{"id":24581,"date":"2018-04-23T11:21:07","date_gmt":"2018-04-23T15:21:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.runkevinrun.com\/?p=24581"},"modified":"2018-04-23T11:21:07","modified_gmt":"2018-04-23T15:21:07","slug":"april-23-2018-take-a-hike-eat-a-brain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/runkevinrun.com\/?p=24581","title":{"rendered":"April 23, 2018 – Take a Hike… Eat a Brain."},"content":{"rendered":"

From the original itinerary:
\nApril 23: A day hike in the Kathmandu valley. From Chobar you walk through a simple but fascinating route to Bungamati. According to legend, the lake water of Kathmandu escaped through the beautiful gorge Chobar after the saint Manjushri had beaten with his sword. During the walk you will discover the authentic rural life and the smiling people of the Kathmandu Valley. Tourists are not really known here. Bungmati, the end of the tour, is built against a steep river bank and surrounded by rice terraces. Ten minutes from Bungmatti is the Newari village Khokana, which is also worth a visit. Khonaka is famous for its mustard oil. Their production goes according to the old traditions. In the afternoon you are back in Kathmandu.<\/em><\/p>\n

This was an odd duck kind of day.\u00a0 I started, as is now my Nepalese routine, with a short run at 4:30 AM.\u00a0 All fine and dandy… until midway through when a bird pooped on me.\u00a0 Is it auspicious AND inauspicious when that happens, or is that just some Nepal shit?<\/p>\n

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Returning to my hotel, I tried to hand wash the shirt in the sink and then I took a long shower hoping to get the heebie jeebies off of me in addition to any bird droppings.\u00a0 Much like when you walk into a spider web, I could just FEEL there was something on me even though I knew there wasn’t any more.<\/p>\n

I was then killing some time walking around before our daytrip was due to commence at 9 AM.\u00a0 On one particularly narrow road, a large tour bus careened toward me and I had to choose between jumping into a large mud puddle or being smooshed.\u00a0 I went with the mud but man did my shoes and feet question that decision.\u00a0 I think they should just be lucky they COULD question the decision given the alternative.<\/p>\n

It’s actually surprising I haven’t seen an accident here since I got here.\u00a0 There’s almost a constant state of “near misses” but no actual physical damage to vehicle or person.\u00a0 I even asked my guide Ari if there are any street signs in Nepal as I hadn’t seen any in Kathmandu.\u00a0 He said there are out in rural areas but there’s too much congestion in the city for them to be effective.\u00a0 There are traffic cops at certain intersections directing traffic but otherwise it’s more of a “use the force,” “wing and a prayer,” “be aggressive… be be aggressive” handbook for using the Nepal streets.<\/p>\n

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And though I know cows are sacred here and thus are the equivalent of an 800 pound gorilla \u2013 where does he sit?\u00a0 Wherever he wants! \u2013 but it still cracks me up to see them wandering the roads and causing their own brand of near \u201ccow-talystic\u201d disasters.<\/p>\n

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As our tour bus made it\u2019s way to our first stop, Ari tried to give a more detailed history of Nepalese history\u2026 but a few of my fellow travelers seemed more interested in their own conversations so it was hard to hear him.\u00a0 The main thing I took away from the talk is that though I thought yesterday Nepal was unified and founded in 1826, that\u2019s accurate only insofar as that\u2019s by their lunar calendar.\u00a0 By the Gregorian calendar, that\u2019s 1768.\u00a0 It also helps explain why I\u2019m in the future here celebrating New Years 2075\u2026 and why when I ask for a copy of Grays Sports Almanac no one can give me one.<\/p>\n

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We started the day at Kripitur, a place with an 11th<\/sup> Century Temple and another temple that was the highest point in the area.\u00a0 Sure, sure \u2013 here\u2019s what these temples look like even though to me they\u2019re all blending together.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want to say if you\u2019ve seen one temple you\u2019ve seen them all\u2026 but I will type it.\u00a0 That\u2019s reductive and indicative of my uncultured mind and body, but it\u2019s how I feel about cathedrals, churches, McDonald\u2019s, and Taco Bells.\u00a0 Sure, sure.\u00a0 There\u2019s some interesting variations now and again but, really, deep down\u2026 they\u2019re all kinda the same and isn\u2019t that also kinda the point?<\/p>\n

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I was much more interested in the tourist office for the area.\u00a0 Take a look at their email address.<\/p>\n

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I have at least two questions here:<\/p>\n