Kathmandu - Nepal

Namaste!
Kathmandu the capital of Nepal and central point for Buddism & Hindusim both with important sacred temples and spiritual places. All nestled into this busteling mountain capital. One stumpa or temple more stunning than the next but each having its own charm. We have made offerings to Buddah and Shiva, drunk holy water been blessed by priests and turned hundreds of prayer wheels big and small. Every one is so peaceful here, kind helpful and every one seems to get along. Little or no crime as shopkeeper leaves his shop to show us something across the road. Not a worry in his mind some one might empty the cash drawer or take something. The worst thing it feels like might happen is some on try to sell you some tiger balm you don't want. The smell ofinsence is thick in the air and music filled with chants rings through the streets. There is a great vibe of an easy going travel friendly place. Even sitting in a bar a stranger came up to us to have a chat. We could go on but the pictures do more justice than words, but we cannot transend the feeling this you need to feel for yourself.
D+S

Kathmandu - Nepal part 2

Chitwan - Nepal

NEPAL!
After a 5 hour delay waiting from midnight until 5 am on a packet train station platform our train finaly arrived, and we slept like babies for 5 hours until the train arived in Gorakpur were a nice Indian man we met took us on a bicycle rikshaw past all the touts looking to rip of tourists to a local bus that would take us all the way to the border for 80p (a three hour bus ride). Admitedly the bus was old and the seats small, but was perfectly fine and it got us there. Nepal border crossing of foot is really easy and the people really helpful. Because our train was so delayed we had missed the bus to Kathmandu but found a taxi driver who had come Chitwan and was heading back so we got a cheap ride there. The next day we went on a jungle walk in the Chitwan national park, in search of Tigers. The tigers might have seen us but all we saw were pawprints and scratch marks. We did see elephants, deer and a monkey. The experience alone of walking in the jungle was a great one trying to be as silently as possible. Thenext day we again needed to take another bus for 5 hours to cover the last 186km to Kathmandu. It takes so long because the road is etched into the side of mountains as it climbs slowly higher and higher. In parts the road is so degraded, broken or washed away it is only wide enough for one vechile to pass which also slows it down allot. Then broken down vechiles or stalled trucks present more fun obstecals. Our own bus also needed some attention before leaving they were fixing something and  we stopped for about 10-15min while the driver and conductor frantically worked under the bonnet after the first hour or so of driving. But after that it was fine just a slow bumpy ride and we made steady progress all the way to Kathmandu.

Varanasi - India

Last city to visit in India before going to Nepal.. Varanasi the holiest city in Hinduism and an auspicious place to die as apparently you leave the circle of re-encarnation and spend eternity in paradise.

We take the train there again, Indian trains are reallycomfertable and you buy cheap street food and Chai tea on board. In Varanasi we stay in the house of a Yoga guru, see picture of the kitchen were we spent most of the time eating and talking. He also tought us about the Yoga (actually pronounced Yoag) philosophy and the postures are only the 3rd step in this philosophy. We discovered as we already knew that we were quite in flexible.

The river Ganges is perhaps the most important spiritual place for Hindu's washing your self in the water cleanses the soul and we guess give you super karma. For good Karma we light candles floating on flowers as offerings to the gods. They float away in the morning mist as we row down the river past the ghats were people bathe and pray, the mist gives it an eary magical and quite a spiritual feeling to the whole experience. The bells ringing the chanting really amazing as the sound passes through the mist slowly ghostly outlines materialize into shapes and finaly into people washing in the morning. The down side is all the raw sewage and rubbish in the water, you litterally see shit allong the river bank then a meter further some one brushing there teeth. These people's immune systems are rock solid how they manageI have no idea, we nust seem so weak and fragile to them with our hand dysinfectant and only drinking bottled water. I am sure they think we are a but mad, then again looking at how disgusting the water is we thing they are quite mad to!

D&S