Nepal is amazing!

So... about a week back Meredith and I left Kolkata seeking adventure. On the turbulent day we left a nation-wide strike was causing all businesses and transportation to abruptly grind to a halt. It was eerily quiet in Kolkata the day we left... instead of honking and incessant clamor only the cawing of crows filled the air.

One the night we left our 8pm train was delayed until 2am (with the strike going we were lucky to get to leave at all). The next day we arrived in Varanasi, the city locals regard as the holiest city in India. We spent a few days walking all over town,. up and down the Ganga river, to and from an infinite number of temples, and saw the burning ghats were Hindus cremate their bodies to end the cycle of reincarnation and go directly to Nirvana. It was fascinating. Also, we practiced yoga with an incredible instructor and Meredith got her first Reiki session.

About 3 days ago we arrived in Nepal after an exhausting 2 full day bus ride from Varansi. I can already say with confidence that Nepal is my new favorite place on this earth! The Himalayan mountains (twice as tall as the Rockies!) are gorgeous and Kathmandu is insanely cool!!! I didn't realize it before coming here, but this place got popular with the hippies back in the 60's and their influence on this town can still be seen all over with all the live music and hookah bars everywhere. Many of the restaurants have 2 foot high tables with pillows for chairs. There are ancient, I'm talking 1500's and older, temples and amazing oriental buildings everywhere!!! It's truly breath taking. All the mountainsides are dotted with Buddhist monasteries and the old people here with their little hats are so cute!

Today we risked our lives (if only you could see the CRAZY traffic here) and rented bikes and rode from central Kathmandu out to a little village called Bodhnath. This place is considered to be the number 1 place to observe intact Tibetan culture in the world. (They are here as refugees from China). On the way we stopped at an amazing Hindu monkey temple. In Bodhnath we saw a huge Buddhist stupa (a UNESCO World Heritage site) and then visited the Kopan monastery.

In a few days we hope to begin trekking part of the Annapurna Circuit. Should be incredible.
I can see myself wanting to come back here over and over again.