Another early morning wake up to get to the airport for our morning flight over Mount Everest but sadly it was too hazy due to pollution. Better luck tomorrow! We got dropped off at the Himalayan java coffee shop (an excellent chain here)to have a consolation blueberry smoothie and Nepali coffee.Duly fortified we set off for a walk through the old part of Kathmandu. Narrow streets with shops and interesting woodwork decoration on the old buildings.Every now and then there would be a shrine with some devotees around. We reached the Durbar,the ancient square with a Gurkha garrison to defend it. Foreigners have to pay a £5 entry fee to this area so we carried on walking.We could have seen the living goddess in her temple( a real young girl from a Brahmin family chosen for her perfection). Time was running out as we had a lunch time visit to a centre that cares for girls who have been trafficked in Nepal.This is a charity supported by the tour company.We heard about their programme to help the youngsters,had a lovely Nepali thali and a plate of momos,some we had made ourselves as we had been given a demonstration and some made by the girls thankfully.
After lunch we went to Bhaktapur city,a few miles away from Kathmandu city centre .It's like a living museum with all it's temples,it's artists and potters still working within the city. It's not as touristy as Kathmandu and well worth the £5 entry fee.there were two festivals going on ,one Buddhist and another particular to the city itself. They also make a delicious yoghourt,flavoured like crime brûlée and served in clay pots.We spent a happy few hours walking around until it was time to return to the more modern Nepal and our group's final dinner. An early night to try and get our Everest flight again.