A whole new world! We can't believe how our world has changed in 24 hours! From waking up yesterday in -10 to -15 degree temperatures in a small Tibetan town at 3900m (almost 13,000 ft), here we are in the huge city of Kathmandu at 1300m (4300 ft) and 30 degrees! And everything else has changed as well - the culture, from Buddhism to Hinduism; the geography, from bleak hills with barely a blade of grass on them and icy roads in the passes yesterday, to lush, semitropical growth of bananas and bamboo; and the people, from apple-cheeked Tibetans wearing their traditional skirts and aprons to more Indian looking Nepalies wearing saris. What a complete change!
All this began after a chaotic ride to the Nepal border and then to Kathmandu. There were kilometers of trucks on both sides of the border waiting to cross it on a road that was barely two car widths wide. After much hornblowing and one party finally giving way and backing up, we managed to get onto the road to Kathmandu. It was an amazing 5 hour drive going from along the riverbank to high up in the hills. Everywhere were terraced farms growing rice and other vegetables right to the top of these hills. We were surprised when the Himalayan mountains suddenly appeared and seemed to be floating above the closer hills.
Kathmandu is a crazy, chaotic city with nasty pollution, but so far we like it. This afternoon we explored some of the narrow streets near our hotel. You can buy almost anything here - but we haven't found the people as agressive as we had been led to believe. So far, so good - and we are delighted to have wifi again!