Flying to Kathmandu - the past meets the present

Early morning, off to the Kuala Lumpur LCCT - for  "Low Cost Carriers Terminal" - for an AirAsia flight to Kathmandu! I fly a lot for work, and normally don't get excited about going places, even far away places I've not been before, but Kathmandu is an exception.

No sooner do I get off the airport shuttle than I'm confronted with this list of destinations: 

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Don't yawn, there's a reason this is here. In the middle, you see Clark Field? This is a former US Air Force base in the Philippines, a very big one. When I was about 6, my mum and stepfather and I moved there (he was a jet jock) - and my first memories were of that country, its wonderful people, flora and fauna. This struck me in part because this trip to Nepal is the first time I've been to Asia for an extended period where I'm living not in a hotel, but in an apartment, and not in the center of the city but in a residential suburb.

Funny how you can turn a corner and find the distant past and the present merge in an instant.

The carrier I flew, AirAsia X, is one of many Asian budget airlines but is one of the better ones in my experience (just remember to buy your meal - and your baggage allowance - when you book). In case you are wondering - none of the service providers I'm mentioning in my travels is compensating me; I just thought tips from a frequent traveller might be of use to some readers.

A packed plane to Nepal for Dashain and my first view of a very famous mountain ...

I reckon that title got your attention!

The flight to Kathmandu from Kuala Lumpur was pretty uneventful - though very full. You're probably thinking that's because October/November are the highest of high seasons for trekking, but the real reason is that the biggest holiday of the year in Nepal is Dashain, which is going on now and that means that planes are bursting with Nepali returning home for the festivities.

I got a good seat - meaning, lots of legroom, important when you are 6'6"/2m tall - but no window except a porthole on the  aeroplane door next to me. About 3 hours into the flight I happened to look out and saw a mountain; it took me a second to realise that it must be massive as the layer of clouds that normally obscures all but the largest mountains covered only a very small part of the base of the peak. I turned to the flight attendant and said "Is that Everest?" She glanced outside, smiled and nodded yes. The photo below was my first look at the mountain that I will see from much closer range later in the trip.

Now that's something you don't see every day!