Namaste

I am writing this on my bed in dirty dusty crazy Kathmandu (shout out to my adorable little net book WHOMB I have christened Len - you rock my world). The city may be a little run down and 3rd world but I don't want anyone to be under the illusion that I am slumming it because I am actually staying at the Radisson which is where the tour company I am using for the trek puts up its guests while in Kathmandu. But I reckon that I will roughing it very shortly and wont be showering for a good while so should make the most of it while I can.

So after a miserable good-bye at Brisbane Airport with my Mum and Dad I set off wondering what the hell I was doing!! (Why do I have to have the best parents in the world? I keep telling them that if they were a bit more crap at being parents it would make these goodbyes SO much easier. I for one think that it is pretty selfish of them.) But I sucked it up. After numbing my brain with Jennifer Aniston movies. And arrived in Bangkok with a neon "Backpacking Virgin" flashing over my head - wearing my big ass hiking boots that I couldn't fit in my backpack and a look of sheer panic. I must also mention that said backpack was wrapped in plastic at the request of Dad, in case any shady characters tried to SOMEHOW sneak some drugs in there. Found a bus to take me into Bangkok and stumbled past all manner of dodginess to the guest house where I met up with Nix, a Zim friend who I will be accompanying on the trek to Everest Base Camp. We stayed the night in Bangkok and caught a morning flight to Kathmandu and that is where I am now.

Thoughts on Kathmandu so far:

• The traffic system is insane in the membrane. The "system" consists mainly of honking your horn as loud as you can while trying not to die. Every now and then some brave policeman gets in the middle of it all and attempts to direct the traffic but for the most part everyone just does whatever blows their hair back.
• Nepalese food is dope. We went out for a traditional meal the first night and were treated to popcorn (that's right people - popcorn), fried potatoes, yummy chicken dumplings, bean soup and veggie, chicken and wild boar curries with rice. And some rice alcohol guaranteed to put hairs on your chest.
• The people are very comfortable with death. We went to the Pashupatinath's (the Hindu god Shiva) Temple on the Bagmati River and saw first hand several funeral sessions going on. Along with the dead persons family, rather a lot of randoms also come along and have a look at the bodies burning and their ashes being dumped into the river. Getting the ashes into the river is considered important because the Bagmati River flows into the Ganges River, which is considered holy by Hindus. It felt bizarre to be looking at dead bodies and watching them burn but to everyone else it is normal.

Some sort of demonstration going on at the Boudhanath stupa. I think.   

Sadhu men getting all Cindy Crawford for me.

I am about to start packing for the trek which starts tomorrow. We leave rather early in the morning because the flight we have to catch from Kathmandu to Lukla, where we start the trek, often gets delayed due to bad weather. The sooner we leave the better chance we have of having decent weather and getting there on time.
I doubt there will be much blog updating in the next week or so. I will be trying to conserve all my energy for the trekking during my downtime (which will probably involve curling into the foetal position) and I doubt the internet access will be up to scratch anyway.

Tracy out. X