World heritage Baktapur

After three days in Nepal's capital, I long for quiet. It has been extremely intense – especially yesterday, when I cycled to Baktapur, an outstanding UNESCO World Heritage City about 15 km east of Kathmandu. I have never, ever felt so much adrenaline running through my body as I did riding that bike through Kathmandu's chaotic traffic. I navigated the overcrowded narrow streets, rode on highways where buses pick up and drop off passengers while moving, and dodged speedy motorbikes. Finally, I rode through the countryside, where the valley revealed its surrounding mountains. It was crazy, irresponsible, and dangerous – but also exhilarating and I'm happy I've survived it to report.

Today, I walked the streets of Kathmandu one last time. I took photographs, ate some delicious veggie momos (a traditional Nepali dish), captured the city’s stimuli with my senses, and happily said goodbye to all the touts, guides, holy men, trekking operators, flute sellers, and painters who constantly asked me if I wanted something, if I smoked marijuana, or if I knew Cristiano Ronaldo.

Tomorrow, I leave at 7 a.m., heading north to the Annapurna region, where I expect to trek for 21 days and reach Pokhara. It's worth noting that I have no trekking experience and absolutely no affinity for mountains. I honestly have no idea what awaits me.

If I manage to complete the trek safe and soundly, I will be spending some time in Pokhara, a city located in the west, around 200km from Kathmandu. From there I will cross the border into India, with planned stops in Varanasi, Agra and Delhi. This will probably be my last post before arriving in Pokhara, as I don't really know if I will have access to a computer or internet along the trek. I promise to share all the details of the next four weeks as soon as I can. Thanks for reading!