So it's 1am on Sunday, November 9th and I can't sleep so I'm typing away. Yesterday, I decided to go to a place I hsd read about in the guide books, The Garden of Dreams. I took a taxi from my hotel because walking alone is still making me nervous. The garden was absolutely magical. It's a place that shouldn't be missed. The Nepali government recently put a bunch of money into its restoration. It's peaceful, beautiful and, if you are with your spouse, romantic (lots of couples here). I also found a bank and exchanged some of many larger bills for smaller ones. This really didn't take up much of the day. I was finished by noon. What next?
I decided to get a manicure, pedicure, and a massage at my hotel because I know that once I start trek there won't be any opportunities for pampering myself plus the rates at the hotel are about 1/8 to 1/10 of what I would pay at home. :) The massage and pedicure were pretty much the same as I would have gotten at home but the manicure was somewhat tricky because I don't think those ladies had encountered the American process of shellacking before so it took them some time to figure out what to do with what I already had. Plus there are no modern tools of that trade here so it took a bit longer but the results are great!
When I finished pampering myself I went back to my room and Megan was there. Megan is from Brisbane Austrailia and will be my roommate for the rest of this trip. She's about 30 and is traveling with her father, who is a knowledgeable guide and seasoned traveler. The three of us were supposed to meet up with our guides and one other gentleman but the other man's flight didn't make it in so our guides cancelled dinner and we were left to our own devices.
Mr. Pretorius (Dave) has been here before so he kind of knew his way around, so we walked into Thamel (about 1 mile) to have dinner and shop a bit. It's amazing what a difference having these two along made for me. I'm no longer nervous about walking the streets around here at all.
We ran into a local who insisted upon showing us around... then we had a hard time disentangling ourselves from his ministrations. I think he was attracted to Megan as she is young and quite pretty. Anyway, we decided to eat at The New Orleans Cafe because it was recommended in the guide book and Dave wanted to try jambalaya. It was ok. To be honest, I'd skip it if I came again. The most redeeming things about it were the outdoor patio, that was candle lit, and the smooth jazz playing. The place was very busy but the food was mediocre.
We looked in a few of the shops (which there are tons of in this part of town) bought some chocolate for our hike then headed back to the hotel. It was only a bit past 8pm when we arrived, but I instantly fell asleep.:)
Pictures below are from The Garden of Dreams.
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