Hey all :) We are in Pokara...

and heading for the Indian border tomorrow morning, first thing. We have been waffles! We have had such an amazing time riding motorbikes around India and cycling in China and Tibet we have just run out of steam - can anything we do from now on measure up? So we have been doing not much of anything except enjoying where we are (and in A's case, recovering from Asian dodgy tummy syndrome :).

After much waffling yesterday we finally bought bus tickets to Pokara to chase down a lead on an Enfield that we could buy and ride back to Delhi. It was a nice ride on the bus, with a nice lunch included :), and we got to see more of the Nepalese green scenery as we meandered in the canyons (and stopped for a half hour...because the boys were running? We have no idea, it wasn't a race, they just closed the road for school boys to run on the road...in their school uniforms on a Sunday. Very strange :) on the 200km journey. Pokhara is a nice little town, much more mellow than Kathmandu (and especially Thamel). We like it, but with the monsoon upon us, the Annapurna range of the Himalayas, usually visible across the lake, are shrouded in cloud...it's a shame, but nothing we can do about it. One (I think it was Annapurna II) poked it's head out of the clouds for about 10 minutes right after the rain stopped, but it was soon back in hiding.

We arrived early this afternoon and were met at the bus, in the pouring rain, by lots of taxis. We were incredibly lucky and found one that was reasonable and the guy directed to a nice hotel just up the road from where we wanted to go - the motorbike shop, Hearts and Tears. The shop is run by a British guy and it is a GREAT shop - and he is very nice and way into bikes (we got to see photos of his past rides :). The shop has a great reputation and we were impressed....but we were also daunted at the thought of owning a third motorbike between us (even if it is easy to sell in Delhi) when the 2 months in China have so severely depleted our cash reserves. China was a lot more expensive than we expected - not surprisingly, I guess, as they ramp up for the Olympics next summer - but it was well worth it, and we wouldn't trade that experience for anything! We are going to get our butts back to Delhi ASAP, still stopping at Lumbini (birthplace of Buddha - it's near our border crossing) and Varanasi (holiest city in India), getting the Pulsars and heading to Leh as soon as possible.

Yesterday A was feeling much better and we decided to do some sightseeing in Kathmandu so we headed down to Durbar Square to start our morning....we were not impressed. It's a World Heritage site, but it's also a public square with tons of locals...and the regular trash, dogs sleeping, traffic, etc. However, foreigners are expected to pay 200 rupees to go in - it's not even cordoned off, so everyone (local and visitor alike) just walk around unless you get spotted by the ticket seller and called over to pay your fee. Needless to say we were not impressed and we didn't pay to go in, we just went to a small restaurant with a window overlooking the square and got some breakfast :) After that we headed to Swayambuth - a big Buddhist stupa on top of a hill.

Swayambuth was excellent! It was quite a walk to get there, through normal (non-touristy) parts of Kathmandu. It was great to get out of the totally westernized Thamel area!!! At the bottom of the hill there is a long section of prayer wheels, some massive ones in their own buildings, too, and then there are 316 steps to climb to the top. It's a nice walk in the shade and yesterday it was hot and sunny, so the shade was welcome (the heat was getting to me). This stupa, and the Buddha eyes on it, are one of the famous sights of Kathmandu, so it was nice to see it up close. There is a small village up there, temples and tourist shops, but it's still really nice - the views across Kathmandu are fabulous! The stupa is reputed to have been around for 2000 years and is one of the places that Buddha gave his lessons. After that we walked back into town by a different route and then got lunch...by that time we were all touristed out. We gave the Shiva temple a miss (we have seen several amazing Shiva temples - Ujjain, Madurai and Tanjore, to name a few) and a similar stupa on the complete other side of town.

Last night we decided to have a proper Nepali meal and we went to the "Typical Nepali Kitchen" and ordered our thali....WOW! It was fabulous!!!!! Some of the best food we have eaten in the last 7 months! There was a paneer curry that was delicious, a spinach dish, mixed veg and of course dhal. We left over stuffed but happy :)

We have lots of photos to put up (we took over 1000 between Lhasa and the Nepal border!) but the connections here are slow...and in Pokhara they are not at all cheap! They are 3 times the cost in Kathmandu! So you will have to wait, we will get some photos up, but it may not be until we get back to Delhi. Patience.... :)