Completely ignorant about Nepal I landed in Kathmandu airport and instantly got a good feeling. Standing at the top of the steps to get off the plane, the wave of heat swept over me and the Himalayas provided the stunning backdrop.
During the day the streets in Kathmandu are filled with locals, shopping, chatting and going about their daily lives. The shops are filled with handmade crafts and plenty of hiking gear. All the big outdoors brands have a big presence, or at least versions of! Stock up on North Fake clothing for hiking or you could just carry the originals from back home around the world like I’ve done, gah!
As lively as it is by day, Kathmandu is like a ghost town at night. Everything closes around 10pm, so there’s no late night drinking culture and everyone is tucked up in bed. There are regular power outages throughout the day and night so the locals have to work round this. The working day is short as standard jobs and schools don’t begin till 10am and they knock off at 4pm.
Gutted to be leaving Nepal the day the 9 day festival starts. Kathmandu is clearing out ready for marijuana smoking and goat slaughtering.