KTM solo

Woke up at 6 today, moved out of my lovely room, and got dropped off at the tourist bus park to begin my journey to Kathmandu. The 'conductor' wanted to sell more tickets so he had me switch places with a little kid whom he asked to sit up front near the driver. Well, the kid lasted all of ten minutes there before he came back and crammed into the seat next to mine in his sister's lap, so being the good samaritan that I am, I offered to take shotty. BEST DECISION EVER. Sort of. Had the best view and got to chill with some Nepali trekking guides instead of being subjected to the mind numbing conversations the large American tour group was carrying on in the main part of the bus. Got to make faces at the two adorable little girls who got on the bus later. The bad part? Being mad creeped on by the younger of the trekking guides, who WOULD have something going for him if he did not say that since I like kids so much, we can get married and make babies. OK buddy, a little forward? I've known you for 20 minutes, now? Anyway, got off the bus and got a room in the guest house I really wanted in Paknajol. No idea why I was craving this guest house which is sans hot water and was totally locked by the time I got back from dinner, so I had to climb over a somewhat sharp edged fence. Adventure? But it's cute and the blanket is incredibly warm and I got a home vibe from the manager, so I'm really psyched to be staying here. The first thing I did after checking in was get lost in literally a 400 meter stretch of Thamel for close to 2 hours. If you've been to Ktm, you'll understand that while this requires a lot of talent, it is not impossible. What a lesson in patience to keep from screaming, 'I DON'T WANT A FUCKING RICKSHAW!' every five minutes when I was offered one. I met some super cool kids from Taiwan and joined them for dinner with some live reggae music, then made a boy from Delhi help me find my hotel, followed by aforementioned fence climbing. Also, the ABC extra stout beer I tracked down at a grocery store is as close to a Guinness or Rogue as I could dream in this country. So yes, the day turned out OK. Now what awaits me is likely an hour long walk to the airport tomorrow (maybe two hours if I get lost again, FML) because of the strike! We will cross that bridge and dusty roads when we get there. Good night!