Early Friday morning, I’d been booked to leave Yangon on the Bangkok Airways flight PG706 to Bangkok leaving at 5.50 a.m. Eddie Teh kindly suggested that I stay at the Belmond Governor's Residence on Thursday, allowing me to upload some pictures to the internet. This had the advantage that, rather than worry about my departure, Doctor Hla Tun could concentrate on his own flight Friday morning to Bagan, where he would no doubt face another gruelling weekend of consultations at Bagan Medical Clinic.
It was recommended to report to the airport at least two hours before departure for international flights so the hotel car dropped me at the airport about a quarter to four in the morming. There were a few travellers waiting outside the terminal building being held at bay by a rather aggressive young lady with a machine gun. Staff were arriving through the one entrance which was open but passengers were not allowed inside until 4.00 a.m., when I was the first person to enter and pass through a very friendly security check (ticket and passport checked, luggage X-rayed, passengers first through a detector arch then a cursory ‘frisk’ with a ‘wand’). I quickly found the Bangkok Airways check-in counters but it didn’t do me much good – they were all unstaffed. I chose to sit down and wait with my luggage nearby but younger, later arrivals formed a queue at the check-in counter. Eventually, staff arrived and spent some time meticulously preparing for the day’s work and two girls logged on to their booking system. One man appeared with a large plastic storage box from which he unloaded all the various notices to passengers which sit on top of the counters and, a nice touch, a potted plant for each of the three counters. Two of the three desks were staffed and they started check in. This process soon slowed as one of the computer screens stopped working. Just before my turn came, they managed to coax the failed screen back into life. After this frustrating start, the actual flight to Bangkok was uneventful, if noisy, as there was a party of about twenty Thai ladies on board who kept up loud chatter and laughter throughout the journey.
Bangkok Airport is huge. After we landed, it took us over ten minutes to taxi to the stand, then at least as long for the transfer bus to ferry us to the terminal. Then, I had to find the Transfer Desk and get my boarding pass for my onwards journey. The signs said that there were two transfer desks, one East, one West and each a few hundred yards away from me. I couldn’t work out which was appropriate to my flight, so I guessed (a 50-50 shot) and was lucky. A lot of walking and moving pavements took me to a very thorough Transit security check (all items in blue plastic trays for X-ray, shoes in red plastic tray for X-ray, whole body scan cubicle, cursory body search) which, combined with rather officious security staff, always spoils my mood. At least I was near the correct Transit Desk, obtained my boarding pass for the onwards journey to Kathmandu, Nepal, and took refuge in the nearby Thai lounge for a few minutes.
I only had a short walk from the lounge to the departure gate, too, and a transfer bus took us to a remote stand and our waiting aircraft. Matters quickly improved as the cabin service was excellent. It was a busy time at the airport with a stream of aircraft waiting to use the departure runway and it took at least 30 minutes of queuing and taxiing on the ground before our aircraft took off.
Yangon to Kathmandu via Bangkok, 11th May 2018: The queue of aircraft waiting for take-off extended behind my aircraft.
I enjoyed a very decent lunch on the flight. I was surprised that there was no multi-channel passenger entertainment system but a copy of the ‘Bangkok Post’ kept me engrossed for most of the journey.
Of course, our route to Nepal took us back over Myanmar and, eventually, over the mountainous terrain approaching Kathmandu. I had not expected such a large, sprawling conurbation of modern buildings. Even individual dwellings seemed to rise to five stories to make most use of the site area but there were also large blocks of apartments which would not have looked out of place in Europe.
Nepal from above: Arriving in Kathmandu 11th May 2018
I found the ‘Visa on Arrival’ system confusing and eventually managed to apply using a touch-screen machine similar to an automated airport Check-in terminal but including a camera to take a passport-style image of the applicant. This machine issued a receipt confirming my application which I then presented at a payment counter with 25 U.S. Dollars. Armed with a receipt for the application, the cash receipt and my passport, I then went to the row of immigration desks marked 'Foreigners' and was officially admitted to Nepal. Of course, each of these stages involved separate queues. By the time I reached the crowded Baggage Hall, my two bags were on the belt so I was able to quickly move through the Green Channel in customs and into an Arrival Hall lined with tourist information and taxi offices. There was no sign of representatives from tour companies and I found myself on the pavement outside with cars and taxis streaming by. Seeing my bewilderment, a policeman asked, in excellent English, if he could help and he pointed out a row of representatives behind a barrier on the other side of the road. I spotted the representative from ‘&Beyond’ and, having met up, we made out way to the car park and a people carrier. He explained that security in Kathmandu was unusually tight because the Prime Minister of India, Mr. Modi, was about to arrive on a diplomatic visit to Nepal.
The main roads bristled with police security and traffic was heavy. The flags of India and Nepal were frequently displayed and we passed a couple of temporary arches of welcome. Off the main roads, shops lined both sides of the narrow streets, frequently unsurfaced, with traffic and pedestrians crammed together. The effect was a bit like Yangon, a bit like Delhi but, I suspect, essentially Nepali.
We were headed for Dwarika’s Hotel but, my guide explained, Mr. Modi was hosting a dinner at Dwarika’s in the evening (although staying at the larger Hyatt Hotel) and that we would not be able to use the front entrance. Instead, we stopped in a very narrow lane and walked up an unpromising-looking alley to a set of padlocked gates. We were admitted by a uniformed security guard, who gave me a smart salute, and ushered to an outdoor reception desk. A member of the hotel staff gave me a brief tour of the layout of the hotel whilst waiting for a ‘thumbs up’ from a colleague to indicate that my room was ready.
Dwarika's Hotel, Kathmandu, 11th May 2018
I was shown up to my spacious and charming room and, after a short interlude allowing a quick wash, I met my guide at the unlikely back entrance and we went on an absorbing sightseeing tour. First, we went to historic Patan Darbar Square where a number of important buildings and temples are being reconstructed, with international assistance, following the devastating 2015 earthquakes.
Patan, Kathmandu 11th May 2018
In the height of the afternoon rush hour, we made very tedious progress across the city to the Swayambhu Mahachaitva, the iconic hilltop Buddhist shrine. Although Nepal is only about 11% Buddhist and 80% Hindu, this shrine, dubbed the ‘Monkey Temple’ by ‘60s hippies who ‘discovered’ Nepal, is important to both Buddhist and Hindu. There were certainly crowds of visitors during my visit.
Another slow journey, giving further opportunities to study street life in Kathmandu, returned me to Dwarika’s (via the back gate) and my guide said he’d pick me up at 4.30 a.m. the following day. I didn’t venture out again that evening, very comfortable in my room. There was a very adequate Wi-Fi so I worked for a time and then slept very well in the large bed.
Related posts on this website
This is the first in a series of posts describing my visit to Nepal in 2018. Clicking on the 'Next report' link displays the post describing the next events. In this way, you may read about the trip in sequence.
Next report
Alternately, clicking on the 'All my Nepal reports' link displays all the posts on this trip in reverse date-of-posting order.
All my Nepal reports.
My pictures
Yangon to Kathmandu via Bangkok
Nepal from above
Kathmandu Airport
Patan, Kathmandu
Swayambhu Mahachitva Temple, Kathmandu
Kathmandu
Dwarika's Hotel, Kathmandu
All my pictures on this trip to Nepal can be found in the collection Nepal.
[Pictures linked 2-Jul-2018: Pictures added 7-Aug-2018]
