Trips

Sat., 10/27/12 - Kathmandu
We were up early this morning (5 AM) to take an hour sightseeing flight to look at Mt. Everest and the Himalayas. Only three of our group went on this optional excursion. It was clear and we flew close to the peaks. It was, however, neat to see all of the majestic mountains with snow and shear rock faces and to be that close to Mt. Everest. All stunning and majestic.

Our Yeti Airlines plane

Plane interior - a 29-seater

The pictures were taken from the windows of the cabin of the plane and from the cockpit (much clearer). They invited each of us up to the cockpit to see the view from the pilots' perspective. Unfortunately, I can't begin to name all the peaks in the pictures - only a couple.

Sagarmatha - Mt. Everest- and Lhotse (to the right of Mt. Everest)

Himalayas

Mt. Everest

Himalayas - from the cockpit

After a quick breakfast at our hotel we all boarded our bus for another bumpy crowded ride. Our first stop was at the Hindu cremation site at Pashupati on the Bagmati River. When a Hindu dies he is laid on a stretcher and covered with an orange wrap and carried to a cremation site like this one. The body is placed on a pile of logs and straw. The eldest son lights a fire in the corpse's mouth and then the "untouchables" or others keep the fire going until the body is consumed. This takes four to five hours. We heard several loud bangs, like explosions. This occurs when the skull explodes due to the intense heat. The ashes are then swept into the river to flow eventually into the Ganges.