Come see where I live!

Hey, if any of you want a bird's eye view of my apartment in Kathmandu, visit Google Earth 27 deg. 43'31" N, 85 deg.21'48" E.

Rafting Adventure!

I just got back from a great rafting trip on the Bhote Khosi in Northern Nepal, up by the Tibet Border. It was so much fun. Sadly, Catherine did not go because of a persistent sore throat, and an acute fear of death.

It was a two day trip. I and 12 other CBS students and staff were picked up by the rafting company's bus, already carrying several other non-morning people rafters and our rafting guides, on the Boudha main road in Kathmandu (Google Earth 27deg. 43'14"N 85deg. 21'43"E) at 8AM. We left Kathmandu Valley and headed north to the Bhote Khosi River, delayed for an hour along the way because a farming village barricaded the road in protest of not receiving government fertilizer. Funny, we all saw loads (5ft piles) of cow and water buffalo fertilizer along the way. Also got a chance to rest in the hay along the way.



Around lunch time we stopped by the river to throw together a carb-rich lunch of spicy potatoes, pasta, tuna, PB & J, and sliced cucumber and tomato. While waiting for lunch to be prepared, a small group of students and I jumped from large rocks into the freezing water, and skipped stones, while Kevin and more responsible students helped inflate our three rafts.

After scarfing down lunch, we received brief rafting instructions and I was volunteered during the "How to Pull Someone Who Fell Overboard Back into the Boat" lesson. Then we set off. The Class III and IV rapids were fun, sometimes spinning us around backwards, our guide, Daiah, always shouting, "Right Forward! Left Back!" from the rear. Then suddenly we were slammed up against a big rock. I looked up and saw Kevin falling towards me, and then suddenly I was underwater. Thank the Buddha our team had already practiced pulling me into the boat once before! I floated down a ways until the boat caught up with me, someone handed me the handle end of a paddle and pulled me back, heaving me back into the boat by my life vest. "Wow! That was exhilarating! I should do that more often," I thought. The rest of that day's rafting went smoothly, without incident.

That evening the bus picked us and our rafts up and drove us up to Borderlands Resort up near the Tibetan border. We had a nice relaxing time there, eating lots of good food, listening to music, listening to the river, and dancing.

The next morning, Sunday, I got up early and did a bit of reading in a new book I found, the Book Thief, and after a bit, as more people began to greet the dawn, we were served a carb-infused breakfast and shortly after put in directly at Borderlands (Google Earth, 27 deg. 51'13"N, 85 deg. 52'42"E). We were all looking forward to some Class V rapids on the upper section of the Bhote Khosi.

It was wild. We got tossed and spun and people were thrown (including me, for a second time), and despite it all, everyone seemed to be thrilled. We stopped for lunch at a spot where the road neared the river, and the bus arrived carrying the grub. After lunch we washed up, got back in our rafts and finished our day for rafting with mellow Class III's and IV's. When we finally pulled out around 2pm, we deflated our rafts, changed into dry clothes and skipped stones across the river. Once the bus arrived, we packed the rafts onto the roof and ourselves into our seats. I and several others, in true Nepali style, actually rode the mountain road home on the roof of the bus with the deflated rafts and safety kayaks. Warm in the sun, yet cool with all that breeze.

It took us quite a while to get back to Kathmandu, because once again, the road was barricaded by those same farmers, until someone simply paid the right man a bribe. I got home around 7:30 pm, where Catherine was waiting for me with a smile and Japanese takeout. How lucky can a guy get?

New Beginnings

So, Hey, I thought it might be nice to start a blog myself just to let friends and family know what I am up to in Kathmandu.

Yesterday Catherine and I went to Little Britain Coffee Shop at 8AM to watch the election results live on CNN. By 10:30 we were popping champagne corks with about 25 other expats. Greg Beier was even passing around cigars. There was a surprising sense of euphoria in the cafe as everyone cheered and blew party horns. It was no surprise to see Catherine crying, but I was surprised to see so many other Americans as well as Canadians and even one French student crying. It's funny how most Americans with passports seem to be Democrats these days. I don't even know a single Republican out here. It seems to me that a more liberal government is better for world relations, and no one knows that better than people who travel, or even live outside their home countries. Everyone seemed so moved to see the United States finally making some progress once again. Long Live Barak Obama!