We returned to Shangri La guest house in Kathmandu a couple of days ago. We were welcomed back with open arms! Today Amit, one of the owners, took us to another district in the valley called Patan. This is a really special area and is listed under the UNISECO world heritage sites. We weren't going to check out the historic sites however, we were going to try Chang beer, seemingly it's the only place in Nepal to get the a good batch of it. We didn't see the big appeal, thinking it was the same Chang beer from Thailand, but went anyway for the craic.
We were smuggled into Patan without paying the tourist fee and were dropped off down a quiet side street. We ducked in and out of more narrow streets until we reached the secret bar. Outside there was a shrine, which we didn't think too much of because they are found everywhere here. Amit stopped us to explain that this shrine is used by those who practise black magic. Sure enough, on closer inspection the shrine was adorned with evil iconography and menacing pictures. We looked around uneasily and ducked into the door way directly across from it.
The ceilings were so low in the building. Even I had to duck down as we climbed the four flights of stairs to the top, by candle light. We got to the top which opened into a roof terrace and was saturated by natural light. The room consisted of tables low to the floor and cushions for us to sit on. Really really nice, reminded me of Amsterdam a bit actually.
Amit's friend came over and he rattled off a big order in Nepalis. Soon after, the first of thirteen dishes arrived!! The plate had very large pieces of buffalo meat on it, which I wasn't keen on trying but thought it rude not to. Wish I'd stuck to my guns! The meat was stone cold and so tough. I chewed for about five minutes and made absolutely no progress on breaking it down. I eventually took a big gulp and it painfully made its way down my throat and sat in a big lump in my belly! What have we gotten ourselves in for?! I was certain I would be sick tomorrow!
Next the waiter arrived with a gallon of what looked like milk. He gave it a shake and poured us all a glass. This was the Chang! Turns out it's actually a home made rice beer. Tasted more like white wine than beer but I was happy to have something to wash down the buffalo!
The waiter continued to arrive with more dishes of different Nepalis delicacies. Thankfully, after the buffalo, all the following sides were very edible indeed! My favourite, which I cannot pronounce, is like a Nepalis pizza. Its basically a fried egg topped with minced buffalo, vegetables and herbs. The egg was cut into tiny pizza slices and tasted so good. There were also lots of plates of spicy vegetables and nuts which were also delicious. We continued eating, drinking and exchanging stories for hours.
It was a fantastic treat. I have never had such a curious and intense food experience, it was truly delicious and very memorable. Luke and myself are now toying with the idea of opening a Nepalis restaurant at home!
When we got back to the hostel that evening we met Sabin, the other owner, and his girlfriend Meoko. We were surprised to see them as they were away trekking to Everest base camp and were not due to return for another week. Something had gone wrong.
We went upstairs and after a large whiskey had been poured for everyone they began telling us what happened. After the tenth day, Meoko got altitude sickness, very badly and was advised by a doctor to get off the mountain as soon as possible. A helicopter was called but soon after the weather changed and it started to snow. The helicopter had to land 500m downhill so they made the decision to leave the village and trek down to find it. They left at 4pm and soon were lost as the trail had disappeared under a thick blanked of snow. They battled through the blizzard and were led onto meandering paths through forests and along cliff edges.
I was really taken aback when they told us that by 10pm they were still wandering completely lost with little visibility. They were looking for a rock or something basic to take shelter from the storm but could find nothing.They chillingly explained that they all thought that was it, they would die on that mountain.
Thankfully, they stayed strong and an hour later they saw a light in the distance. They battled on until they reached the village, where they had set off from eight hours earlier. They said they have never had such relief.
The following morning the helicopter finally made it to them and took them back to Kathmandu. As we sat in the chill out room, it was hard to believe that just the night before, they almost died. We were so relieved and so grateful everything turned out okay.
There was nothing else to do but continue drinking, and so we did just that, until the early hours of the morning.
And to end, here are some pictures of lightening!! There have been countless storms the past week, and I have read about lots of folk in the newspaper who have been struck by it too!!
We were smuggled into Patan without paying the tourist fee and were dropped off down a quiet side street. We ducked in and out of more narrow streets until we reached the secret bar. Outside there was a shrine, which we didn't think too much of because they are found everywhere here. Amit stopped us to explain that this shrine is used by those who practise black magic. Sure enough, on closer inspection the shrine was adorned with evil iconography and menacing pictures. We looked around uneasily and ducked into the door way directly across from it.
 |
| Luke, Amit and Izzy |
The ceilings were so low in the building. Even I had to duck down as we climbed the four flights of stairs to the top, by candle light. We got to the top which opened into a roof terrace and was saturated by natural light. The room consisted of tables low to the floor and cushions for us to sit on. Really really nice, reminded me of Amsterdam a bit actually.
Amit's friend came over and he rattled off a big order in Nepalis. Soon after, the first of thirteen dishes arrived!! The plate had very large pieces of buffalo meat on it, which I wasn't keen on trying but thought it rude not to. Wish I'd stuck to my guns! The meat was stone cold and so tough. I chewed for about five minutes and made absolutely no progress on breaking it down. I eventually took a big gulp and it painfully made its way down my throat and sat in a big lump in my belly! What have we gotten ourselves in for?! I was certain I would be sick tomorrow!
Next the waiter arrived with a gallon of what looked like milk. He gave it a shake and poured us all a glass. This was the Chang! Turns out it's actually a home made rice beer. Tasted more like white wine than beer but I was happy to have something to wash down the buffalo!
 |
| Chang rice beer |
The waiter continued to arrive with more dishes of different Nepalis delicacies. Thankfully, after the buffalo, all the following sides were very edible indeed! My favourite, which I cannot pronounce, is like a Nepalis pizza. Its basically a fried egg topped with minced buffalo, vegetables and herbs. The egg was cut into tiny pizza slices and tasted so good. There were also lots of plates of spicy vegetables and nuts which were also delicious. We continued eating, drinking and exchanging stories for hours.
 |
| Nepalis pizza |
When we got back to the hostel that evening we met Sabin, the other owner, and his girlfriend Meoko. We were surprised to see them as they were away trekking to Everest base camp and were not due to return for another week. Something had gone wrong.
We went upstairs and after a large whiskey had been poured for everyone they began telling us what happened. After the tenth day, Meoko got altitude sickness, very badly and was advised by a doctor to get off the mountain as soon as possible. A helicopter was called but soon after the weather changed and it started to snow. The helicopter had to land 500m downhill so they made the decision to leave the village and trek down to find it. They left at 4pm and soon were lost as the trail had disappeared under a thick blanked of snow. They battled through the blizzard and were led onto meandering paths through forests and along cliff edges.
I was really taken aback when they told us that by 10pm they were still wandering completely lost with little visibility. They were looking for a rock or something basic to take shelter from the storm but could find nothing.They chillingly explained that they all thought that was it, they would die on that mountain.
Thankfully, they stayed strong and an hour later they saw a light in the distance. They battled on until they reached the village, where they had set off from eight hours earlier. They said they have never had such relief.
The following morning the helicopter finally made it to them and took them back to Kathmandu. As we sat in the chill out room, it was hard to believe that just the night before, they almost died. We were so relieved and so grateful everything turned out okay.
There was nothing else to do but continue drinking, and so we did just that, until the early hours of the morning.
And to end, here are some pictures of lightening!! There have been countless storms the past week, and I have read about lots of folk in the newspaper who have been struck by it too!!
 |
lighting up the lake at Pokhara |
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