"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Kathmandu!" The flight attendant's voice broke me out of my daze as I stared, mouth agape, out the window of the plane, head whipping out the windows from left where the setting sun blazed through to right where the majestic Himalayas erupted from the earth in their full glory. I was impressed with Northern India where I was first in the presence of this great mountain range, but now I'm really in it! So here begins a new adventure in a new country for a few weeks. I am already wishing I could stay longer. The village of Kathmandu was in full motion when our mini cooper-sized taxi lurched to a halt outside a bustling side street lined with currency exchange booths, guesthouses, pashmina and other wool product stores and more North Face jackets than a National Geographic Everest issue. When I say "our", I am referring to the two girls who joined forces with me at the luggage belt in the airport. Sonya from the Czech Republic and Margarita from...you guessed it, Israel. I swear to God I've gone my entire life and never met a single Israeli and I think I met more Israelis than Indians when I was traveling in India. And now they've infiltrated Nepal! Don't get me wrong, they're a lovely people...a little crusty on the outside, but soft and lovable on the inside. Margartia had me a bit nervous after identifying her backpack as "The one that looks like a body bag" and then exclaiming "I want to kill you!" after I told her I'd taught in China and then the Philippines for the past four year. She was sweet and all, but I was somewhat relieved to no longer be sharing the backseat with her. The three of us parted ways and set off to find our respective accommodations for the evening. The streets were bustling with vendors inciting passersby into their trekking shops, young, old and all ages in between filled the streets. I was shocked by the diversity of travelers, expecting a younger more fit crew of hikers but there were kids, elderly folk, teenagers and young couples from all walks of life exploring the shops and dining in the numerous cafes and restaurants. After some significant time spent searching and direction receiving from some very friendly locals, I finally trudged up the stairs of my guesthouse and was welcomed by the exuberant , who led me to my single room and laughed uproariously at everything I said. These lovable Nepali people seem to get my sarcastic sense of humour...I think I'll like it here. So the purpose of the visit: 2 weeks volunteering in a small community outside of the safari town of Chitwan where I will be helping Ranjan Bhandari to sustainably develop the tourism industry and promote environmental awareness in his community. Tomorrow, I will pack up, AGAIN and cart myself off to the southern part of Nepal on a bus and meet the little family that will have to put up with me for the next couple of weeks. The people who have come into my life in the past few months have been nothing short of a bunch of guardian angels and I cannot believe how fortunate I have been to have had just the right people come into my life at just the right times. Such a grateful little gypsy, I am.

Is it too late?

I've just spent the past month and a half in India. I'm flying out tomorrow and I've decided, today will be the day that I shall start a blog. There are still some adventures to come, but many have already been had. I suppose my backwards blogging will provide some opportunity for reflection rather than the forced re-telling of fresh experiences. Maybe this way I'll be less sarcastic? Probably more.

For starters, let me say that before embarking on this journey to India alone, I was admittedly a bit nervous. Something I did not want my parents or any one else to know. People would scrunch up their face like they'd had a hard shot of Ginebra when I first starting informing close friends that I was going to India to take a yoga teacher's training course. "It's not safe for women there." "It's a dump." "You're going to get Delhi-belly." "At least you'll probably be really skinny after from getting diarrhea everyday." Super. I can say with great pride and relief, that I survived India, with belly and intestines fully intact! Now, it is on to Nepal so I guess the India overview will have to wait. Today it is on to new adventures; Chitwan to begin my two week volunteer placement in a small village that is trying to sustainably develop and promote eco-tourism. I was supposed to be bus-bound by now, but wanted to stick around Kathmandu to explore the town a little bit before I leave, and hopefully get some hiking boots since I tossed my sneakers back in Pushkar. Onward!