Last day in Nepal

Thursday
It was really hard to top the flight to see Everest but we tried. Later in the day we went to see the Royal palace. There is no more monarchy here but it wasn't so ago, about 14 years, that one existed.  It appears the crown prince wanted to marry someone his family did not approve of.  He was 29 years old and couldnt find anyway out of his responsibilities.  He invited his family, including aunts, uncles, siblings and cousins to his residence for a party.  He drank to much and smoked some hash.  He left the party for his bedroom, changed into his army fatigues and returned with an ak47 and proceed to kill his family before taking his own life. I guess that was one way to get even for not letting math the person he read in love with.

Friday
Today we headed out of Kathmandu to the countryside to see how life is in the villages. Everyone is still recovering from the earthquake. There is construction everywhere you look.  For lunch we went to Bhaktapur a lovely cultural city. Beautiful old temples.  However the earthquake demolished a 500 year old temple as well as serious damage to a palace. The buildings are being repaired one stone at a time.

On the way back to our hotel or driver took a shortcut in an attempt to circumvent the traffic.  What a massage we got a we drove through tiny village after tiny village. We returned in time to meet with a 34 year old woman who is part of a 7 woman climbing team made up of Nepalese from all over the country.  Each woman had an interesting story as how she came to be a climber. The woman giving the lecture was only 5'2" and maybe 105lbs. Their very first climb was in 2007.  They submitted Mt Everest.  Since then they have submitted all the major mountains on all the continents including Antarctica. They work in Nepal to empower women and help women who have been sold as sec slaves. Apparently there is a region in Nepal where this is a major issue. She was quite the speaker and we were sorry when her lecture was over

But all good things come to an end and tonight we had our farewell  dinner.  E head back to  New Dehli tomorrow to begin the long trek home. It has been an amazing trip.  The people E have met have been awesome.  The culture of both countries was been enriching.  I hope you have enjoyed our journey as much as we have. Thanks for reading.

Carol