems and I explained to him that beer is the best food in that instance.

Back to work tomorrow.

Biratnagar

So tonite we are in Biratnagar, and the Hotel Ratna. It probably was a very fine hotel in its day. Now it is a little threadbare, but the rooms are spacious, the staff are nice, and I checked - there is hot water. There also seems to be a very good restaurant, and the building is adjacent to a school for hotel people. There is however no internet. I will check tomorrow to see if there is a cyber café nearby. I wouldn’t dare go out now – it gets dark soon, and the vehicles might not see me in the dark.

There is one peculiar thing about the bathroom. In the drain of the sink is a walnut shaped piece of urinal cake. Why? I don’t know. And I don’t want to speculate!

We flew on a bigger plane this time, and could view the Himalayas quite nicely from the air. I sat next to a dear man, with good English, who ran a business upgrading the training of the high school teachers. He told me the name of the mountains, and rivers, and since he had the window seat, took a couple of pictures for me.

Biratnagar is SOOOOOO much nicer than Birganj. It is obviously more prosperous, there is a lot more asphalt, people look healthier and better dressed, and is quieter. There are, like in Birganj, many rickshaws, which is not surprising because the land is so flat. It has occurred to me that my travel wardrobe is drab, especially compared with the beautiful saris and kurtas that the local ladies wear.

We visited the office here this afternoon and will go back tomorrow. Security here is a problem as well, since the Maoists operate in this area too. They had a bomb blast last year in front of their building, but no one was hurt, and it did not do much damage. Although the building is dark and smelly it is a far sight better than the one in Birganj.

Well I must call downstairs. Don’t think my room has any power. And I’d like to follow that blast in Mumbai. There but for fortune……..

Finally some progress

Well today I feel much better than you very much. Even had supper tonite. Buffet at the Yak and Yeti – one of the best in town. How nice to feel back in the land of the living.

The day started with a knock at the door. I hoped Gabriel would hear it and answer, but no, so I got up, made myself as respectable as I could, and found Achute Rana at the door. Achute is our landlord. I originally though he owned the whole building, but what he owns is our unit. He is also the husband of Yasmine who made my wonderful vest. I showed Achute the vest, and he said that he had designed the fabric. That it was inspired by a Tibetan Tiger rug, and had it especially woven in India. He is a particularly nice man, very gentle, obviously an artist. I was glad to get to meet him.

We had some animated discussions at the office about the format of the focus groups, and attendance list, interspersed with calls from the secretary about details. I was happy to be more up to par for the discussions.

I have not told you much about life in the apartment. It is a very large building, with many units, a gym and a swimming pool. The ceilings are very high, there are at least 2 security guards around all the time, and there is office staff who are happy to mail your letters, get you a new transformer, arrange for more bottled water etc. And these people are so very nice, with quick smiles, and a genuine desire to help. There is a washer and dryer in the basement, which is a plus until you discover that it will fill with water, swish it around a bit with the soap. And then stop. And it takes days for anything to dry here. So I have had to become a philosophical about how many times it is possible to re-use underwear. Also about how often to wash your hair. It used to be – when it got dirty. Now it is – when there is hot water.

Our unit has a big living/dining room, with lots of appliances – microwave, TV, two heaters, two fans, blender, gas stove, iron. Each bedroom has its own bathroom with toilet, sink and shower. My apartment mate is Gabriel, who is Canadian, originally from Chile. He does a lot of this international work. He is a pleasant enough apartment mate – cheerful, game for excursions, good cook, pushing 50 I would say, with a new wife and baby back in Gatineau. It is a nice set up. We get food at a local “supermarket” and prepare many of the meals here, which leaves more money for shopping.

Tomorrow we are off to Biratnagar in the southeast of the country. It is where the Bhutanese refugees have settled. The Tibetans are in Bouddha, the Kashmiris run shops in Thamel, and the Bhutanese are in Biratnagar.

A Wedding Invitation

Today I came back to work, although I must say I am not really up to par. We are getting ready for some focus group sessions and it was important to be here, discuss some things, and prepare the presentation. Mid morning, one of the local consultants came in with a wedding invitation for me – his son is being married in Baratnagar, in the south east part of the country, on Dec 7. I will not be here anymore, but if the timing had been different it would have been wonderful to go. It will be a traditional Hindu wedding, with all the ceremony the days before. The fellow who is hosting the wedding is a short little guy. Shwarma is his name, not sure if that is surname or given name, that’s just what we call him. But wasn’t that a nice thing to do?

