We left Doha, Qatar at about 5 a.m. This was the last leg of our trip to Nepal. It was an uneventful flight as we both dozed off and on. We reached Kathmandu on time at about 11:45 a.m. At least we reached the airspace above Kathmandu. Just when it seemed the plane was going to begin descent to the airport the pilot came on the intercom and told us that due to “operations problems” at the airport we would not be landing in Kathmandu. The plane was being diverted to Lucknow. Where was Lucknow and how were we going to be getting back to Kathmandu? Well…not to worry. God is in control and the airline has a responsibility to get us back to Kathmandu. Right? One great thing was that as we left Kathmandu airspace we were able to see the tops of some of the snow covered Himalayan mountains just barely peaking through above the tops of the clouds. Exciting! Our first glimpse of those famous mountain peaks. We flew for about 45 min and approximately 250 miles back toward the west to Lucknow, India! It was a very small airport. When we landed we were told we were to stay on the plane. As soon as the plane was refueled we would be flying back to Kathmandu. Hmmm…wonder what the “operations problem” was. The pilot said we would be there for about 1/2 hour. About an hour later we were told again that we would be leaving as soon as we were refueled. There was just one little problem. The airport only had one fuel truck and it was busy fueling another plane. We had to wait our turn. The stewardesses were very attentive, making sure we all had plenty of water and juice to drink and even passing out snacks. The air conditioning stayed on so the plane was nice and cool. Finally about 3 p.m. we were refueled and ready to lift off. So instead of us being in Kathmandu at 11:45, ahead of the rest of the team we arrived at approximately 3:45, just 4 hours late and the last two of the team to be here.
Getting through immigration was interesting. No computers to assist. Just 4 people sitting in a row at the desk. One to make sure you had your visa papers correct, one to make sure you had all the rest of your papers correct. The last man in the row made sure you looked like the picture on your passport and then signed the passport stamp. I’m not sure what the third person did but to pass on the passport between the second and fourth person! Then to baggage claim for our luggage. It certainly is not an orderly process as everybody tries to crowd up close to the conveyor belt with their luggage carts right next to them. But, Yeah!! All our luggage arrived safely. Then through customs, where we were just waved right on through without questioning. Now….who is going to pick us up since we were late. Looking through the sea of faces we saw a man holding up two signs. One with the name of our hotel and one with Mr/Mrs McPherson written on it! He was one of the senior hotel representatives. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a car for us and we had to wait out in the parking lot until a hotel van arrived.
Driving through the city of Kathmandu was very interesting. This is another city where driving is a free-for-all. No marked lanes, lots of motorcycles weaving in and out and honking your horn helps get you right-of-way. There is lots and lots of smog and exhaust. It is a very typical Southeast Asian city where buildings are crowded together and in various states of repair or disrepair. It took a little bit of time to maneuver through the city to the gates of the Hotel Himalaya. We’ll post some pictures later of the hotel. It’s very nice but I just didn’t get any pics taken today. We were met at the door by our team leader, Darrell, and our country host, Dilli, who placed orange flower leis around our neck. Once we were signed into the hotel we found our room and finally, after 38+ hours were able to shower and change our clothes! Dinner was at 6:30 in the dining room where we ate typical local food. My order was called Murg Makhanwala which was a bed of white rice with pieces of chicken in a curry tomato gravy. Sam had seasoned and breaded chicken pieces, some which were stuffed with a cream sauce and served with fries. Everybody was a little tired so with dinner over about 8 p.m. we all headed to our rooms for sleep.
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