KATHMANDU

Fair or not, I always associated the name Kathmandu with Timbukto - both sounded like far-off places where only a select few people are lucky enough to visit. You can imagine how great it felt to spend several days here. There were still signs of the civil war that ended a few months before my visit: military checkpoints were everywhere, as were armed guards and sniper stations. The city itself was vibrant and colorful, and the buildings were definitely different from the norm. The poverty was sad to see.