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| So relieved to make it to Nepal! |
Relief was the overwhelming feeling as we finally landed in Nepal. Our Turkish Airlines plan B had worked and we had made it to Kathmandu. Tribhuvan International Airport was smaller than expected, and we landed into a hazy sky, a murky combination of fog, pollution and smoke from a forest fire somewhere in the south.
Our arrival joy lasted approximately five minutes. We had carefully followed the Smart Traveller link and pre-applied for what we thought was a Nepal tourist visa. We marched straight to the immigration queue that said "Tourists with visa"… only to be told at the front of the line that it was the wrong type of visa because it said “Department of Immigration” instead of “Tribhuvan International Airport”.
We were directed to a cluster of visa-on-arrival kiosks instead. The area was already packed with other passengers doing the same thing. Fortunately there was an option to complete the form on our phones, which saved a little time. Once that was done, we joined another line to actually pay for the visa.
For those interested: Nepal accepts a surprising range of currencies including Australian dollars and Singapore dollars. We happily offloaded our spare Singapore cash. Don’t ask me how we had the exact amount.
After that we joined another queue to finally pass through immigration. We were clearly not the only confused passengers because we kept spotting people from our Istanbul flight scattered across the various lines.
Just as things seemed to be moving along, the next wave of stress arrived. I suddenly realised I had left my laptop bag (which was in the nice African print tote we got from Nyungwe!) on the plane. The aircraft was scheduled to depart back to Istanbul in about twenty minutes.
Fortunately we found a helpful staff member at the lost baggage counter who contacted the ground crew to check the aircraft. Meanwhile we were also very aware that we still had a domestic flight to Pokhara to catch.
By the time we cleared immigration, the whole process had taken about an hour and a half. Then came the longest thirty minutes of the day while we waited to see whether the ground staff would retrieve my laptop bag before the aircraft departed. Miraculously, they did. Phew! The bag was returned to us and we now had exactly one hour before our next flight left.
I consider myself a fairly confident traveller, but if I had been any more tired I might have completely decompensated right there in the arrivals hall.
Thankfully we had arranged domestic transfers through Shinta Mani. While we were waiting for news about the laptop bag, they had been messaging us to reassure us that we still had time. When we exited the arrivals area they were waiting for us and immediately transferred us to the domestic terminal.
“Terminal” may be a generous description. It was small, crowded and mildly chaotic. Fortunately our handlers had already checked us in and had staff positioned at various points in the building to guide us along. It was not entirely obvious where to go or what to do, so having that help made a significant difference.
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| We made it to Nepal! |
Eventually we were able to sit down in the domestic departures area and wait for our short flight to Pokhara. We later discovered that Pokhara airport had actually been closed earlier that morning due to poor visibility, which made us even more relieved that our flight was able to depart. When we landed in Pokhara we were once again met at the airport and transferred to our hotel. Unfortunately the haze we had seen in Kathmandu had followed us here. We were told it had been lingering for nearly two weeks.
Pokhara is Nepal’s second-largest city and one of the country’s main tourism hubs. Sitting beside Phewa Lake, it serves as the gateway to the Annapurna region and many of Nepal’s most famous trekking routes, including the Annapurna Circuit and Annapurna Base Camp.
On clear days the city is known for its spectacular mountain backdrop, with views of the Annapurna range and Machapuchare, also known as Fishtail Mountain, along with several of the world’s highest peaks. All we saw was road...and the buildings immediately around us.
Flights deeper into the Himalayas are notoriously weather-dependent, particularly the short but dramatic flight from Pokhara to Jomsom, which is often cancelled or delayed due to wind and visibility conditions. It was already clear that the next stage of our journey might require a bit of luck.
We had originally planned to walk around the lakeside area, but decided against it to avoid aggravating my asthma. Instead we took the opportunity to visit the cashmere shop just across the road from the hotel. There may have been many purchases made.
Dinner was at the hotel restaurant before we finally called it a night. Tomorrow’s mission: getting to Jomsom and our final destination, Shinta Mani Mustang.
Fingers crossed.
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| Smiling now that we made it out of the international terminal with ALL our belongings |
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| The domestic terminal |
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| Someone dropping our checked luggage for us |
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| Who knows why we chose to have a matcha bubble tea in Nepal. It tasted weird |
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| Onto a bus to board our flight |
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| Twin prop turbo |
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| The view did not change from take off to landing. Couldn't tell haze apart from clouds |
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| Glad to have survived this flight! It was very bumpy at times |
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| Pokhara airport is modern! However China/India politics prevent it from being used internationally |
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| This was the best view we're gonna get |
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| Rhododendron tea |
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| Hotel is very comfortable for just an overnight stop |
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| Spacious |
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| Himalayan trout for dinner. Only so so at best |