Gerald McGrath, one of the fellows who was here earlier as part of the team, arrived. He is an expert in cadastral systems, from Ontario. He is 72, ex professor, British accent, and I am impressed with his knowledge and his ability to articulate issues. It is nice to be working with him. He has worked all over the world. Although I enjoy a little gig now and then, I do not think it would be much fun to make your living as an international consultant. Too much time away from home. Too vulnerable if you get sick.

Today I picked up my new vest from Yasmine’s. It is quite lovely and I can assure you that no one will have another one like it.

So I left the office early because I had finished the things I needed to do, and was not feeling well at all. When I got to the apartment I called Dr. Ravi and he said come in and he would give me some more powerful medicine. So I went out to the street and said “CIWEC clinic, Thamel – how much” and the driver responded like he knew how far it should be, and off we went. But he did not have a clue. And would NOT ask for directions, and I said – across from the embassy, and he said embassy? Like that was where I wanted to go. And my book said the clinic closed at 4, and we were still wandering the streets of Thamel at 4, and at 4:10. So I finally got out of the cab, and took the one behind us on the street. Lo and behold it was the guy who drove us on Sunday, Thanks goodness. I was so angry at the first taxi driver. When you are not up to par things irritate you a lot.

Pain in the gut

Well on Friday life was starting to get back to normal. There were more vehicles on the road, more noise. We got to the meeting with the joint secretary, and then headed to one at Nepasoft. Partway through that meeting I started to sweat, and have stomach pains. I headed back to the apartment, and put in a most uncomfortable night. Saturday I was not much better. No vomiting or diarrhoea, just pain, fever, chills. I called my friend Oscar who knows about those things, and he suggested I visit a clinic. There is a vey good one here called CIWEC, with Western trained doctors. So Sunday I went early in the morning. After feeling my tummy and ordering urine tests and an x-ray of my abdomen, decided that I had two problems - a urinary tract infection, and significant constipation. In retrospect that was not surprising. I have been avoiding fruits and veges so as not to pick up any water borne diseases, and have not been diligent about drinking water. So I went home with medication for all those things, still not back to normal today, but improving. I’ll blog again when there is something more interesting to report.

The pros and cons of demonstrations

This photo is from a meeting in Birganj

We got a call this morning from the office administrator saying it was pointless to try to come to the office today because of the demonstrations. It would be very difficult if not impossible to get to the office, and even if we did, there would be no one else there. I am not sure how long this will go on, but having these demonstrations makes a big change in the city.

During a “banda” or protest, the whole city shuts down. Stores close, taxis are not on the streets, nor are buses or cars. The noise level goes down remarkably, and the streets are empty of vehicles. We had a meeting at the Annapurna hotel, which is within walking distance, so that is what we set out to do. Fortunately for us, one of the few taxis that ventured out came our way, so we did not have to walk the whole distance.

The Annapurna Hotel is one of the nicest in Kathmandu. Nice big modern lobby, tasteful decorations, staff in Tibetan costume offering tea. Although we met in the lobby, I presume the rooms are modern and well appointed as well. It is on one of the main streets in Kathmandu, and there are lots of tourist amenities nearby. It is within walking distance of Thamel, the shopping area.

When the meeting was over I headed back to the apartment to work from there. No taxis of course, so I took a rickshaw. The poor fellow had to cycle up hill with me in his carriage. Not an easy task.

The main task for the afternoon was to prepare for a meeting tomorrow with the Ministry regarding a possible extension for the project. I hope we will be able to get to that meeting. It is certainly not within walking, or rickshaw distance.

Back in Kathmandu

I was relieved to get back to the apartment in Kathmandu. After spending the night in dusty Birganj, there was no hot water for a shower in the morning. We went to the local office, and saw the Lekhandas (writers) all assembled under a metal roof waiting for customers. They are the Nepali equivalent of real property lawyers. They complete forms in nice handwriting, and navigate through the registration processes that have evolved over the years. The only qualification to be a lekhanda is good hand writing, as tested by the local court.

The office space in Birganj is really not very good. They have no money for repairs, or building maintenance, and it sure shows. But the staff are a gracious, intelligent bunch, who really want things to be improved. Even the lekhandas are hoping for a system that works better.

