Day 111 - 114 Overland Tour - Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal

May 4-7, 2024

May 4

After a day cruising the Laccadive Sea, we arrive in Cochin. Insignia will be visiting the ports of Cochin, Mangalore, Goa ending with two days in Mumbai. During this time, Janice and I are on our second overland ship tour which will take us to Kathmandu, Nepal with hopes of flying over Mt. Everest (fingers crossed) and Janice meditating with a Buddhist priest.

Arriving in Cochin we meet our tour guide Bhupendra (Boobie) Singh who will be with us for the entire trip. There are 25 people on this tour unlike our previous trip to Cambodia where there were only seven other passengers.

There is a short tour of Cochin before driving to the Cochin International Airport to catch our flight. As we make our way towards the airport you can see solar panels set up making it in 2015 the world's first solar-powered airport.

With the assistance of German company Bosch, a solar plant was created on the 45 acres of unused land near the international cargo terminal. This plant provides all the power required to run the airport.

Destination Services provided us with a detailed itinerary for the overland tour. It will be a very busy three days.

The day is long as we need to change planes in Bangalore with a four hour wait before connecting to our flight to Kathmandu.

Arriving in Kathmandu we are split into two buses each with our own guide for the rest of the tour which was nice.

A welcome beverage and scarf are provided to us as we are greeted at the Dwarika Hotel around 21:00. Those who chose could have dinner that was awaiting us. We decided to eat a little right away as we knew that if we went to our room we would not have gone back downstairs. It was a long day of travelling. Again, the room was excellent.

Here are some interesting facts on Nepal and Kathmandu:

· Nepal is situated in the Himalayas and is home to eight of the world's 10 tallest peaks

· Kathmandu has a population of approximately 1.6 million

· Nepal population is 30.5 million

· Major religion is currently Hinduism

· Nepal earthquake of 25 April 2015 killed 8,962 people and injured 21,952. It occurred at 11:56am - had it occurred in the evening more people would have died and been injured as our guide mentioned

· Many historical buildings are still in the process of repairs

· Nepal has eight World Heritage sites and has won two Heritage Awards - one for the city of Bkaktapur and the other for the Dwarika Hotel where we are staying

May 5

It is an early wake up at 05:00 especially for Janice as coffee, tea, and pastries are available in the lobby before departing at 05:30 for the domestic airport.

Everyone is anxiously waiting to see a glimpse of Mt. Everest.

As we make our way to the airport you can see the city is waking up. People have sheets spread out on the sidewalks to sell their goods.

At 6:00 we collect our boarding passes. In the airport you can see people with large travel bags who will be trekking in the Himalayans. It definitely has an exciting vibe.

We take a bus out to the awaiting prop plane. People are taking pictures of the plane's tail wing before boarding. The sun is rising but it is blood red and cloudy. Let's hope the skies clear.

We take off for a one-hour flight. As we climb over the city you can see how densely populated it is. It is like pea soup up here; you cannot see anything. We return to Kathmandu and the guide tells us that we will try again tomorrow.

It is now back to the hotel for breakfast and some down time. After breakfast I decide to take a walk. As I am looking at my camera, I almost walk into a bull who has taken over the sidewalk. Only in Kathmandu!

We meet around 11:00 to drive to the World Heritage city of Patan and to meet the living goddess also known as the Kumari where we get a blessing from her.

Hi, it's Janice. Martin asked me to summarize my thoughts on this fascinating tradition. Kumari is the tradition of worshipping a chosen virgin who has been reincarnated and will manifest divine female energy. A pure girl is chosen from a specific Buddhist tribe and must have 32 perfections of a goddess. A few examples are eyelashes like a cow, a chest like a lion, a neck like a conch shell, a mole free body etc… I think you get the picture. It is usually an honor for the family. Of the three Kumaris currently in Kathmandu, two are moved away from their families while the one we visited got to stay with hers although in a different house. We did meet her mom and dad.

In the past there was huge controversy about this tradition as prior to 2008 Kumari's were not allowed to leave their home, must always be carried and only went out for festivals. They were also not educated and could not even walk in their home which left their physical bodies and minds undeveloped. After the 2008 huge human rights revolt, a Kumari is now able to walk in her home and has two hours of tutoring per day between four hours of blessing people. One interesting fact is that it is bad luck if she smiles at you - luckily, she didn't as you will see in the pictures.

