Namaste, where you from?

We arrive in Kathmandu to pouring rain and venture forth on foot to try to find the ATM god in the same frenetic chaos we encountered in Delhi. Two hours later, wet and tired, we arrive back to... THIS! The Oasis, The Calm in the Storm, where resides the god of mohitos, the god of BBC and many other gods of indescribable pleasure, Dwarika's Hotel. Ahhh, nirvana...

Having learned from Delhi we quickly hire a taxi driver who drives us to Kathmandu's Thamel Chowk where we embark on a self-guided walking tour of the area made famous in the 70s by western hippys. Here's our first view of a stupa (a Buddhist religious building). They're everywhere.

Choking in Kathmandu's Thamel Chowk. A chowk is a marketplace and boy, do these people know how to make you choke. The pollution is suffocating. (First time in Sandi's life she's felt tall among all the locals.)

One of the most popular and instantly recognizable symbols of Nepal, the Monkey Temple, named after the large troop of handsome monkeys that guards the hill and amuses visitors and devotees with tricks. That's one big handsome monkey!

The REAL monkeys cavorting on Buddah.

Hindu Goddess in Patan's historic Durbar Square—Nepal's second most important world heritage site after Kathmandu's.

Everyday life—weaving mats in the street.

Yes, this is really our life. The view from the restaurant where we lunched overlooking Patan's Durbar Square showing off, albeit from a distance, spectacular Newari architecture. The Himalayas are beyond the hills. Food is an incredible bargain everywhere in Nepal, for example, snack lunch with a large beer, $5US.

For adults only. The roof struts of the Pashupatinath Temple in Bharakapur's Durbar Square depict some of the rudest erotic art in the valley. Unexpected humour is provided by one bored-looking woman washing her hair while pleasuring her husband at the same time. Makes sense. Tim has been nagging Sandi to improve her multitasking, more than ever after seeing this.

Tim on the steps of the five-storey, 30m high Nyatapola Temple—not only the highest temple in Nepal, but also one of the best examples of Newari temple architecture.

Today's adventure is in traffic-free, but not hassle-free Bhaktapur, Nepal's most intact Medieval town. This stunning "peacock window", in a building called the "Pujari Math" constucted in the 15th century, is reputed to be the finest carved window in the Kathmandu valley.

Everywhere we go we are greeting with, "Namaste, where you from?" from the locals—their way of trying to start up a conversation to get us to part with our fast-diminishing store of Nepalese rupees.

We're off to Bhutan on Monday so this might be the last post for a while as we've heard internet and email access is very limited in Bhutan. We return to Nepal on October 13th for a few days in Pokkhara before heading to Varansi, Khajuraho and Agra, India. We want to tell you how much we enjoy reading the comments you are posting to this blog—we LOVE hearing from you and encourage you to post more. Lots of love to you all!

Dizzying Delhi

With its tenacious touts and crush of mechanical and human traffic—Delhi is at once confronting, confounding and captivating. We stay two days, really just a stop-over en route to Nepal, but we now feel we have a good taste of what we’re in for when we return to India for two months after Bhutan. After 30 minutes fending for ourselves on the chaotic streets, we realize the only way to go is by private/guide in an air-conditioned car, so Tim springs 1000 rupees ($25US) for the day—amazingly inexpensive for a private chauffeur compared to the rest of the world and worth every cent!

Relaxed in a rare moment of quiet meditation (or is he dreaming of golfing with Richard at Stoneybrook?) at The Red Fort—a phenomenal testament to the once-mighty Mughals who ruled from 1526-1857.

The rude reality: entrance fees for locals 10 rupees ($.20US), foreigners 250 rupees ($5.50US).

Humayan’s Tomb—a brilliant example of Mughal architecture built in the 16th century by the Persian-born senior wife of the 2nd Mughal emperor Humayun.

Tim in the shadows at sprawling Humayan’s Tomb.

Don’t get excited all you hopefuls—Sandi doesn’t have a bun in oven or a bulging belly from eating too much paneer and masala naan (well, maybe a little bulge)—it’s just her handbag under a mosque garment. At the Jama Masjid—India’s largest mosque dating to 1644.

The Raj still alive and well and looking “rahtha” dapper.

Qtub Minar, the soaring Tower of Victory built in 1193 immediately after the defeat of the last Hindu kingdom in Delhi.

Our driver was determined to get us into the carpet shop. Can't imagine why? We agree to go for a half hour or so. Two and a half hours, tea, beer, nuts and a carpet making lesson later...

...Tim succumbs and buys a beautiful cashmere Kashmere carpet.... being delivered to Lee Prunkl in Richmond, British Columbia for storage until we return. Thanks mom and dad!

