So, I'm down here in Phoenix, Arizona, having just woken up in a shaft of sunlight with a sweat ring around my neck. Amazing what a difference a two-hour drive can make. Had I awakened back in Flagstaff, where it was snowing yesterday morning, I would have grabbed a fleece as soon as I'd have gotten out of bed. But I'd better get used to waking up warm, as it'll soon be monsoon season in Nepal--hot and extrememly humid.
My plane leaves at 8pm this evening. I change airlines in Los Angeles, then sit for another 13-some-odd hours in another flying tin can with a couple hundred of my closest friends (flying--not my favorite pasttime) till I arrive in Hong Kong at 5:30am. Thirteen hours wandering and people-watching there, and I'll be in another airborne capsule for seven hours or so until I land in Kathmandu at 10:30pm on May 5th (which is about 9:15a.m. on the 5th here in Arizona, I believe.)
Once I clear customs with my one large suitcase--mostly filled with t-shirts, synthetic, convertible pants, at least 15 pairs of underwear and nearly as many pairs of socks--a half-empty duffel bag and a carry-on backpack full of electronics, I'll hopefully find HRDSN member Karna Bahadur Dura and Yolanda, Ingo's Swiss friend who runs a hotel not far from the airport. I'll go to the hotel for at least one night, but I hear there could be "political unrest" in the city, so I may make my stay in the capital a very short one before flying to Pokhara.
As with all mostly unplanned adventures, though--and even most that are planned to a T--we shall see.
Related reading:
Nepal Project Facebook Fan Page (where I'll be posting lots of photos and videos)
My Adventure in Nepal: The Himalaya Rescue Squad
My Adventure in Nepal: Travel Information
