Welcome to the world’s 10th worst airport!

Rule #1: Kathmandu is VERY Busy…it will take forever to go anywhere

Off the plane, there’s a crazy Visa area, and I see right away that the world’s 10th worst airport (Tribhuvan International) is very dirty and chaotic. I meet Joe outside and hop in his white Ford Ranger pickup (that turns out to be one of the largest vehicles on the road aside from the buses) and take a 4km/2.5mile, 45-minute long, bumpy, dirty ride through the very crowded and rough streets of buses, scooters, cars, trucks, and makeshift rototiller-cards. We arrive to Joe’s cottage northeast of city, a rented home in the city of Kathmandu. It’s a walled compound with lovely gardens. Very clean and comfortable.

Rule #2: Don’t Drink the Water

He gives me a tour of the house, the rooftop with a grand view of the city, then I settle into my room. We eat dinner (salad and rice) then retire to the living room and I play Tigers & Goats over a glass of wine (contributions of Joe’s neighbor Andrew).