Woo Hoo! Arrived safely in Kathmandu with luggage in tow!
Roads are chaotic with trucks, cars, buses, motorbikes & rickshaws fighting for space, the noise of horns getting louder the closer you get to the centre of Thamel district. Apparently there is some method in their madness, one honk means I'm behind you, two I'm overtaking and 3 is it safe??
Checked into the hotel, dumped my bags and set out to explore the area. No sooner had I left the hotel, the rain came down, the dirt road I was walking on was quickly turning into muddy puddles and with splashed legs I dived into what looked like a locals bar, went up some stairs, took off my shoes and sat in a little cubby hole waiting for the rain to clear up and the young girl wanting to bring me food and more drink. She kept saying I was very different, later I realised I was outside the tourist area and not many foreigners went into the local bars (shame)!
Rain over, on with exploring the maze of streets, this is definitely backpacker central with it's many shops selling trekking and mountain gear (North Face fakes!), hippy clothing, t-shirts and jewellery. Not all is lost though, a delightful bookstore and some good restaurant & bars to hang out, my favourite being a garden cafe called Electric Pagoda where the momos (spicy dumplings), coffee and lassi was so yummy. Shopkeepers calling out 'namaste' as you walk past but beware the art student who wants to take you to his school, a scam apparently to get money out of you!
Met up with the rest of the group: 20 in total and with 4 guides to help us along the way.
Next couple of days spent exploring some beautiful Hindu and Buddhist shrines and temples at Durbar Square, Bhaktapur, Pashupatinath & Swayambhu.
At Hanuman-d'hoka Durbar Square, a cheeky rickshaw driver kept asking if we wanted a helicopter ride, it was just funny but on the back of his rickshaw it did say No.1 helicopter rider.... 
At Bhaktapur watching the local craftspeople trying to sell their wares. A textile wallet started out at 500 rupees and with no takers even after you could have 10 for 500 rupees
Swayambhu (monkey temple), a local man trying to tell me the history and a local woman wanting to get in my picture... Of course they both wanted money for the privilege but did I ask??
It's monsoon season still and sudden downpours of rain are pretty much common as is the frequent outages of power. There are scheduled times when the power is turned off twice a day, these times vary each day and it's wise to check the posters around the hotel, it only took me a couple of days to realise lol!
xxx
Headed up to The Last Resort for 3 nights close to the Tibet border (shame we couldn't cross it due to not being able to get visas). An early start and no traffic in Kathmandu due to strikes but numerous security checks on the way. This is a tented resort offering extreme adventure activities and some of the braver ? members of the group did a Bungee jump/canyon swing. I did some canyoning which involved donning wet-suits and helmets and abseiling down a waterfall with drops of 10m, 25m, 35m & 45m (8 jumps in total). A bit too long here, enjoyed the Nepalese massage but not the damp beds & musty tents, lack of sleep and getting a cold.
Back to Kathmandu for one more night before setting out for flight to China.
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