Kathmandu (Kathmandon't)

'Namaste!' I greeted a spiritual Guru in an Ashram. I had met him earlier in the day.

'Namaste!' he smiled serenely back.

'How are you?' I asked

'Oh... I am in bliss!' he replied 'I am always in bliss...'

I haven't quite reached this stage of enlightenment yet.

Last week I was trekking in the Annapurna hills with views of rhododendrons in bloom on the hillsides. The size of the landscape is magnificent and houses perch on the top of the steepest hills with nothing but rough steps leading to them.

At an elevation of 1400m (the UK's highest mountain Ben Nevis is 1344m) Kathmandu is very different from the mountains. Over the last 10 years, due to political unrest in the rural areas and due to tourism, the population of Kathmandu has exploded. Official figures say the population is around 1.5 million, local reports are nearer 4 million. The city experiences regular and prolonged power cuts every day. Adapting to eleven hours without power is no easy task. Simple things I take for granted like boiling a kettle, checking my emails, keeping things cold in the fridge, running the washing machine, heating water, and turning on a lightall become difficult if not impossible without electricity. In the city shops run generators, or use candles and torches to stay open in the evening. Back on the roof at my friend's house a short walk from the city the night sky is clear to see without light pollution and candles flicker in appartment windows. Below, a young woman pumps water and washes clothes in cold water by torch light. It's only eight o'clock at night but it is dark and already I feel tired.