We took a little detour to the Indian border before heading to the airport. As you might expect it was packed with trucks, buses, rickshaws, and pony driven carts. Nepalis can cross freely, but if a Canadian made the mistake of crossing over the border without a visa they would end up in jail. A Canadian has been jailed for three months for that offence. Unlike other countries you cannot just get one at the border.

We heard that there were demonstrations in Kathmandu, and were a little concerned about getting home. Things went smoothly though – the air was clear and the views from the aircraft were awesome. The Himalayan mountain range is in the north of the country. To get to Birganj you cross over a different range with a long name that starts with M. And you can see little villages and monasteries on the tops of the hills. And switchback roads, and then coming into Kathmandu we could see the stupa at Bouddha. It was really quite spectacular. It turned out the demonstrations were in support of two mothers whose sons had been killed by members of the communist youth league. The protests were in the Kalinki area – a place we visited last week.

Birganj

Well if its Tuesday this must be Birganj pronounced burr-gunge. Should be named burr grunge. It is in the Terai – the flatlands of Nepal, near the Indian border. Much of the food grown in Nepal is grown in the Terai. There were many rice fields as we drove in from the airport, and lots of animals as well – goats, cows, water buffalo, and other bovine species. Judging from the houses and dress of the people as we passed, this is not a prosperous area of the country. My guide book describes Birganj as follows: “unlovely would be a good way to describe Birganj”. It is also known apparently as the city of rickshaws. Certainly there are many in the streets. The drivers must have legs of steel. They go at quite a clip, often with 2 or 3 people in the chair. And they must navigate pedestrians, jeeps, motorbikes, cows, wagons drawn by donkeys, buses etc etc. It was quite a sight to look out the window of the hotel and just watch the action on the street.

The Terai is much warmer than Kathmandu, and it is mosquito country. We had a meeting at the local office, and at dusk the little damners came out in force. I brought repellent to Nepal, but did not have the presence of mind to pack it for this trip.

The hotel is a little run down, but the room is spacious and the bed is large and seems the right firmness, and it has its own bathroom, although you have to fill the tank with a bucket in order to get the toilet to flush. I think there might be internet but you need a password, and I am not at this moment up to going walking down the 2 flights of stairs to get the password.

As usual, the staff that we met with were quite impressive. They were articulate with respect to what their problems are, and very keen to have the right tools to do their work. One of their big problems is security. Land is a sensitive issue with the Maoists, who still operate in this part of the country, and they shake the staff down for money, threatening physical harm if it is not forthcoming.

We got here by flying Budda Air. The sky was a little hazy, so could not see much out the window. It was a tiny aircraft like the ones that fly to Halifax, everyone has a window seat. No one seemed particularly concerned that my backpack was on my lap the whole time. I don’t think they cared even if your seatbelt was done up. As the flight headed down the runway the attendant passed out candies and cotton batten. The cotton batten was for putting in your ears. Why? I don’t know.

Working in Nepal

As you might expect there are a great many people here who just eke out a living selling things from tiny kiosks, or acting as servant, porters, etc. Educated people though have occupations in the civil service, and private sector companies doing IT or engineering, or accounting, or law etc etc.
The work day starts at 10, and ends at 4. We work 6 days a week, taking Saturday off. They used to have a 5 day work week, but changed it a year ago or so. Nobody seemed to mind. The exterior of the building we work in looks quite dilapidated, but inside it is acceptable. The interior is clean, the ceilings are high, and there is adequate space for he people who work there. Lots of cubicles, with some offices on the outside walls. We occupy one of those.

Men do most of the administrative work. If a woman is there it is either to clean and serve tea, or as a senior professional. The ladies cleaning and serving tea do not have a taxing day. They sweep and dust around, and then twice a day bring tea and return to get the cups. In most offices it is men who do this work. Often very old men.

We have power most of the time in the office. There is a local area network that provides slow speed internet, but I am not hooked up to the LAN, and most of the time do not need internet.

You see all types of workers heading to work on motorbikes. Lots of people in suits with helmets. Several families with the babies in the front, no helmets. Women mostly wear saris or kurtas (a pants and mid thigh pants to match). Sometimes you see them in jeans or a western pant suit, but not often.

