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.