Nameste from Nepal!

That means hello! Greetings to you from the frigid valley next door to the eastern Himalayas. Brrrr. We are in the capital- Kathmandu. It is a very colorful, interesting city. Tons of action!
The journey here was The Amazing Race- McMillan Family Style. It makes me tired thinking of it! Heavy fog in this part of the world led to a ton of flight delays and cancellations. We have endured our share! One cancelled flight from Aizawl led to a 6 hour drive by night via sumo (large jeep) through the mountains (I was so happy to be alive by the end of it!), an overnight stop in an Indian city named Silchar, a delayed flight to Kolkata, a sprint from the domestic to international airport (we thought we only had half hour inbetween arrival and departure), alas another delayed flight from Kolkata to Kathmandu. We won the Race; it was thrilling!
Flying into Kathmandu was amazing. I was looking for the Himalayas out the window. I was looking down. No sign of mountains. I glanced up for a moment- wow!!! At eye level, I saw a white strip of mountains, which seemed to be suspended in air. The clouds were below the mountains. Amazing! We are really hoping to take a mountain flight that takes you to visit Mount Everest and its friends in the Himalayas. However, we woke up early this morning, and again due to fog, the flight was canceled. Tomorrow I'll have one last shot at the flight, as I leave for Bangkok- Hong Kong later in the afternoon.
Yesterday we ventured into a place flooded with vendors, pigeons (eeew) and people. It was called Durbar Square- it has many, many ancient temples. It was very very interesting to wander through. I admit I almost slapped a boy trying to sell me a necklace. Talk about action- this place is crazy. It is quite similar to India, though has a slightly different feel to it. Old alleyways, shrines, shops, rickshaws, potholes, scooters, incense, hippies, and a cold blanket covering it all.
Mom, Autumn and I spent the rest of the day shopping. It was grand. The shopping here is divine, and oh so cheap!!! It is cheaper than India!
I am not sure what we will do today, but first on the list is to drink something warm and cozy. My fingers are going to freeze up, so farewell from the Himalayas!