Kathmandu, Nepal – Changed hotels yet again because the last hotel had too many Israelis in it. After living in London and seeing the way different nationalities traveled, I used to think the Americans and Australians were bad. Israelis are the worst to be around. They are louder and more demanding than Americans if you can believe that is possible and they are so obnoxious when they are together in one big group, which is all the time. You never meet one Israeli, they only come in groups of 10 or more.
Anyway, changed hotels, then headed to the mini van stop to try and get out to the Bodhnath, the largest stupa in the Kathmandu Valley. Got on the mini van and was told yes it would go out where I was headed. 30 minutes later, we were at the end of the line and they were telling me to get out, no stupa inside. I was told to transfer mini vans and after I boarded the second vehicle reconfirming that it was headed to the Bodhnath, I found myself back in Kathmandu 30 minutes later, so I had been sheisted for a total of 4 rupees and one hour of my time, big deal, I had time to kill. I was not expecting Rich for at least 4 or 5 more days, plenty of time to see this thing.
Went restaurant hopping, eating a meal at each during the afternoon. Then I decided it was time to take down the original note I had left for Rich and put the newly revised one with my new hotel location in its place. Got over to the Kathmandu Guest House message board, but the note for Rich was gone. That could only mean he had arrived in Kathmandu already.
Left him a second note telling where to meet, then went looking around Thamel in the used bookstores, the easiest place it would be to find Rich. No such luck, so I headed back to the message board about an hour later to find him standing there holding my second note looking at it incredulously. He could not believe I had left him two notes in the three hours he had spent in Kathmandu so far.
We went out for dinner and beer to celebrate his birthday and catch up on each other’s escapades over the last three weeks. It turns out the snow was really bad on his side of the mountain as well, so bad that he could not get over the pass and he walked back to Pokhara down the same side.