Nepal- Week Seven

Nepal- Week Seven

Kathmandu, Nepal

November 13, 2017 to January 9, 2018

I am in Nepal for 8 weeks, teaching for the World Academy for the Future of Women.  I will be teaching college women how to be global leaders with the focus on the UN Sustainable Goals.  I am going to travel a little bit during this time.  This should be an enjoyable 8 weeks.

Monday, Dec 25-  I leave for Bhutan today. I will be here for 5 days.  I had to pay $200/day in advance before a visa would be issued to me.  This fee pays for my hotel, meals, a guide, a driver, a car and entrance fees in to any place I visit.

Yesterday, the woman from my tour company contacted me and told me to ask for a window seat on the left-hand side of the plane.  That seat would assure me of a spectacular view of the entire Himalayan Mountain range.  I got the seat and the view was magnificent. The flight was a little bit more than an hour and the mountains were in my view the whole time.

I was met at the airport by Tenzin and we headed to Thimpu to see a Buddhist stupa, the largest Buddha statute in the world and an old fort that now serves as parliament.  We watched the grand ceremony of taking down the national flag for the day. It was a great day in this tiny, beautiful country.

Tuesday, Dec 26- Bhutan

Our first stop was to see 108 stupas.  From there, we climbed for an hour, up a steep mountain to see a monastery to honor the 3^rd king.  The trip was strenuous but I am glad I didn’t quit even though this thought plagued me the whole way up.  We had to cross a suspension bridge and wander around rice paddy fields and up steep terrain.  But at the top, we were greeted by chanting monks.  So, it was almost worth it.

Wednesday Dec 27- Bhutan

We wandered through acres of rice paddies to get to another monastery. This temple honored the Divine Madman, the teacher who believed his penis gave him power to subdue his enemies.

A monk poured water and saffron in my hand which I was supposed to lick and then rub my head for good luck.  He then tapped a stick, wrapped in cloth, on my head.  This was to solidify my good luck.

 For lunch, I had red rice and butter tea.

We visited another monastery, filled with young monks on their cell phones. In the afternoon, I roamed around town on my own.

Thursday, Dec 28- Bhutan – Mostly we drove around today.  We went to the National Museum, another fort and of course, another monetary.  My goal for today: no photos of rice fields.  I think I took 100 yesterday and I deleted about 75 of them.  But 25 photos of rice fields are still too much.

As Tenzin, my guide, dropped me off at my hotel, I asked him where he was going to stay tonight. He told me not to worry as he would find a place and if not, there is always the “Japanese Guest House”, another name for the Toyota SUV we were driving.

Friday, Dec 29- Bhutan/Imadol- l leave Bhutan today and head back to Katmandu. It was tough to return to Nepal after a few great days in Bhutan.  As the plane landed, I wished I was home in Philadelphia.  I’m ready to go home.

Saturday, Dec 30- I headed to Thamel today for 5 days.  I am going to spend this time, relaxing, drinking beer, shopping, getting massages and over eating. Today, I bought 6 damn scarves, two pouches, a small bell, a water proof bag, and prayer flags.  And it is only day one of my holiday here.  I also had a great facial massage.

Sunday, Dec 31- New Year’s Eve- Thamel