Approaching Kathmandu (काठमांडौ)

After departing Singapore, I was off to Kathmandu! However, by that time, the length of the journey had started to catch up with me. It was going to be a relatively quick 4-5 hour flight, but I was having trouble keeping my eyes open and started to nod off. After a period of time, I glanced out the window and snapped this photo:


I was able to guesstimate that the plane by that time was somewhere over Myanmar (Burma) or Bangladesh. Seeing the mountains caused me to become quite excited... I love mountains, but the main reason was because I was reminded that I might be able to catch a glimpse of the Himalayas as we flew closer to Nepal...

After nodding off again, I awoke and again glanced out the window. Unfortunately, there were clouds everywhere. The ground was barely visible through the dense clouds. Hoping that the sky would clear before we neared the Himalayas, I fell back to sleep... Awakening awhile later, I looked out the window and, to my dismay, the clouds had not only failed to thin but had actually become even more dense. Clouds were all that were visible for as far as the eye could see. Thick, impenetrable clouds that clothed the ground like a flocculent down blanket. Resigning to the fact that I may not be able to see the mountains under the current conditions, I slipped again into a light slumber...

Sensing the rustling of landing gears and feeling the declination of altitude, I realized that we were approaching Kathmandu. Suddenly completely alert, I looked down from my window and again looked at an opaque cloud layer. Quite disappointed, my gaze began to rise... higher, and higher, and higher once again, before my breath was taken away -what a surprise indeed! I could see them!! The Himalayan range was towering in front of me; obviously an immense distance away for sure, but there they were, proudly standing high above the clouds...


Looking at a map of Nepal prior to my trip, I had noted the central location of Kathmandu within the country. Since the Himalayan Mountain Range formed the northern border of Nepal with Tibet (西藏), I did not realize how evident the Himalayas would be throughout the country -a testament to the sheer immensity of the peaks.

Map of Nepal (from Lonely Planet)

As the plane descended towards the Kathmandu Tribhuvan Airport, the pilot announced that the visibility was low and he would therefore have to regain some altitude and circle Kathmandu Valley for awhile before attempting the approach again. Setting aside any fears in my mind related to the situation, I was delighted for the opportunity to view a more panoramic view of the valley while also gaining a closer look at the captivatingly magical Himalayas as we circled closer to them.

Aerial view of Kathmandu Valley