On to Nepal

So, we got to stay back at the Shangri La in Delhi again before our flight to Nepal. We had been looking forward to this night for the past several nights. This place is pretty swank. Of course we are handed a big steaming plate of disappointment. The room smelled musty. Probably because the air conditioner did a good job of laying a fine blanket of wet on everything. Not wet to the touch. Just damp enough that if you sit down on something you begin to notice it after a few moments. Of course, by the time we figure this out, our stuff has been scattered around, our shoes are off and it's late. We'll deal with it for one night.

The staff asked us this morning how our stay was. I let them know, in detail, the disappointment that this stay was. I even compared the stay of perfection about a week ago to this one. Their apologies were heard, but, the look on their faces was all I really needed. They acted appalled on our behalf and disappointed that we were not absolutely thrilled. I believe they will fix that room before anyone else stays in it.

Bags packed, we head to the airport. We have a new guide for this part; He will just walk us through the airport and make sure that we get checked in and up to security. On the ride over, he began asking details about the trip. How did we like the hotels? How as the meals? Etc. We gave it to him straight. Nobody liked the hotel in Agra. The meals ranged from glorious to OK. The farewell dinner last night was not worth it at all. By the end of our feedback, he was no longer smiling. I think he was hoping that we would give everything rave reviews. We spent the rest of the trip to the airport with silence from him. No matter, the remaining six that were heading to Nepal get along great. So, we entertained ourselves talking about various things.

Checking in wasn't too difficult. I mean, we all had to do this in order to get here in the first place. I'm glad we had someone to walk us through it. We breezed through departure immigration without any hiccups. The officer was even asking us if this was our first time in India. They take security a bit more seriously, however. There was a physical pat down, wanding and metal detector. Then we waited for the flight to begin boarding.

We would be flying Spice Air. This airline looks to be the cheap flight alternative within India. They fly to two international destinations; Sri Lanka and Nepal. The flight was fairly short. If you want anything but some water (about half pint of it), bring some cash. Barbara purchased a sandwich in flight and regretted it after one bite. Tammy, one of the ladies we are travelling with, said that the pilot missed a mountain with the wing by several yards while on approach. We landed hard and fast in Kathmandu. I wasn't sure this guy was going to be able to stop the plane. I'm pretty sure we fly back to Delhi in a couple of days using this same airline...great.

We walk down the steps to the tarmac, which is a bit weird for me. It's been a long time since I've done that. We board a bus to hit the international room...uh, I mean, terminal. We have to fill out some paperwork and stand in a hideously long line to purchase our visa. We had been told that the price of said visa was $30 each. We get off paying $25 each. Once we get the visas, we have to go through immigration. That seems to be a guy (sitting right next to the visa provider) who takes one copy of the visa receipt for himself, gives you the other one and writes something on the visa sticker in the passport. Ah, bureaucracy!

We pick up our luggage and meet our guide, Rajir. He tells us that we have about 45 minutes to get to the hotel. He will cover our itinerary once we get there. In that 45 minutes I can tell you several things about Nepal. First, I like this country a TON more than India. It's cleaner. The people are not as shiftless, they all are going somewhere or are waiting for something specific. The four days that we are here will probably not be enough. Traffic is less chaotic and quieter. Horns are used much less (they are still used way more than in San Diego, though).

We arrive in the hotel and are briefed on the itinerary. All six of us want the Everest flight option. Our guide says that he will be right back. He brings another guy over who says that we will try tomorrow morning and he will take care of us. If the weather is bad, we can then try again the next day. Wash, rinse and repeat until we either get the flight, or we have to leave the country. Come to find out that the viewing of Everest is guaranteed. If you fly, and don't see it, you only pay for the airport transfer. Not the flight. We are all pretty jazzed about that.

The room that Barbara and I get looks out onto a construction site with two large air conditioning buildings making a pretty loud racket. She looks at me and says that she is not putting up with that. I tell her to call down and try to get us a new room before we get settled. Within a half-hour we have bell hops at our door with our guide and a manager to move us to a new room. A much nicer one at that. Looks out onto the garden and pool.

We eat dinner with another couple we are with and each dine on burgers. Before you complain that we have sold out and are not eating the local fare, know that the hotel doesn't seem to offer Nepalese food of any renown (according to our guide). They have a Chinese place (apparently, not that great), an Italian place (good, according to previous tour members), an India place (we just came from India) and a continental cafe. The Italian place was further away from us than the cafe and we were tired from the day of travel. Besides, we figured the cafe would be cheaper. BTW, the burger was fine. Not great. But, fine.

We've got an early day tomorrow. We meet in the lobby at 5AM for an attempt at Everest by air! I'm beyond excited!!