Today we went to one of the registry offices. It was remarkable that the deeds registry system works at all after seeing this office. The workflow has developed over years and has a lot of steps that could probably be done away with. The records are practically all paper, and a business has grown up of lekhandas – people who know how to write and how to move paper through the system. Around the office we visited were perhaps 40 offices of these lekhandas. Years ago we used to make copies of maps through a process of exposing the original on a large flat machine with a bright light and then putting the paper through an ammonia machine, but this as years and years ago. The Nepalis have this system too, except instead of exposing the paper on a large machine with a bright light, they expose it to the sun on the roof top. It was fascinating to see.

Tomorrow we are off to Simara. I might not be able to post from there

Kids in Kathmandu

There are all sorts of kids in Kathmandu. Probably a larger portion of the demographic than in North America. Some are really lucky – you see them heading to school in their uniforms. There are some less fortunate – like the street kids in the Buddhist school next to us. They are a rag tag collection of little ones who may have lost a parent in the recent fighting, and have no family to look after them. Then there are the really unfortunate ones. You see them on the sidewalks, age 8 – 10, smoking cigarettes, playing cards, not making eye contact with anyone. Then you see the little kids that are the same all over, playing on whatever is handy, carefree, smiling broadly.

Tonite we went shopping in Thamel, and then had supper at the New Orleans Night club – on Sundays there is live music there, and tonite it was an Indian/western fusion band. First they had a set of tabla and flute, and then they were joined by a couple of guitars. The music was very exotic and soothing. They did not seem to be selling CD’s or I would have bought one. Supper was tasty. I had chicken satay, with a brownie Sunday for dessert. Gorka beer for beverage.

Thamel is where many of the tourists stay, and it was alive tonite with music in many places, and lots of people on the street. The shops and clubs must all close by 11 o’clock which is cramping the style of many of the night clubs, and the taxi drivers as well.

Tomorrow we go visit an office that is near Kathmandu, then on Tuesday we fly to Simara, which is near the border with India, about smack in the middle of that border. We return on Wednesday. I hope the air is clear and we can see the Himalayas. That brown haze which is covering a lot of Asia is starting to affect the sky here.

Pashpatinath and Boudhanath

Today was out day off, and we hired a taxi to take us to Pashpatinath , bouddanath and back here. Pashpatinath is a vey important Hindy temple in Nepal. It is really large, and sits on the bank of the Bagmati river, tributary of the Ganges, and therefore an auspicious site to be cremated. The temple site was surrounded by many many kiosks selling necklaces, brightly coloured powder for foreheads and for the small Hindu shrines. There are beggars, some of them with leprosy, mostly dressed as Saddhus, or holy men. You have to be careful of someone striking up a friendly conversation because they want to turn into your tour guide and be paid for the service. Non Hindus are not allowed in the temple, and we spent a lot of time on the terraces across the river from the temple. While we were there two bodies arrived for cremation. There ws a troop of monkeys scamper o the rooftops of the temples, and we wandered around some of the buildings, where some of the Saddhus lived in tiny little compartments.

In Boudanath is a very important Buddhist stupa, or temple. The stupa is surrounded by buildings and a town populated mostly by Tibetans who left their country when the Chinese arrived. They have prospered here and the whole area is very wealthy looking. It is clean, the buildings are well kept, and there are many many stores selling things of interest to Tibetans. It was really awesome seeing the prayer flags waving in the breeze from the giant stupa, and its eye peering down at everyone below.

Back to work tomorrow!

The Streets of Kathmandu

The sidewalks of Kathmandu are unlike anything you would see any place else. There are very many people on them, plus cows, and dogs, and sometimes goats. The animals just wander wherever they like, eat whatever they can find. They belong to no one, and no one pays any attention to them.

The streets themselves are a bustle of activity. There are cars and buses, many motorbikes, lots of three wheeled electric taxis, lots of regular but very small taxis, and gaily painted trucks. No one pays any attention to whatever traffic rules there may be. Crossing the street is a dangerous pursuit – 40% of the traffic fatalities in Kathmandu are pedestrians.

We met today with the director of surveys. He was not nearly as impressive as his boss. Had just been transferred to that job from the postal service, and probably felt out of his element. But he was so officious. As usual, when we arrived we were brought tea, and then shortly afterwards a guy came in to take away the cups, and this director fellow wanted him to pour him some water from a bottle behind his desk. Some of his staff were there, and they were very keen, very interested in the results of the project. All had good English.

Tonite I cooked buffalo meat for supper. In a nice tomatoey squashy sauce. It was terrible. I did not eat mine – way too tough. So we went back to the Chilean restaurant and had empanadas and chocolate mousse.

