Namaste Nepal, Pheri Betaula

Namaste!

So, for the past 3 days, we have been getting up at 5 o'clock for various reasons and we are here to tell you that it basically sucks.

On Friday, we got up at five and hauled our asses to the airport, where we were supposed to board a flight and get outstanding views of the Himalayas and, more importantly, Mount Everest. Unfortunately, the weather was crappy (as should be expected in monsoon season, I suppose) so the flight was canceled. We rescheduled it and headed home for what we felt was a well-deserved nap. Later that afternoon, we headed out to Pashupatinath, Kathmandu's most important Hindu temple. Only Hindus are allowed into the main part, so we had to stick to the outskirts, but we did get to witness a Buddhist cremation ceremony (why would they do this at a Hindu temple, you ask? Well, we don't know... but there is one side for Hindus and one for Buddhists). The ceremony was quite depressing, as it was a funeral, but very interesting at the same time. Kas got it all on tape (despite Steph's insistence that it was slightly intrusive to film a grieving family) so if anyone wants to see it, you will be able to do so in ten days' time. As we were leaving the temple, we met a Sadhu who told us he could lift a 50 pound rocks with his penis. Although some people feel that this should never be done or seen (Steph), others are desperate to witness it (Kas) so we stuck around. The Sadhu proceeded to remove all his clothing and tie his underwear into something resembling a rope. He then tied his "rope" around the rock like a sling and hooked the other end halfway onto his shaft. He then grabbed the end of his penis with his hand and lifted. It was shocking, to say the least, and only photos can truly convey the nature of the experience.

On Saturday, it was another 5 o'clock morning, but this one was well worth it. At 5:45, we met a group of people at the Last Resort office in Thamel. We hopped on a bus and, 4 hours and a flat tire later, arrived at the Tibetan border where we would be bungee jumping. We got off the bus and crossed a rickety suspension bridge to the resort for our safety instructions, all the while looking down and realizing that, holy shit, this is where we have to jump from. At 160 metres high, this is the highest bungee jump in Asia and the longest canyon swing free-fall. When we were ready to get started, we headed out onto the bridge again, where they strapped us in one by one to send us on our way - down, that is. While we awaited our turn, we were left standing on this very high bridge, swinging in the wind and rendered that much worse by all the son-to-be jumpers craning over one side to get a glimpse of others jumping before them and a glimmer of hope from their non-death. As we swayed back and forth in the wind, the canyon filled with echoing screams from fellow bungee-ers. The anticipation very nearly killed us.

Our first jump was the canyon swing. They strapped us in to a full-body harness (one at a time, of course) with a rope, not an elastic, firmly attached to our midsection. Then, we were asked to walk to the edge of a very narrow platform and, on the count of "3, 2, 1, Swing!", jump off with our feet leading the way. We then proceeded to free-fall into a rocky gorge and raging river for a full 8 seconds before the rope finally kicked in and swung us nice and smoothly, back and forth over the gorge a few times until a rope was finally sent out our way and we were able to reel ourselves back in. Of course, 8 seconds sounds like nothing. In our minds, it goes by in the snap of our fingers. But in a moment when you are plummeting down over rocky crags and raging waters, those 8 seconds stretch into an eternity and you can't help but think "Shouldn't this rope be working by now?"

Our second jump was the bungee jump. At this point, we couldn't decide whether this would be more or less scary than the swing (we still can't!). This time, we were harnessed in with nothing but a glorified elastic tied between our ankles. This time we had to waddle to the very edge of the platform with a surprisingly familiar feeling of walking the plank and being thrown to the sharks. On "3, 2, 1, Bungee!" we now had to jump face first, more like a dive, directly into this crazy canyon. The free-fall is about 3 seconds long before the elastic finally springs into life and saves you from what was sure to be a horrific death. A few bounces later, a giant bamboo stick materialized before our eyes and lowered us onto solid ground.

Of course, when we signed up for this, we knew we were doing something crazy, perhaps even stupid. What we didn't know was that the walk back up to the bridge is just as treacherous as the jumps themselves. At the bottom of the gorge, we stood before an incredibly steep, leech-infested, water-slicked path leading all the way back up those 160 metres we'd just cleared in less than a minute.

This morning, our third 5 am start in as many days, we headed back to the airport for our second attempt at the mountain flight. Success! We got on the plane at 7:45 and, within 15 minutes, had a full view of the Himalayas. Everest came and went and, an hour later we touched back down in Kathmandu. We would go on and on about the flight and how cool the sights were, but we think we will let the pictures do the talking when we get home.

Tomorrow, we are off to India for Pink Cities, Taj Mahal, and a few moments of luxury before heading home on the 10th.

See you soon!!

Steph and Kas