The Man from Kathmandu may not be in the running for an Oscar (yet) but the recently released tale of a United States-based Nepali with Hindu and Muslim parents reconnecting with his roots – directed by Tibetan-American Pema Dhondup and featuring an international cast – is being screened in 50 countries around the world. It is the first time a Nepalese film has made such a global splash, and is another indication that Nepal is getting back on its feet following civil war, earthquake and other calamitous events.
Kathmandu’s historic backdrops play a large part in the film and reprise their role for travellers, too. Few guides to the Nepalese capital fail to mention the excellence of its food, shopping and hotels, but none of them do full justice to its hospitable, charming, easy-going, humorous, winsome, handsome – and just about any other positive adjective you can think of – citizens.
Where to stay
Today’s sometimes colourless international hotel magnates could learn a thing or two from Boris Lissanevitch, a White Russian ex-ballet dancer and ex-big game hunter who opened Kathmandu’s first international accommodation in 1951, the Hotel Royal. His legacy lives on via recipes for borscht and chicken Kiev served at The Chimney, in the former palace that is part of the Yak & Yeti, the city’s pre-eminent five-star that opened in the 1970s. Even more sexy as far as heritage goes, but about twice the price, at US$280 nightly, Dwarika’s Hotel grew out of one man’s (Dwarika Das Shrestha, natch) passion for preserving Kathmandu’s intricately carved wooden windows.
No dopes when it comes to algorithms, various hotels in the city have tacked “boutique” onto their names. To date, Dalai-La appears to be the only genuine article. Just down the road, there’s a very good reason the Kathmandu Guest House has been in business for more than 50 years.
Punters with a yen for crisp, clean and almost audibly brand-new digs can breathe a sigh of relief as the Marriott Kathmandu, hard by the former royal palace, is opening this summer.
Where to shop
Sandwiched between China and India, Nepal gets cheap goods from both its neighbours, but what it does best is home-grown stuff like jewellery and handicrafts. Tea and spices are remarkably inexpensive and the city’s artists turn out nifty, colourful quasi-religious artworks, known as thangka , by the dozen.
Newars, the dominant caste in Kathmandu, are renowned for their prowess at business and trading in general, talents imparted at mother’s knee if numerous highly plausible, pre-teen, streetwise salespersons are anything to go by. Wits and bargaining skills demand a little pre-shopping honing.
What to eat
What’s often touted as the national dish, dal baht – rice and lentils, could be pronounced “ho hum”. There are plenty of alternatives: momo (dumplings) are the default go-to snack, and Newari cuisine lines up zesty surprises such as alu tama (curried potato) and senla mu (steamed and sautéed liver). “Meet-oh” = Nepalese for “tasty”.
What Nepal does well – and rather cheaply – is other country’s cuisines (pizza, Middle Eastern, Mexican, Thai, etc) as a stroll around the hugger-mugger streets of Thamel makes abundantly clear. There’s a marked trend towards serving organic and vegetarian dishes, as well as sustainably produced coffee.
Best location, and sporting passable wiener schnitzel, chicken Florentine, tiger prawns and so forth, goes to Kaiser Café, at the edge of the beautifully restored neoclassical Garden of Dreams laid out for Nepalese aristocrats a century ago.
Getting around
Five hours non-stop on either Cathay Dragon or Nepal Airlines. Cathay comes in at HK$6,000 (US$760) or more return, about one-third more expensive than its competitor, which some judge less reliable.
There are few short cuts in Kathmandu (one resident speaks of the “molecule-tight congestion”) – even if A is walking distance from B, there are seesawing paving stones, gaping potholes and mendicant children to negotiate. Taxi meters are largely cosmetic, but ride-hailing services such as Kawa (flag down is a mere US$0.13) are changing the game step by faltering step. Motorbike taxis are hazardous even if it’s just the infamous pollution that is taken into account. Bicycles are a good option outside urban areas, but all too precarious a conveyance on major thoroughfares. Rickshaws are quaint and camera-friendly, and their pilots deserve a helping hand. Bus/minibus? No! Nuff said.
Plus
The default valley escape is the sprawling ridge-top village of Nagarkot, some 30km to the west of Kathmandu proper, a Himalayan grandstand that’s done remarkably well for itself trading off its sunrise and sunset alpine views.
Colonel Sir George Everest (1790-1866) pronounced his surname “Eev-rist” and really didn’t think the world’s highest mountain (8,848 metres) should be named after him. Millions refer to it as Sagarmatha, or more poetically Chomolungma (“goddess mother of the world”). An Everest Experience flight-seeing trip with Buddha Air costs US$194 plus, however you calculate your carbon footprint. This May marks 66 years since Tenzing Norgay’s ascent – Edmund Hillary doesn’t always feature in Nepalese history.
The casinos attached to larger hotels are off-limits to Nepalis, which seems a bit unfair given the national affection for a flutter.