From Varanasi there is a service you can take to get you to Nepal. For about 700 rupees a person. Includes jeep to the Nepal border. Basic Accomodation, local bus to the next Nepal city (Kathmandu, Pokhara)
Before you buy the ticket, they tell you it is a bus that goes to the border. However indeed it is NOT. It is a jeep that squashes you inside and you feel like a sardine can. It is hot, tight, sweaty 12 hours. Where you go about only 60kms max.
Even this bus ride was an adventure, as they have 'border police' all around which are corrupt. These people are not just on the boaders, just anywhere really - sometimes they are not eve police.
One insane experience was that a crazy man ran out onto the road - jumping infront of the car and smashing the front windscreen with a bamboo stick! Then when our car didn't stop, he chased after us - getting he corrupt police to stop us, then we had to pay of both the police and the crazy local guy who was screaming at us thru the window. Apparently this is normal here. They will make tourists try to pay for anything.
I would have thought that as we go farther from the cities India would become the lovely land I had imagined. Not really. Even the small towns and villiages had the same amount of gargage, crap on the streets (IF they were streets) and still was the insane use of the horns. They horn really for nothing and for LONG loud amounts of time. This doesn't get any better even when you are in the farmlands. The noise drives you crazy.
Our driver was even a bit high - he was chewing the whole day 'Dal' I think it is called which is a mild drug - but when used the whole dy -- well.... you can imagine the results.
Indeed he ended up running over the foot of a crossing old man. Then he tried to run away with the locals of the villiage chasing the jeep - since it can't go fast - they caught us easy. The police arrested our driver. The old man went to the medica centre. We waited more than a hour - then someone from the villiage had us change jeeps to an even smaller jeeps - so we were nearly hanging out the car - he then gave us a lift to the border of Nepal - it was only another 30 minutes away.
Although while we waited we had celebraty status as these locals never get to see tourists in their tiny villiage. A few of the kids enjoyed showing us that they could speak english - and they were really good too! So we took ALOT of photos with them which they LOVED and asked us to send the photos to them when we finish travelling. FOR SURE I want to do it - they were so sweet. These very sweet kids helped us to leave India with a smile on our faces.
Crossing the border was easy although like another comedy movie. With photos flying everywhere and money being exchanged. We get 2 months entry to Nepal. The Nepal border guards were a scream - they were joking in their slippers and singlets - we took photos with them.
Already here the atmosphere was much more relaxed. We were SO happy to be in Nepal.
Our accomodation was below basic. It was so dirty that there was excriment on the bathroom walls. However it was such a disgusting dirty day that I still took a shower.
The bus from the border to Kathmandu the next morning was only a little hot local bus. Which turned a 260km drive into nearly a 14 hour drive. The bus was slow, stopped in every town and wouldn't drive unless he could fill up the bus with people.
However the scenery was calm and gorgeous. With the passing of so many green mountains, rice fields and pretty little towns. It was a standard much above India in hygene.
Our hotel in Kathmandu is 400 rupee a night (less than 4 eur) for both. We get own hot showers, cable tv, privte rooms. PLUS it is SO clean. Here the city has some dirty parts resembling India, but only in parts. Other parts are clean and well maintained. People are more relaxed, lie less and kitchens are not making me sick.
Oh in the end both Briel and I had the famous Dehli Belly!!! Ouch!
We think we will change our plans from spending few weeks here and months in India - to the reverse. This place has more of a charm.
Ciao for now
