On September 27 we flew into Khatmandu to begin the main part of our trip. We were to be in Nepal for two weeks and while there tour, trek and raft a class 3 and 4 river, and go to a national park.

Flying into Khatmandu was a bit of a culture shock after being in Bhutan. The city is huge, and as we found out later, noisy, littered and in need of some work on its infrastructure. We were met at the plane by our guide Ram and after being greeted to Nepal at the hotel taken on a walking tour of the area. Dinner that night was at Rum Doodle in Tamel where on the walls there are paper footprints with noted and not so noted climbers. On Linda's birthday we all had dinner at the Yak and Yetti hotel/restaurant to help her celebrate.

Our outings in Khatmandu included going to the Boudhanath Stupa. This stupa is 36 meters high and a main pilgrimage site for Tibetan Buddhists. Another site was Bhaktapur, This city of devotees is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is ancient with many of the old buildings rebuilt. It goes on and on with a mixture of tourist sights and homes where people live and work. We went to the city of Patan and then walked to Durbar Square (another World Heritage Site) where we saw the house of the Living Goddess and hundreds of erotic carvings that were a few examples of the sights at the Square. The buildings there are the greatest achievements of the Malla dynasty, and they resulted from the rivalry between the three palaces of Kathmandu, Patan, and Bhaktapur. One other trip took us up to the Swayambhunath or Monkey Temple. It was there we saw hundreds of rhesus monkeys as well as wonderful views of Khatmandu as we looked down upon the city. Strange as it may seem, we had an excursion to Pashupatinah where, in front of a sacred temple of the Hindu god Shiva, we watched as bodies were prepared, cremated and then put into the Bagmati River. It was quite a sight to see and although it sounds grisly, it was actually interesting to watch.

A very special side trip for us (and 3 others on our trip), was to take an hour long flight to see Mount Everest. What amazing sight it was to fly from the hot, big city to the snow and glacier covered mountains of the Himalayas. All of the mountains were spectacular and it was hard to pinpoint Everest or Sagarmatha but we were invited into the cockpit of the plane and the co-pilot looked in the viewfinder of our cameras and made sure we had good pictures of it.

Once we left Kathmandu we flew to Pokhara and then took a long, windy and narrow road to our trailhead to do one day of the Annapurna trek. On the way we saw and then stopped to use a swing set up along side of the road. Just about everywhere we went in the countryside there was a similar swing set up using bamboo stakes with little more than a piece of unattached wood to lay across the ropes holding the swing onto frame on which to sit/stand. The views of the valleys from the bus were spectacular.

Our sherpas loaded up our thing and led the way. The trek was HOT and although it was Nepal “level” there were lots of undulations on the trail. That, along with the sight of litter, exhausted most of us. We interrupted a chameleon dragging his praying mantis prey across the trail. There was some nice scenery and a refreshing waterfall near the end. We were happy to finally get to the Sanctuary Lodge. What a joy it was to be served lemonade and have a place to relax in the shade. Our schleppers had a break too. From the porch of our cabin we could see the sacred Fishtail Mountain (Macchapuchare) that has never been summitted. We stayed at the lodge for 2 days and made a few side trips to villages close by.

The first trip was to Birethanti, a village in the hills close to where we hiked in. We visited a museum house where we saw a hand operated stone mill, pots used to distill fermented rice. Had a little taste too. Ram demonstrated how yarn is spun. Namgyal showed us how butter is churned from cream., and a quick look at their kitchen. Before leaving the village we stopped to see another waterfall, captured a photo of a coleus, and then visited the local police station to learn all about law and order in Nepal.

We crossed the bridge after the mules finished and visited the local pharmacy. The pharmacist had a small amount of training and acted as the local doctor. His main source of income was selling medications. After lunch back at the Sanctuary we took a short hike. The next day we hiked up the side of the mountain to a "Bee Village", the town was run by women whose husbands were out of the country working. The next morning we left while it was still cool and again the sherpas carried out stuff. This time the walk didn't seem nearly as awful as it did trekking in.

Next we found ourselves back in Pokhara. Before long we were on Phewa lake in canoes heading towards Barahi Temple Island. The Barahi Temple is the most important monument in Pokhara. Built almost in the Center of Phewa Lake, this two-storied pagoda is dedicated to the boar manifestation of Ajima, the protester deity representing the female force Shakti. There were worshippers lined up to enter the the Barahi Temple as well as give their offerings. Even the local pigeons were blessed. This island also had the local contingent of "holy" men. We then visited the International Mountain Museum which is a living monument to the known and unknown mountaineers who love the Himalaya. Shelly got to meet the Yeti, face to face, and Lynne was given proper instructions on how to gong the gong in the temple that was in the museum. A short visit was made to the Devi's Falls.The story goes that Mrs Davi, a Swiss tourist in Nepal, was swimming in the Fewa Lake. The dam unexpectedly started to overflow and Davi's husband helplessly looked on while the waters swept his wife down the waterfall. This took place in 1961 and the body of Mrs Davi was never recovered. Pokhara sits on a number of underground rivers. We were able to see some local wildlife, flora and a Buddha. For lunch we went to the Maya Devi Village that is a Himalayan Raptor Revserve and paragliding ceneter. Besides having a good lunch we were able to observe and "play" with some of their orphaned birds of prey. These birds are also used to help find thermal to aid paragliders.

After a short bus ride we were outfitted with raft safety equipment, given a quick intro to rafting and set out on the Seti river to our lodge. The Seti had the color of glacial melt and it was pretty smooth going except for a few exciting rapids. We had a lunch stop on the banks. We landed at the Seti River Lodge, things were very simple; each couple had a canvas tent, bathroom attached in another tent. There was no electricity either, our laundry was done by hand for us, with no guarantee of drying (and it didn't). We were entertained by watching the amazing moving popcorn and learning how to make and cook momo. (recipe) A small hike to a nearby village was very interesting. Before we left there was a holiday cake that Priyani helped decorate, who with her father Steve, accompanied us on our raft experience. It rained heavily that day and night. The next day when we left, the Seti had turned chocolate brown and was wider and wilder than it had been when we arrived. At one point there were 3 sets of rapid close together and the guides felt uncomfortable taking the group through them. Most everyone hiked around the first 2 of the rapids. The rafts were brought one at a time through those 2 and walked around the third.

As our adventure in Nepal continues, we drop more in altitude and wound up in the Chitwan National Park. In the evening we were shown what locals look like in their native dress. The next morning we headed towards the Trisuli River. After crossing the river, we were able to observe some elephants and their kids. Then back across the river in what looks like a painting by ?.

Our mode of transportation was a little different the next day. We went for a little nature hike where we saw some flowers and termites, which were part of a hugh termite mound. A crocodile was lurking in the lake and there were lots of birds in the trees. Later an elephant, who came for a drink wound up with Rick on his trunk. On the way back to our lodge, local kids were fishing in the recently flooded streams. They even caught some fish. We saw some strange kind of ducks(?), and a baby lamb. After lunch we went for an elephant ride. In the evening we were entertained with some local folk dancing.

The next morning before leaving we did a little bird watching. Joan provided a list of what we saw. We had one last elephant sighting. Before going home after returning to the Everest Hotel from a farewell dinner there was a wedding reception. We got lucky and were able to take a picture of the lucky couple. The bride was a local TV news star.

The beginning of a long flight home.