Kathmandu, Nepal

The journey from Varanasi in India to Kathmandu in Nepal was an uncomfortable one, fraught with a long delay in the night due to dangerous road conditions and a tricky border crossing when our newly acquired US dollar bills were not accepted as they were too crumpled. Thankfully a friendly border agent and a nearby currency exchange counter meant that we were able to cross into Nepal by exchanging all our leftover Indian rupees and our new Nepalese rupees too, we had to take a hit with the expensive fees. 25 hours after setting off by bus from Varanasi we arrived in a busy and dusty Kathmandu to start the final chapter of our journey which had reached 10 months. I wasn't sure what to expect of Nepal, the catastrophic earthquake of 2015 was mentioned countless times in the updated guidebook that we had. I wasn't sure if the city of Kathmandu was going to be one big pile of rubble. I was glad to see buildings still standing and life going on as it always seems to despite shattering disasters, there were piles of bricks and building materials abound but rather than focusing on the destruction it seemed to suggest rebuilding instead. 

Street Scenes in Kathmandu, Nepal

Street Scenes in Kathmandu, Nepal

Street Scenes in Kathmandu, Nepal

Street Scenes in Kathmandu, Nepal

Our bus left us on the side of the road nearby a temple. We navigated crossing the insanely traffic laden road to get to an ATM so that we could afford a taxi as all our pre-prepared currency had gone on the visa fees. With money in hand and taxi's aplenty we made our way to Thamel, a popular tourist district where our hotel was based. The streets in Thamel were narrow, muddy and full of character. With a muddle of electricity wires hanging over our heads and colourful trinket shops on every corner I had flashbacks of our time in Vietnam on our first backpacking trip, despite the city being brand new to us there was something so familiar about it that I didn't feel as overwhelmed as I have in other cities on the first visit. We checked in, the hotel staff seemed very friendly. We had a cup of tea on the rooftop terrace and looked over the higgledy-piggledy buildings and streets before venturing out to find something to eat. Rather than brave some local cuisine we decided to treat ourselves with pizza at Fire and Ice; an Italian restaurant that wouldn't feel out of place at home. We decided that this would be where we'd have our last supper before flying home.

I Love The Colour Of These Doors - Street Scenes in Kathmandu, Nepal

Street Scenes in Kathmandu, Nepal

Quieter Streets Than India - Street Scenes in Kathmandu, Nepal

Street Scenes in Kathmandu, Nepal

We woke up after a decent nights sleep which we were thankful for after our long journey. The room however seemed to be very damp, we weren't sure if it was the room itself or our damp trainers and clothes which we'd had to hang up as they were still soaked from the downpour in Varanasi. We moved rooms which was also a little damp proving that although our wet things didn't help they weren't entirely to blame. I'll be glad when we get to leave depressing hotel/hostel and guesthouse rooms behind us, we have certainly had our share of horrible accommodations on this trip. We got ourselves organised and booked our flight home for the 22nd July which gave us three weeks to explore Nepal. We then donned our heavy waterproof walking boots and headed out to see the city. We vaguely followed the Lonely Planet Old Kathmandu walking tour although we stopped short of going into Durbar Square, the city's most famous square due to its 1000 rupee entrance fee which worked out at half a days budget. We could see a lot of the temples from the outside and so we took a few photographs and then doubled back to check out some more of the streets, Kathmandu had a vibrancy to it that was captivating and I couldn't help but take dozens of photographs of the street scenes. We had some more places in Kathmandu that we wanted to visit but decided to save them for when we returned for our outbound flight, we were keen to see a more peaceful side to the country and hopefully catch a glimpse of some Himalayan mountains and countryside too.

Colourful Grains For Sale in Kathmandu, Nepal

Our next stop was to the quiet village of Bandipur, a few hours away by bus.

Have you been to Kathmandu? If so, what did you think? Let me know in the comments below. 

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Varanasi, India

We arrived in Varanasi and took a tuk tuk with a fellow traveller into the city. We were dropped off on a corner and had to walk down the narrow labyrinthine alleyways to our guesthouse. Varanasi is one of the oldest inhabited cities on earth and you could tell, it felt like it was built in an organic ramshackle way. Cubbies selling confectionary lined the alleyways alongside café's, phone shops and trinket shops. Cows and dogs wandered up and down the streets; I couldn't tell what was what along the path but the brown organic matter was piled up and hard to avoid. 

The Famous River Ganges In Varanasi, India 

The Famous River Ganges In Varanasi, India

We found our guesthouse hidden off a tiny street and climbed to the top floor where our room was, although it was lovely we decided to upgrade ourselves to the room next door for a small extra fee, it had air conditioning and a window looking out over rooftops and a view of the Ganges. Inside the room was beautiful, there was a pretty locally made rug on the floor and statement boutique-hotel style wallpaper, it was the nicest room we had been in in quite some time. After much deliberating I had managed to persuade Craig to continue our travels and visit Nepal for a couple of weeks. Although we had become weary travellers I had been so looking forward to Nepal and didn't want to miss our opportunity to see at least a little bit of it. We headed out onto the characterful streets and found a café for lunch and a tourist office to book our bus to Kathmandu. We found a photocopy shop and had hideous passport-style photos taken in front of a dirty white sheet for visa purposes and exchanged Indian rupees for Nepalese rupees and US dollars for the border. It felt exciting to be gearing up for a new country. After fulfilling all the chores necessary for our imminent trip across the border we took a stroll to a bustling market and along the edge of the Ganges, the sacred river that is an icon in India. We had seen the river once before in Rishikesh, there it was fast flowing with holiday makers making the most of the rapids on rubber dinghies. In Varanasi it was wide and slow and more what I had been expecting before we travelled in India. Children played cricket on the ghats and holy men were sat, cows went to the waters edge to drink and wooden boats lined the shore. 

