Flying and Kathmandu

Yesterday was paragliding day in Pokhara. The day before we had met up with Dave's friend Charlie and his cousin Sarah who came up from India. They were also interested in getting airborne so the four of us signed up and signed all the legal paperwork (1 page double-spaced). We ended up going with the same company that does parahawking as they have a good reputation and are likely the best trained outfit in town. After a very bumpy ride up a hill we were suited up and strapped to our tandom pilots in under 3 minutes. We then received our instructions:
"When I say walk, start walking. When I say run, start running. Don't rush."

With that the wings were lifted off the ground and we took off one by one. I was the last to get going so had a preview of what to expect. Takeoff was super easy and literally involved walking and then a short jog. No running off a cliff required. My pilot was Illiad from Russia who has been a fighter pilot before turning to helicopters, small planes, and paragliding. Flying was very calm with the only noise the rushing of air by our ears. It was awesome soaring around this hillside cruising with black kites and vultures nearby. Apparently the thermals are so good you could normally stay up from 10AM-4PM without having to land. Our time was limited but sweet. Illiad offered me the controls after a while in the air and I managed to avoid the power lines and trees like a pro. We then cruised over to the lake hands-free, shifting our weight to steer. Illiad then offered a 'trick' and we dove into a huge spiralling corkscrew that made the blood rush to my head and my eyeballs try to pop out of my head. Must have been serious Gs and it was fun. Only downside was it made me get a bit dizzy. We landed a minute later with no problems and no puke. The weather was super cloudy the whole time we were in Pokhara so we didn't get any epic views of the mountains, but paragliding was still a ton of fun. I took my camera with me so managed to snap a good number of pictures during flight. I hope some of them turn out on the computer.

Today we caught our 7:30 bus back to Kathmandu. It was actually a nice bus and by far the most comfortable we've been on. Traffic was light so we only took 2 hours longer than anticipated (8). I had forgotten how crowded and dirty Kathmandu is. Glad I'm here for less than 24 hours. Some packing is left and maybe some shopping. Tonight we're off to taste the local chang beer and local hard alcohol. Certainly sad that my journey is ending. The 3 weeks have completely flown by. Dave & Nico and I are all still speaking to each other so I'd say the trip was a complete success.

Tomorrow AM I start my long flight home and have a nice overnight layover in Mumbai. Hopefully I'll make it back to VA on Thursday PM and my car will still be safely parked in the Giant parking lot. Stay tuned for final thoughts and a massive picture post as I figure out how to get 800+ pics online.

PS- I need to figure out how to turn off those annoying popup adds. Sorry about them.

Back in civilization

Thanks to a tiny car this morning and Dave and I are back to civilized life in Pokhara. We met up with Nico and all is good. I still have a little head cold but am ok. Just checked into parahawking and apparently it is the THING to do in town. All booked out until the 16th. Darn. Guess that leaves normal paragliding for tomorrow. Have to say being back in a city really isn't very exciting. Hiking the mountains is much more fun. Definitely unexcited about getting back to Kathmandu and then leaving in a couple days. Boo urns. Gotta make the last few days count. Cheers.

Yesterday made it over the Thorung La pass at 5416m! 1200m dwnhill-legs are tired.Spent tday in transit.13ppl in 1 jeep.Beni tnite, Pokara tmorrow.Updatebytxt.

High up

At 4500m on random satellite Internet. Sick again which sucks a lot.  
This country does not like me. Hoping azithro will kill it quick.  
Maybe big day tmorrow over the throng la pass. Only 2 blisters so far  
so feet are happy. Sleeping bag doesn't nearly meet up to its 20  
degree rating. Good thing for thick blankets. A hot shower in a couple  
days is sounding nice.

Made it to kangsar last night. Elevation 3700m. Dave is hiking Nico down tday. We are all healthy. I am chillin for the day.

Day 10 in Nepal

Internet! This has to be really quick. All is well and the hiking is amazing. Ridiculous views started yesterday. We are at elevation 3500m and only go up from here. We were all sick for a couple days but not we are healthy and moving well. Weather is sunny and gorgeous. Nights are very cold- sub freezing last night. Hope to be online again in about a week. All for now!
PS- 400 pictures taken,