K-K-K-K-Kathmandu!!!

We arrived safely in Kathmandu, Nepal on October 8 & have been preparing for our trek to the Everest region.  We will be trekking for 27 days starting Oct 11-Nov. 9th & it will be difficult to maintain contact.  However there are large villages that have plenty of pay phones & wifi access that we will reach once every 4-5 days.  We will be trekking from Shivalaya-Gokyo Lakes, then back to Lukla reaching heights of 16,000 ft.  We are about to employ a guide for the first 10 days of our trip which will be the most difficult to navigate.

We really like Kathmandu and we're relieved to be done with the India portion of our trip.  Kathmandu is very tourist-friendly and we find the people quite relaxed, helpful, & friendly.  They are always joking and laughing and have big smiles.  We find the city of Kathmandu to be much cleaner and generally more enjoyable than most of the Indian cities we visited. 

We have spent most of our time getting permits, running errands, & eating.  We found a lovely Japanese restaurant that serves amazing udon noodle soups which I have shoveled in my face:

Appetite has returned

Below are some pictures of Kathmandu including Durbar Square & additional pics of our boat ride on the Ganges in Varanasi, India:

Sunrise boat ride on the Ganges

Pilgrims bathing in the Ganges (we did not)

Katmandu veggie market (Instagramed)

Kathmandu street

Selfy!!!

Durbar Sq temples

Temples

"Priceless" antiques

Flower vendor

Another selfy (bandana used to block vehicle emissions, not fashion statement).

Until next time, which may not be for 2-3 weeks, we send our love to everyone.

Jeremy & Tracey