Tomorrow we are going to Paspatinath, where there is a very large Hindu Temple, and afterwards to Bouddha, where there is a wonderful Buddhist stupa ( temple). It will be good not to go into work for a change.

RK’s story

RK is the fellow whose picture was the last posting. He is the office administrator for the project, and is a very kind and pleasant fellow. I presumed from his facial features and manner that he was Tibetan, and therefore Buddhist, but no, he is Hindu, which I learned from asking him about the necklace he wore. Later in the afternoon he showed us a blackberry that his brother in law had sent from Florida. The purpose was to see if RK could sell them. I asked why the brother in law was in Florida, and it was to make money. He had been a driver, owned his own bus, and let the insurance lapse about 3 days before it tumbled down a hill and was totalled. So this brother in law was out of work, in debt, and disabled in some way, and just hung around the house and did nothing for a year except knit for some factory, for which he made enough money in a nights work to buy some rice. So he went to India to be with the living god, who has a multi-syllable name that starts with S, and he hung around the living god’s place for three days, when they finally made eye contact, and then his brother in law came home and applied for an American visa, and lo and behold he got it, because of the blessings from the living god. But he has been in the states now for 8 years, his wife and child are still in Nepal, but he does not yet have the right papers to bring them over. He is a cook at a restaurant, and saves his tip money to start ventures like selling blackberries in Nepal.

The lady whose picture is in this posting is the lady that brings me tea. She speaks not a word of English, but is very friendly. I asked RK to make a print of this photo, and she was soooo pleased to get it. She showed me a photo of her daughter.

This afternoon we met the secretary of the department of land management. This equates to deputy minister. What an impressive man. He was about 5 ‘2’’, wore the traditional Nepali cap, and met us in his office which had his desk, and seating for about 16 people in living room type chairs, each with a chair mat on the seat. An ancient man with a big smile served us tea, and then the secretary made it clear what he wanted from the final report – a document to tell them how to modernize, and that had the arguments to sell the idea to the minister. This fellow was very knowledgeable, had at one time been the director of surveys, and started a survey school while in that capacity. I don’t now how old he was, maybe mid 50’s, but had lots of passion and energy for his notion that land records should be modernized in Nepal. He said that if we put the right words in the document he could sell it to the Minister, because they listen to white people more than to Nepalis. Like us believing consultants from Toronto I guess.

Supper tonite was squash soup and mo-mo’s, which are little dumplings.

The power has been particularly finicky today. I hope the internet comes on so I can post this.

A Visit to a local IT company

Today started with a visit to Nepasoft, a computer firm that is doing some work for the project. This firm has 70 people on staff in Kathmandu, mostly applications programmers, but some working on outsourcing projects. They were the local representatives of about 10 international software companies. It also has a small office in Virginia. The staff were all trained in Nepal but had excellent English, but with an accent that you have to listen hard to understand. They occupied the 4th floor of a fairly modern building near our apartment. It was quite an impressive operation.

There are an inordinate number of motorcycles in this town. When we went into the parking garage of Nepasoft it was really striking to see that over half the space was occupied by motorbikes, rather than cars.


We booked reservations for Thanksgiving supper on November 27 at Mike’s breakfast. The original owner was American, and the restaurant does this every year. For supper tonite we had last nights leftovers, plus salad and soup. I declined the salad, still suspicious of leafy greens that have not soaked for a long time. I hope Gabriel des not get sick from it.

Eating in Kathmandu

Well up until now all our meals have been at restaurants – The Big Belly in Thamel, Mikes breakfast across the street, a little Chilean place near the apartment, Chinese food on the main drag, etc. Last night we got groceries at a modern kind of shopping center. It looked so familiar to me that it seemed I had been there before. Groceries on the bottom, escalator going to the next level, and then escalators to a third level as well. The upper levels had gifts and clothes I think. There were two things that struck me about the grocery store. First – what an extensive supply of chocolate they had. Second - how many different kinds of lentils there really are. The groceries were not particularly cheap. I suppose most of them had to be imported. We got some fruit and veggies and lentils and juice and milk and some meat. The veggies will have to be soaked in a solution to get rid of nasty little intestinal bugs. But this morning I had oatmeal and juice for breakfast – a little different from the 2 egg breakfasts I have been eating since arrival.

Those Buddhist kids next door must have slept in this morning. I did not hear the chanting till 6 a.m. Lazy little devils.

