So to get you up to date... entered Nepal on a high. Had taken a long overnight train out of Delhi then at 4am got off & bought a sliver of a seat in a car the size of a Mini for a 3hr trip to the Nepal border. And by sliver, I mean, 8 other people plus me! But it was great... music blaring, the driver flying like a bat out of hell & the other passengers amazed at the white girl speaking Nepali. And when I got to the border... was so excited, sang & danced an old Nepali song for the immigration officials. Then laughed hysterically with them!

And my first town... a semi-modern village where the Buddha was born. Luckily the town was nice & everyone overly willing to help me with the Nepali I'd forgotten because the archeological site where the Buddha was born was totally anti-climatic.

When I left that town, was still on a total high about being back in Nepal after 16yrs. The journey to Kathmandu only added to the high. Because I "could speak good Nepali" actually got to pay less the regular price. A few hours into the trip had the only other tourists on the bus ask for my help (because of the language) & then convinced them to sit on the top of the bus with me. There's nothing like sitting on the top of a bus with the wind in your hair, plus occasional pouring rain, viewing some of the most spectacular scenery in the world while sipping wine that they generously shared. A total high!