Among adventures to the Gandi Smitri and Raj Ghat (monuments where Mahatma Gandi was shot and cremated) we attempt to dodge the dodgy at the Chandni Chowk bazaar. Unfortunately we don’t have time for the toilet museum because Sandi loses her passport on the plane bound for Kathmandu. The bad news: we had to get off the plane. The good news: the Jet Airways pilot finds it and brings it back from Kathmandu the same day. We can’t believe how lucky this is having given it up for lost. If this had been the case we would have been unable to go onto Nepal and also unable to return into India. The bad news: we have to stay another night in smelly Delhi at a one-star hotel missing out on one day of our pre-booked 5-star hotel in Kathmandu (where we are posting this blog entry). The Dwarika’s Hotel is paradise (www.dwarikas.com). If it’s good enough for Prince Charles, it’s good enough to us.

Istanbul to Petra continued...

We have a lucky break as Tim’s American Airlines Platinum card gets us into the Royal Jordanian Airways Luxury Lounge at Amman airport and we have a few minutes to spare before our flight to Delhi tonight so here's another post...

Sandi gets lost in Istanbul’s historic Grand Bazaar and is caught by Tim eyeing up a pair of fancy boots. Much to Tim’s relief she can’t fit them in her backpack. For those who have never been to the Bazaar, it's reputed to be the world’s oldest shopping mall and opened for business in 1491. It’s a wonderful haven of the exotic and fanciful.

Attempting for something smaller to fit in her backpack, she is caught again around the next corner trying to sneak in a pair of elegant slippers. Tim suggests they might not be appropriate for hiking in Nepal and Bhutan.

As we enter the gates of Petra, Jordan, we are wowed by the first sight of the Nabataean Obelisk and Tomb. The Nabataeans were an ancient Arab tribe originating from the Arabian penninsula and settled in southern Jordan more than 2200 years ago.

Following on through the Siq (a deep narrow gorge) for a further mile we emerge and come face to face with Petra’s pride and joy, The Treasury. The first view is breathtaking and we feel dwarfed by the huge size of the facade (30m wide, 43m high). It is so amazing that no amount of descriptive prose does it justice... best experienced first hand. It was carved in the 1st century BC as a tomb for an important Nabataean king.

Sandi’s new Bedouin friend.

After an hours climb of 800 steps we reach The Monastery, Petra’s second most famous attraction. This is an important pilgrimmage sight and gathering place... yet another awesome spectacle, on par with The Treasury. This marks the end of our first day in Petra, a gruelling 9.5 hours of walking in the 35 degrees centigrade desert sun.

On the second day, Tim discovers an ancient Nabataean rock carving.

Tim contemplates the amazing carvings on the Royal Tombs.

Petra is one of the most awe-inspiring places we have ever seen.

Blink! Cornwall to Istanbul

As the flies land on us in the steamy internet cafe in Petra, Jordan we now realize this blogging thing takes more time than we thought it would. Our apologies—you’re getting this post backwards due to time restraints. Our Jordan post will hopefully follow shortly “enshallah” but please be patient—we’re rushing for our taxi to take us to Amman airport bound for Delhi. We’ll try to post again in Kathmandu around September 24th or 25th. Since Tim has been organizing the trip with military precision he has officially been dubbed The Sultan of Swain (photo taken at the Grand Bazaar, Istanbul, Turkey)...

...while Sandi considers running off to join the harem but realizes The Sultan of Swain is a much better deal.

“I wish I had a pad like this”, says Tim at Hagia Sofia, Istanbul.

Stepping into Istanbul for the first time we feel East meets West. Our hotel, The Dersaadet, proves to be a real gem, probably a 3-star costing around $160US/night. The Blue Mosque, seen here (photo below) from the rooftop terrace, is one of the many highlights along with spectacular views of the Bosphorus Sea. We thoroughly recommend this mid-range hotel right in the heart of the main attractions.

A step back in time to the start off our world trip started with a visit to Tim’s family in Polzeath, Cornwall. The Lovell family are a hearty lot, heading into the frigid waters of the North Atlantic Ocean without wetsuits. Tim’s twin sister, Tessa (below), braved the waters. Water temperature under 15 degrees centigrade. Needless to say, WE hired wetsuits and both managed to stand up on our surfboards for a combined time of around 7 seconds.

Not to be outdone, Tim’s older brother Richard, ventures in just two months after a hip operation. We both are humbled by the Lovell’s tenacity.

Meanwhile, this is more our style, dry and warm, following a decadent cream tea and enjoying a quiet strole on the clifftops. As you can see, Cornwall does have sun and blue waters (okay, admittedly, this was the only day out of six we saw the sun and cloudless skies). We had a great time.

On the Move

Apologies for the delay in posting. It's been a mad dash across England and Turkey and still is (we sense a trend). We're in Jordan and our bus to Petra is about to depart so check back soon—we hope to have a few photos... yikes, the bus is leaving!...

Home(ish)

We’re off! These are our “homes” (above) for the next eight months, a slight adjustment from the real thing below. Tim’s rolling backpack on the right weighing in at 44 pounds, Sandi’s non-rolling on the left weighing in at 33 pounds (HAD to have the hairdryer). How do you spell chiropractor? Limo’s on it’s way to whisk us to JFK airport. Destination Cornwall, UK.