Kathmandu is really dusty. Not all the time though. In the rainy season it is really muddy. The nice lady that brings me tea has a first-thing-in-the-morning job to wipe off all the desks.

The people I work with are particularly nice. RK is the office administrator. He looks after arranging meetings, fixing computer problems, printing docs etc. He is early 20’s, and as nice and kind a person as I’ve ever met. There are a couple of consultants who are equally pleasant, and helpful. You have to develop an ear for the way they speak English, but they go out of their way to make you feel welcome and important.

We had a meeting today at the offices of the Asia Development Bank person in charge of this contract. He is a particularly accommodating guy, smart, pleasant, and as efficient as one can be given that you are working in a big bureaucracy.

Since we were near the Annapurna Hotel, we went to have a look at some jewellery stores there, and what did we come upon but Yasmine’s. The last time we were here I had had some clothes made by this store and I really loved them. So we went in and I was getting measured for a nice vest thing, when we realized that Yasmine is also our landlady. Yasmine and her husband own the huge apartment building we are in.

We cooked supper at the apartment tonite. Rice, dahl (every Nepali meal should include dahl) and chicken. Very satisfying.

some photos

First day of work

Today was my first day of work. Work starts at 10, and ends at 4. We have a big breakfast, and then supper. Nothing in between, which is fine for me, surprisingly. Twice through the day a very nice lady brings us sweetened tea that you must drink quickly so as not to insult her by having anything left in the cup when she comes for it a few minutes later. Today I spent talking with some of the consultants, and reviewing the interim report. Either tomorrow or the next day we go to a registry office in Kalimati, and next week to two of them in the southeast part of the country. Unfortunately they have already visited the office in Pokhara, in the Mustang region. I would love to go there. The purpose of the project is to help modernize the land records system. The current system is very outdated.

Dress is casual. The things I brought to wear are probably a little fancier than they are used to. Better that than the reverse.

The time zone they use here is 9 hours and 45 minutes ahead of us. Why the 45 minutes? To distinguish them from India. They also have their own calendar. To equate ours you subtract about 60 years from their date.

Some of the basic information you probably wanted to know:

Plumbing: the plumbing is western, and in good working order. Only thing different is that most flushes have a hose on the left side in case you’d like to use it. Shower is not hot, but warm enough.

Safety – Kathmandu is quite safe. It was the last time I was here, and is so now. There are lots of army and police types around, which I do not remember from before. I suppose they were all engaged during the troubles of the last 10 years and now have to be kept amused. They are friendly and helpful. However, the traffic is something else, and if you hear that I have died in Kathmandu, you can be pretty sure I was run over by something – a car or motorbike or rickshaw or tractor or bicycle. Yesterday I adopted the practice of not crossing the street until a local Nepali was going in the same direction and staying very close to him or her. I figured that evolution leaves only the traffic-savvy Nepalis still around to cross streets.

Water: - you have to use bottled water for even brushing your teeth, and are advised not to open your mouth in the shower (like Charlotte did). Beer is a pretty good alternative.

My accommodations: I am in an apartment in the Naxal area of Kathmandu. They mostly do not have street names in Kathmandu – just areas. So the directions to the taxi driver were “ace apartments, Naxal, near the police headquarters”. The entrance is manned by a guard, and there are several other types on staff in the lobby. Helpful to the extent they can be when I speak English and they speak mostly Nepalese. But on sunday when I wanted to walk to Thamel, one of them walked me about 10 minutes until he could point me clearly in the right direction. The lobby is spacious, bright and clean, and the apartment is as well. It is next to a Buddhist school that starts chanting at 6 in the morning, dear little kids bundled up in sweaters in a line, chanting away.

Religion: The country is officially a Hindu country, but there is a strong Buddhist component, partly because of the number of Tibetan refugees here. There are many places where the two religions share a shrine – so it is part Hindu temple and part Buddhist temple. There are many such religious places around, most of them locked now so you can only see them through metal gates. The Buddhist temples often have prayer flags flying which makes for a pretty sight. The offerings to the gods, and the chants etc indicate that religion is a very important part of the lives of these people.

Weather: It has been sunny and warm since I got here. The days are about 24 degrees, and it gets cool at night.

Oh yes - I did see a couple of cows today snoozing on the side of the road today. they seemed well fed. But no pigs. Maybe they did not survive all the fighting of the last 10 years.

