After a horridly long flight from Reagan to Hong Kong and then another flight from Hong Kong to Kathmandu (with an hour and a half stopover in Dhaka!) I made it to Kathmandu. Thanks to a detailed account outlining what it is like upon arrival at the Kathmandu airport, I made it through immigration, collected my bag, and bartered for a taxi to my hotel without a hitch. Funny, since that was the part I was most worried about for the WHOLE trip.
After waking and getting brief directions to Durbar Square, I set off to find it. I didn't. But I did get lost. I try not to pull out my map on the streets when I travel (I find it attracts unwanted attention) so I wandered and wandered until I found a place that served coffee and food. I was feeling terribly discouraged and lonely. The streets are loud and small and cars, bikes, motorcycles, and rickshaws zoom past you, nearly touching you as they do. Not to mention that there are no street names so you can get lost in a matter of minutes if you're not careful (or even if you are!). After a cappuccino and sandwich, and the waiter pointing out my current location on the map, my frustrations and discontent melted away and I made it back to the hotel.
After a quick break at the hotel, I decided to try again for Durbar Square. I did find this temple (though I have yet to figure out what it is), and I definitely got a little closer to finding Durbar Square. But, before I got too lost and unable to make my way back, I returned to the hotel and did some work. I tried some momos for dinner at the hotel, which are dumplings with vegetable and a curry sauce inside (they are the unofficial national dish of Nepal according to my travel book). They were delicious!
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