INTRODUCTION

Nepal is sandwiched between India and Tibet. Most people say it is a poor country in which it is, so budget hotels are placed everywhere. It would be better to be a budget traveler. If you go to 2,3,4 or 5 star hotels you really would be shielding yourself from the world outside.

My family and I took the budget way and for at least $8 a night we were pretty amazed! And for what we were spending a day was saving us money.

The climate of Nepal is they have rainy summers and cool mornings and it is warm till night (evening) they also have a tropical monsoon climate with dry winds.

Welcome to Kathmandu, I've bet you've heard about Kathmandu but not every thing. As we all know the Himalaya is Nepal's special ingredient so you are probably surrounded by snowy peaks,' hills and mountains. It's a wonderful sight but that's only the start! Oh and lets not forget the Annapurna region! It's not as famous as the Himalaya.

You would like to see stupas right? Let's go! One of the best is Swanbunath. It is to represent Buddha. You can take a taxi or I should say Tempo (an auto rickshaw).

Another is Bodnath. It is the second largest in the world! Lots of people come and visit each day. Some Buddhists come and pray. The eyes are Buddha's eyes

Some places in Nepal are not for some people, for example, Dakshinkali where they sacrifice animals for their god Kali. Another place is Pashupatinath were the dead are cremated and there is a funny smell which isn't satisfying but you still might be able to visit the Milk Baba who lives on goats milk. A lady comes every day to give him milk. He has long dread locks and lives in a small temple like house.

Another place to visit is the bead market, which you can buy bangles and necklaces for cheap prices; you can even get one made especially for you, right in front of your eyes. Make sure you don't wear them in public places for they will think you are married.

Durbar square is another famous place with temples and holy cows and goats (beware of male goats they smell!).

The temples are for their gods like Ganesh, an elephant headed god. His father Shiva is another god.

In Durbar Square is a small market called Metal Market because all they sell is Metal things like, knifes, pendants, necklaces and lots more.

This depends were you would like to stay, if your looking for a cheep or expensive place to stay. The best place for hotels is Thamel.

To get to Pokhara go to a travel agent in Kathmandu and ask about how to get to Pokhara, they will tell you to take a bus. The long trip should have short stops for toilets and stretches. It will take you around the valleys with a beautiful view of the exotic forests. (If you think you might get sick you can organize to go by plane). When you get to Pokhara it may not be the best but it still is a lovely place to stay.

You may want to borrow a rowboat and row up to a small island temple. If you go in there in the winter you might not want to go but still in summer's fine. If you row some more you may come to a hilly place and that is were there is a Monastery. The last time I went they were still building but that was a year or so ago so they may have finished.

The long walk takes you up through the lush forests and you may even hear some monkeys on the way. Soon you will come up to a large building. It will be open depending what time it is. Remember you should take of your shoes before you enter. This is not the place. The Monastery is up further but it is not that long.

If you get hungry there is a restaurant at the start of the journey. I believe that there is only 1 person who is running it so it might be a little slow.

Okay you might not have a hotel and you can't even find one? Well I can help you here there is a lovely place called Hotel Sangham Plaza. If you like having really flash hotels well there should be more.

If you want to see Mt. Machhapuchhare in the early dawn you can organise a taxi or if you can't you'll have to get up really early and walk up the windy road. When you get up the top it will be a little chili but that doesn't matter because they sell chai, which will warm you up

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You can have a tropical walk home but there will be a couple of cafes first. The best thing to have is porridge with banana. I didn't have any but my mum and dad say that it was the best they have ever had! On your way down you can take a few photos. If you don't want a little adventure you can see if you can take a taxi.

If you want to go on a pony trek it can be organized with your hotel owner. The ponies will take you over a valley and they will probably take a stop for drinks. It is a tradition to drink Chai a herb tea with lots of sugar. It is lovely and I don't think you can have coffee. They may turn back then. Hopefully you will go through the old part of town, which is pretty muddy.

There are lots of places in Pokhara that you can eat at. One is the Once upon a Time Restaurant, which is very lovely. Another place is the Boomerang German Bakery and Restaurant. If you have fussy children most places sell chips and sandwiches!

If you want a taste of Nepal you can try something called Daal baht. For breakfast you can have croissants with jam (if you like vegemite you'll have to take your own).

You can go two different ways to get to Royal Chitwan National Park you can go from Katmandu or you can go from Pokhara.

When you get there you might hear some rumors about Rhino's but that is not bad.

A nice place to stay is Park View Lodge. It has lovely rooms that are cheep. Okay you want to go in the park on an Elephant? You talk to a person at the park entry and it is rather expensive but it is worth it. You say oh no the elephant is noisy and the tiger will come and eat us all! Don't worry! The elephants are quiet as a mouse! The rhinos will come up really close so be ready to take a snapshot!

If you went on a bare back you would be hurting but hopefully they put you on a seated one! If you want another one you can take a private Elephant out in a small park which is as good but cheaper

If you want to get up really close to a rhino well you can you can get so close that you can pat it and feed it bananas! I am talking about an adopted baby rhino who's mum died so people are looking after him. His name is Kunjum or something like that. When he gets older they will teach him to defend, eat and look after himself then let him run free in the park and maybe check on him every couple of days.

Now if you are hungry there are a heap of restaurants in town. They are next to the park but most of them are high of the ground so no rhinos or tigers will dine! There are no lions so that's even better. But if you want to see lions you'll have to go to Africa.

Did you come to Nepal just for the trekking? Well your up to the bit were we go trekking. There are lots of different sorts of treks you can take: there is the Annapurna trek the Everest Trek or the Everest Base Camp Trek. My family took a small one to Namche. We partly cheated and took a Plane to Lukla and walked the rest of the way. If you don't want to carry your own stuff (sorry I mean packs) you can get a porter and a leader to lead your trek. My family and I were tough and carried our own packs! And of course we lead our selves.

When you get to Namche Bazaar you should stay for a couple of days so you will not get Altitude Sickness. If you go in winter you might have a chance of snow. We were lucky enough to have some snow! We first made a very pathetic snowman.

We changed hotels to Hotel Tibet. The snow on the rooftops was falling down on people. I had one fall on me and it wasn't that bad.