Sunday is for shopping

Well what an interesting day I had in Kathmandu. I slept well considering the time change, and the fact that there was singing all night. It was kind of a Hindu equivalent of the Gregorian chant, with bells and a sort of drum. I think there is a holiday here right now, because there are lots of people milling about, and quite a few gathered in a park downtown. Next door is a Buddhist monastery or school or shrine or something, because very early in the morning there was the sound of lots of young voices chanting, and answering in chant. If it happens tomorrow I will try to get up and dressed in time to get in on camera.

I walked to Thamel today. That is the really toursity area of Kathmandu. The trekkers get their hotels there, and there are internet cafes and phone shops etc, which I was very keen to get to. Thamel is about 30 minutes from the apartment. I tried one internet café for 30 minutes but could not send anything, so went to a telephone shop and got through to Bob. Once Gabriel gets here I presume I will have internet at the apartment. I had breakfast in a little courtyard café called the big belly. 2 poached eggs with thick slices of toast and butter that was so hard I did not even try to spread it. The other clientele were tourists, mostly French speaking. They looked fit and were wearing good quality trekking gear. I presume they were headed out or just came back from a trek .

There are many shops in Thamel and many many hawkers. They all know some English, but do not seem to understand no thank you. There were lovely pashminas, some very nice purses, and some beautiful jewellery. I bought only postcards and a calendar, because I had not changed much money at the airport, and it was getting quite difficult to find an ATM that worked for me.

It was fun to compare Kathmandu from what I remembered of our visit in 1992. I think there is less pollution, and certainly I saw fewer of those tata trucks that were so offensive the last time. But there certainly was some pollution, and quite a few people wore masks, especially those driving motorbike. It is just as noisy as I remembered it. And what I had forgotten, but was reminded of, was how it is socially acceptable to clear your nostrils and sinus passages loudly in public, and then discharge on the street. I have not seen any cows wandering around, and no pigs either. I must ask someone what happened to them. There are lots of feral dogs however. My objective after lunch is to find a place that will give me some cash, and then go to Durbar Square. I roamed the streets of Thamel, chasing the elusive working ATM, and finally decided I’d have to go to a bank on the main drag. So stopped for lunch at another courtyard in thamel, with a different collection of French and other trekkers, and had a beer and a sandwich.

A sherpa that had chatted me up while I was shopping sat down at my table. He works for a trekking company and I guess was trying to get me to book a trek with his company. He said he was from the mountains and his wife and kids were there. He stayed in Kathmandu for 6 months every year during the trekking season, and then went back to the mountains when it was over.

After lunch I tried 3 bank machines and finally got my money. That was a big relief. I did not want to have to miss supper. I headed for Durbar Square, and I think I was close to it, but you can’t really tell, the streets are very which way, and not signed very well, and so your map doesn’t do you much good. I had to resort to seeing where the sun was, and figuring out the direction to walk from that. Although I did not make it to Durbar Square, I did happen on the bead bazaar, and was delighted to find it again. The shopkeepers were much younger than the crowd that worked that bazaar in 92. By then I had some cash, so bought a few necklaces. Caught a cab home for 200 rupees ( $4.00) and will rest for a while.

Saturday night in Kathmandu

Well here I am in Kathmandu. Some unexpected hitches in travel logistics, but finally made it to the apartment that will be home for the next month.

It is quite spacious, the staff here is as helpful as they can be given that I speak English and they speak Nepalese. There is a bar near the hotel with some singing Nepalese music. Not sure how late it will go on, but it is not too offensive.

Unfortunately I cannot get on the internet yet. I suspect I have to set up an account. So I cannot skype anyone right now to say I have arrived. And there is no reception for my cell phone.

Finally En Route

Well now that I am as far as London, it seems like I really will get to Nepal this time. What will happen when I get there I do not know. I was to meet my colleague here, and travel with him to Doha and on to Kathmandu. But his plane was delayed. and he did not tell me where we were staying. But I skyped Veronica at the Center for Property Studies and she found out what I needed to know ( Annapurna Hotel).

The day in London was quite nice. A little sunny, not too hot, not too cold. took the tube to Covent garden and wandered and wandered, over the westminster bridge, took a river cruise, and wandered some more. I'm now back in Heathrow. Good thing I gave myself lots of time. One person checks your boarding pass. The next one is the security for bags and person. then the pass port lady. then the shoe guy.

More when I reach Kathmandu!!