rootlessdreams

When we first crossed into Nepal, we noticed immediate differences.  There were trees and grass.  There wasn’t trash everywhere or random people using the bathroom in the street.  Needless to say it was what we all needed.  India has been great but also very trying.  It was nice to take  break in the mountains again.

From the start Nepal was amazing.  We sorted out the bus from the border to Kathmandu fairly easily then headed to the bus stop.  Immediately I had an idea.  I wanted to ride on top of the bus.  I ask the driver and with out hesitation he said yes.  Ben, Vanessa, and myself road on top of the bus the entire 8+ hours.  We probably had the best seats on the bus….snuggled down on crashpads with sleeping bags when it got dark.  We had an amazing 360 degree view as we road into the Himalayas.  A dream come true…..I saw the Himalayas!

Kathmandu was great.  We scored a really nice flat for almost nothing a night.  Two bedrooms, full kitchen, and cable TV!  This was a blessing after our initial run in with shady taxi drivers.  The story ends with the Nepali Police being called at 2 am.  Howver, we came through victoriously.

Our flat was in the heart of Thamel, which is the nicest part of town.  IT has all the best food and shopping.  I feel like we ate and shopped enough for the rest of our trip.  We did manage to get outside a bit on our last weekend.

We decided to go bungy jumping and rafting.  Our Spanish friends we met in Hampi joined us for the adventure.  It was amazing to see Ruben and Luis again!  Plus they brought along two other great guys, Alberto and Jesus.  With our lack of Spanish and their ok English we managed to have an incredible time with the help of Spanglish.  We stayed at the Last Resort.  On our first day, all the guys Bungy jumped (except Alberto) and Vanessa did the swing.  By the way, I have almost lost 8 kg since I left South Africa….I’m shrinking!!  Bungy has a 3+ sec freefall and the swing has a 7+ second freefall.  Needless to say, it was intense.  The launch point is off this wobbly bridge hanging over a gorge in the Himalayas.  It was unbelievable.  I think we were all scared but we all went through with it.  We spent the remainder of the day chillin at the resort getting ready for the next day of Rafting.  The river was great.  Not as big as I hoped for but I still managed to have a great time.  It was really beautiful and made me really miss all my family at Ocoee Inn.  I have only missed one season but am filling the withdrawl from not guiding.  It was such an amazing time in Nepal.  And seeing Ruben and Luis and meeting Alberto and Jesus made it unforgettable.  I really hated saying goodbye to those guys but we have plans to meet again in South Africa.

We left Nepal some 50+ hours ago and arrived in Delhi about 4 hours ago.  It was an epic bus ride.  We had huge problems at the border.  They wouldn’t let us through and said the border was closed.  After about 3-4 hours, walking 5kms, and pleading with many police officers, we finally got through.  We thought it was all good until they started going through our baggage and taking things…..mainly my things….presents for my family.  I guess you can’t argue with a drunk militant Indian police officer……I could write a book on that night.  I’ll safe you from my rambling and tell you all about it in person.  But, we finally made it to Delhi.  I managed to puke out the window of the bus for the last two hours of the ride…..India has a way to really kick you when you are down.  We all good now though and after a short flight to Mumbia, we’ll be back in the swing of things.  Only a little time left in India.  We’ll see where my life takes me next.

Hope you enjoyed the short update.  Sorry for not going into much detail about the many happenings but I’m a bit short on time.

To all my Spanish friends (and Basque):  Miss you tons….I’m sure we’ll cross paths soon enough.

Much love from India,

-Matt