gcwang@rogers.com
more Kathmandu pictures can be found via the Everest Base Camp link on this website

 

Post -Trek - Kathmandu (1300m/4265ft)
© 2001 George Wang
We had a very comfortable flight on Buddha Air back to Kathmandu. Easily the best domestic airline in Nepal.
After this flight I thought taking a mountain flight around the Himalayas would be redundant.

This is the Durbar Square in Patan, the adjacent city just south of Kathmandu.

I managed to dodge the 200RS entry fee as I had been here last year and my goal this day was to buy trinkets, not to sightsee
The next few photos are of Boudhanath, the huge Buddhist stupa near the airport at the north-east end of the city.
Being a Buddhist religious site, it's important to do your circumambulations in a clockwise direction
There's a large Tibetan community here and the site has several monasteries

I found this souvenir shop after visiting many in the complex. Prices are fixed in the stores in Boudhanath (so please don't bargain here) and Pasang's store had the absolute best prices (and the warmest, friendliest smile)

*Put your mouse over the photo for directions to her store*

At our last night in Kathmandu we bumped into a friend of Chris', Jamie McGuiness, author of the Trailblazer publications Trekking in the Everest Region and Trekking in Langtang

click on the photo to jump to the Trailblazer Publications website for more info on Jamie's books
And so ends a great trek. Many thanks to our fantastic Nepali staff - our guides Bhola, Moti, Krishna, Chandra. Our kitchen staff under the guidance of Battam made great meals for us in sometimes tough conditions that pleased the palate and probably more importantly the digestive tract. Thanks to Keshab who always works hard behind the scenes to ensure the smooth organization of staff and clients before and after treks. Similarly, great thanks to Michael at the CHE office in Toronto for ensuring a well organized trip from beginning to end. And special thanks to our trek leader Chris Beall who used his extensive knowledge of Nepal to enrich our trek by showing us things not in the guidebooks!