Feb 3, 2015
Flight: Kathmandu, Nepal (KTM) to Kathmandu, Nepal (KTM); Buddha Air Beechcraft 1900 Economy
Hotel: Kathmandu Guesthouse; Kathmandu, Nepal; $42/nt single
Today I went to Mt. Everest. Well, almost. I had booked one of the mountain sightseeing flights with Buddha Air. The hour long sightseeing flight out of Kathmandu gives a closeup view of the Himalaya. I had booked a 7AM departure which meant pickup from the hotel was at 5:30AM. Ugh. I went down to the lobby at 5:20 AM and the driver was already there. The drive to the airport was much quicker this morning on the deserted streets. The flights depart from the domestic terminal at the airport, getting there involved walking through an abandoned/under construction hallways and buildings. The domestic checkin area had different desks for Buddha Air, Tara Air, Yeti Airlines, etc. Most of the airlines had mountain flights this morning. There was a restaurant here but it was not yet open. I went through security and grabbed a sandwich at the store inside.

Kathmandu domestic terminal


Blessing the Pringles


Boarding pass

Just before 7AM one of the airline agents came up to me and said they had oversold the flight and would I mind taking the next one leaving in a few minutes. They boarded my original flight, then the airport closed down due to fog! They kept advancing the departure time 15 or 30 minutes at a time. Finally two hours later at 8:45, we boarded the plane and took off about 9AM. There was an Indian family from San Francisco onboard and some Japanese tourists. The flight headed east along the Himalaya range. The Beechcraft aircraft had 1-1 seating with the first row blocked off, so everyone had a window view. The flight attendant passed out a map showing the names of the peaks along the range. Eventually Mt Everest came into view, with a plume of cloud drifing from the edge. The pilots invited the passengers into the cockpit and were pointing out different mountain peaks, and a view of Lukla airport far below. The flight lasted an hour and we landed back at the airport about 10AM. My driver was still waiting for me luckily, 5 hrs after he dropped me off! I was completely starving at this point and hoped I'd make it back to the hotel before breakfast ended at 11AM. Barely made it, with traffic it took about 35 minutes and got there at 10:45. Though there were slim pickings at this point. I was pretty tired too after the early start and went and slept a few hours.








Mountain flight

About 2PM I headed out with plans to visit Swayambhunath Stupa. It was only about a 2.5km walk from the hotel but as I was walking a rickshaw driver came up and wanted to take me there. Initially he wanted 500 Rs but talked him down to 400. I'm a pretty heavy guy though so it was a lot of work for him! Eventually he gave up and didn't even bother trying to take me up the hill once we crossed the bridge. Most of the trip he was .....ing about how he didn't have any money either. I gave him 500 Rs and he had the nerve to ask for 600 so I told him off. Dude, you didn't even take me halfway there. Don't get greedy. It was another ~1 km walk uphill and down a dusty/torn up road to the eastern staircase. From the base, 365 stairs lead up the hill, passing troops of monkeys and statues of garudas. The stupa is one of the oldest in Kathmandu (built 1500 years ago) and was restored in 2010. The huge white dome represents the earth, which is topped by a gilded tower with the Eyes of Buddha on all four sides. Atop the tower are 13 layers depicting the stages of achieving nirvana. The entry fee was 200 Rs for foreigners.




Swayambhunath

There were lots of tourists and pilgrims up at the stupa. There was a great view out over the Kathmandu valley, the air had cleared and you could actually see some of the Himalaya in the distance. Prayer flags fluttered in the breeze. I spent awhile up here before walking back down the stairs and across another bridge and back into old Kathmandu.

For dinner I headed over to the OR2K restaurant, a Middle Eastern vegetarian place. The location was a bit off on my maps but found it no problems. Once inside you must take off your shoes and sit on the floor at low tables. Black lights overhead lit up everything in neon glow. I ordered the vegetarian 2K pizza which was quite good. I had gotten there pretty late (8:15 PM) so the place had cleared out by the time I was done. Nepal scores pretty low on nightlife as most places close by 9 or 10PM.