Seeing the snow capped peaks of the Himalayas parallel to us when just beginning our decent into Kathmandu was amazing. The snow capped high peaks really stand out in the background of the lower range that surrounds the valley.
I never thought I'd say this, but it's been nice to get out of the heat for a while (I realize how that must sound to everyone at home in Canada...it's OK to hate me for a second...O.K. seconds up!). Our room in Kathmandu is located just a block out of a neighborhood called Thamel, which is basically where all the shopping for trekking gear and tourist "stuff" is. I have seriously never seen that much granola and chocolate bars in my life!
We have spent the past few days hitting the streets and sights of Kathmandu.
Garden of Dreams in the heart of Kathmandu is beautiful and relaxing.
Hey, look at that... a monkey!
A view of Kathmandu from atop Swayambhunath Stupa. If you look beyond the 1st mountain range you can see a second higher range with snow caps.
Big bats just hangin' out in the trees in the gardens of Narayanhiti Palace.
The stairway up to the Buddha shrine Swayambhunath.
Swayambhunath Buddha stupa
A nice family shot. These guys were all over the place at the Swayambhunath shrine and could be pretty aggressive.
Dy and Buddha
Monks can have iPhones too!
Patan Durbar Square pagodas.
We have found Kathmandu to be a very interesting place. Just like it's geographic location you can really see the Chinese/Tibetan and Indian influence in the people. The city itself is like a museum with narrow uneven roads, some unpaved, and colonial buildings mixed with pagodas that have been here for centuries. Simply walking around all day is pretty interesting with Buddhist shrines that seem to pop up every few blocks.
And now for a video with all kinds of monkeys, some temples and some more monkeys...who doesn't like monkeys?!
Click below to watch...
We're going to be heading out to a small town towards the higher Himalayas to get some hiking in. We're hoping for more fresh air and amazing views.