The Kumari will be goddess until she bleeds which at this time will no longer be considered pure and will be replaced by a new chosen one. If you are interested in learning more about this tradition, please ask Mr. Google for more information.

The historic Dunbar Square continues to be under renovation due to the 2015 earthquake. Renovations may take at least another year.

Janice purchased a full moon singing bowl for mediation which she is excited about although she will have to learn how to make it sing. I'm just happy I have a new popcorn bowl, it's the perfect size lol.

We return to the hotel for down time before it is off again to explore the area of town where trekkers go to acquire essential goods for their journey should they have forgotten anything back home. We did not have enough time to explore, and you needed to be aware of the motorbikes as no sidewalks were in sight.

A full dinner with drinks included was at Sams One Tree Café. Its name was due to a huge tree that is in the centre of the restaurant.

It is now back to the hotel after a full day. Let's hope tomorrow we see Mt. Everest.

May 6

It's ground hog day take two. Get up Early 05:00 Depart 05:30 for domestic airport.

Now people are really hoping to see the mountain. We collect the boarding passes; less people are taking pictures of the plane, and it is still cloudy. We board the plane but this time we do not leave the tarmac.

Last chance tomorrow to see the mountain. Fingers crossed as everyone is not too optimistic.

The same procedure is followed as yesterday; return to the hotel for breakfast and some down time before leaving for the medieval capital of Bakaktapur, a UNESCO World Heritage Site at 09:30.

Here we can see temples, palaces and squares that have remained virtually unchanged through the centuries. Again, this area is still under renovations due to the April 2015 earthquake.

A wonderful lunch is prepared at Chez Caroline restaurant for us before we return to the hotel for leisure time as we do not leave until 16:00.

Leaving the hotel, we have two stops before returning to the hotel for a six course Nepali meal.

The first stop is to the Boudhanath Stupa, one of the largest stupas in Nepal and the holiest Tibetan Buddhist temple outside Tibet. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Here we can see people walking clockwise around the stupa chanting prayers. This stupa is surrounded by 108 Buddha sculptures.

During the walkabout the group stops at a Tibetan Monastery to be blessed by a monk.

There is thirty minutes of free time where our group scatters to buy things or in Janice's case visit the nearby monastery for additional interaction and another blessing. I continue to walk around the stupa with the rest of the people.

The final stop for the day is a visit to Pashupatinath Temple, another World Heritage Site and one of the holiest Hindu temples that attract scores of pilgrims from all over.

Our guides asks whether people from the two buses want to go here and those that choose not to are driven back to the hotel. Many of us want to witness what is happening.

Under the Hindu religion when a person dies, he or she must be cremated within 24 hours. This was taking place while we were there. The body is first washed, cleaned then wrapped in a white cloth. Water is poured onto the lips for the last time. The body is placed on a pier and the male family members walk around the body before the priest starts lightning the pier. Family members and friends will watch this ceremony until the fire goes out. By Hindu traditional everything is then pushed into the river below. You came into the world with nothing, so you leave the world with nothing.

May 7

Ground Day take three last, chance to see the mountain. Get up early 05:00 Depart 05:30 for the domestic airport and yes Janice got up three mornings in a row at 5am.

Collecting our boarding passes, this time I am directly under the engine of the prop plane. Before leaving the flight attendants indicate the view may not be good and if we take off there will be no refund. Most of the passengers on the plane are from our group and we say let's go because we are leaving later in the day for Mumbai. Our last chance to see the mountain!!

As we climb, I have visions of the first day as it is still cloudy. We learn later it is because of the smoke created by the farmers burning the stubble on their fields to plant this year's crop. They need rain and wind to blow this smoke away.

In the distance we can barely see the peak of Everest at least on my side of the plane where we all get window seats. On these flights the plane turns around, so the other side of the plane has a view. By luck the clouds disappear for a ten-minute break. We can see the mountain. One member from our group, Lynn gets a wonderful picture of Mt. Everest.

Upon returning each of us is given a photo of an Air Buddha plane flying near Mt. Everest.

What an amazing trip to Kathmandu and Nepal. It was interesting to learn about the history and culture of the Nepalese people. If I was younger maybe a trek into the Himalayans would be on my bucket list.