Day 4

Day 4
We're waiting in Kathmandu airport for our 30 minute flight to Lukla. Lukla is infamous for being one one the worlds most dangerous airports and my group is waiting nervously for a departure time. Yesterday only 2 flights left Lukla due to strong winds in the mountains. The airstrip at Lukla sits on a mountain ledge and  planes are limited to 12 passengers  and  12kg of luggage for each person.
We spent our final night in Kathmandu with a group meal and traditional dancing for entertainment. The dancing was mixed with with Kathmandu's answer to Ant and Dec who performed a bizarre comedy sketch which went something this:
A doctor hits his patient over the head with a drumstick then proceeds to try and cure the patient's drumstick induced headache with a range of remedies. After a variety of "hilarious" attempts to find a cure the doctor eventually finds the solution ... fire sticks. The doctor then hits his patient over the head again and eats the fire. I'm sure it was funny if you you understood Nepalese. The comedy was followed by a dance by large a Ostrich and more traditional dancing.

Kathmandu is the most fantastic city! During the last two days I have walked through the city and experienced a dusty, intense, colourful landscape that is totally alien. Experienced travellers tell me it is similar to India but without the hassle factor. Walking through the streets away from main tourist centre of Thamel you experience people going about there daily lives: riding mopeds and cycles through the narrow streets, butchering meat in 30degree heat and and selling everything from old mobile batteries to produce from the surrounding farms.
The levels of pollution in Kathmandu are the highest I have experienced. One million people living together and driving mopeds and cars from the 1970s contributes to a constant smog that sits over the city. However, in some ways Katmandu is a far greener city than London with it's congestion charge and modern low emitting vehicles. This is because nothing in Katmandu is thrown away.  You see families searching through the rubbish to sell on and recycle. It's a tough life for many of the inhabitants of Kathmandu as they wrestle with modern life with a poor transport, buildings and healthcare that only the rich can afford. It is a credit to the local inhabitants that they not on the whole hassle the wealthy western tourists with their expensive cameras and Oakley sunglasses.
I would recommend Kathmandu to any traveller wishing to get away from the Western expectations of city life. The people are remarkable!
I am so pleased to have bookended my trip to Everest Base camp with time in Kathmandu.