A Cow In Varanasi In India

The next morning we woke early to take a sunrise boat ride along the river to see the famous burning ghats, where Hindu men and women are cremated. We waited with three other backpackers at a café in town before walking to the river. The streets were wet from rainfall and the sludge of mud and excrement lined the path. Being careful not to slip we walked down the steps to the ghats, unfortunately one of the backpackers did slip ending up covered in goodness knows what. We split into two parties and boarded the little wooden row boats. The river and ghats were already a hub of activity despite the early hour, a sunrise boat tour is one of the most popular activities in the city. The three of us sat while being rowed by a local, it was very peaceful. We saw the burning ghats where two people were being cremated at that moment. Funeral services are so private back at home in the UK that it seems strange that here the actual cremation is conducted in view of everyone. I was disgusted to see tourists in other boats taking photographs of the burning bodies despite being told not to do so, how utterly disrespectful. As our boat turned back it started to rain and we had no way to shelter from it. Children jumped off of a jetty into the water just downstream from the cremation site, laughing and showing off their excellent jumping poses and splashes. 

The Famous River Ganges and Ghats In Varanasi, India

The Famous River Ganges and Ghats In Varanasi, India

Once we reached the shore we paid our rower and dashed up the steps to find our hotel, we were absolutely soaked to the bone. The streets had turned into practically a river of rainwater, rubbish and poo and was impossible to dodge out the way of. It's a memory that is ingrained in me, the coldness of my loose elephant print trousers clinging to my legs, my white converse now a distinctly brown colour absolutely sodden and heavy to walk in, us smiling at locals as we passed, dodging bicycles and cows. Once we reached the sanctuary of our room we peeled off our clothes and showered, our shoes had no hope of drying it seemed. Once clean we returned to the café for breakfast, unfortunately without shoes we had to wear flip-flops and yes, the contents of the dirty street ended up all over our feet and between our toes. We sat with the girl we had shared our boat with, she was near the beginning of her Indian adventure and sounded so excited. We dined at a restaurant in the evening ordering a smorgasbord of local cuisine, our last taste of India which was delicious. The next day we'd be leaving Varanasi and India, our two months travelling the most challenging country we'd come across was at a close. 

🎥 India video:

Have you been to Varanasi? If so, what did you think? Maybe you're planning a trip? I've got tonnes of advice and tips I can share. Let me know in the comments below. 

If you enjoyed reading then please click the heart at the bottom, share or better still leave me a comment, I love reading them.

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Khajuraho, India

I feel like the following post should come with a warning; if naughty stone carvings offend you then look away now! Some of the following images are of a crude nature. 🙈

Western Group Of Temples in Khajuraho, India

Western Group Of Temples in Khajuraho, India

With a minute to spare we caught a bus from Rishikesh to Delhi where we hung out around Connought Place before taking a sleeper train to Khajuraho. We arrived in Khajuraho early in the morning. Unlike most train stations in India that we have been to, Khajuraho was extremely quiet. We took a tuk tuk into town and found a hotel just opposite the Western Group of Temples which we had come to Khajuraho especially to see. The hotel was grim but the owner promised 'good wifi and a cheap price' so we decided to make do. It didn't take long before we noticed a lot of chirping noises, when we looked around the edges of the room we noticed crickets, and lots of them. It was like we'd been cursed with an Egyptian plague! We moved rooms and Craig started to unpack when he realised that most of his clothes were damp from his bag being left in a puddle in the storage boot of the bus, not a great start. We hung his clothes to dry where we could and went next door for for a bite to eat. The restaurant seemed very posh, it was in complete opposition to our hotel. We enjoyed a lovely vegetarian burger in a little air conditioned room with linen napkins and art adorning the walls. 

Western Group Of Temples in Khajuraho, India

Western Group Of Temples in Khajuraho, India

After lunch we walked to the Western Group of Temples, just yards away. Craig had read about the temples somewhere and they'd intrigued him. We'd heard that the carvings were quite unique as they displayed scenes of erotica, we thought it would be interesting to come and see them and Khajuraho seemed a little off the beaten track too. The temples which are Hindu and Jain were definitely a sight to behold! According to research only 10% of the carvings are actually of a sexual nature but as we walked around it seemed extremely easy to spot the erotic ones, some were so surprising as they featured scenes of bestiality. The temples were preserved extremely well and the gardens were a delight, it was like a little eden though the high humidity sapped any attempt at a relaxed wander around. 

Western Group Of Temples in Khajuraho, India

Western Group Of Temples in Khajuraho, India

We treated ourselves to pizza on a rooftop in the sleepy town for dinner, the conversation turned to our travels and Craig surprisingly stated that he had had enough of backpacking and was ready to go home. It was a little out of the blue and I didn't know what to think, although I've spent a great deal of time feeling homesick I still felt like I wanted to see a little more after India. I didn't want our journey to end on a low point because travelling India had been such a challenge for us and had worn us down. It was definitely time to have a think about whether to go home or continue on with our trip. The next day we ate at the lovely restaurant next door to our hotel and watched a film while waiting for our evening train to Varanasi, our last stop in India. As we waited to leave a cricket jumped onto my head causing me to screech and jiggle my body to free any other insects that may have invaded my personal space, I won't miss this when we do eventually get home. 

We've seen some temples in our time all across the world so it was very refreshing to see something that was actually different and completely unlike anything we've seen before. Khajuraho had been an interesting stop on the way to much anticipated Varanasi.

🎥 India video: 

Have you been to Khajuraho? If so, what did you think? Maybe you're planning a trip? I've got tonnes of advice and tips I can share. Let me know in the comments below. 

If you enjoyed reading then please click the heart at the bottom, share or better still leave me a comment, I love reading them.

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