Oh my. It was so easy to fly in, but those Nepalis, they don't make it easy to leave do they...
We stuffed the surfboards and the rest of our luggage (which is nothing when compared to the sheer scale of that surfboard bag - and in case you were wondering there are 4, yes 4, surfboards inside it) into the tiny little van that the guesthouse had provided. And off we went. The roads were normal for Kathmandu - congested, dusty and so much exhaust. Traffic started getting a little heavier as we neared our destination, and when we were within meters of the exit the driver pulled over to the side of the road and said "OK, you walk now"..... Ummmm, OK, I don't mind walking - I mean I just walked the Himalayas - but I'd really prefer it if you could drop me at the door... Especially as we have this ridiculously huge bag to contend with. But no, there was a demonstration blocking the entrance to the airport. Great.
We took a few minutes to get organized and strapped in - backpacks are a pain in the ass, then started walking towards our destination. There was a blockade accross the road making it impossible for any traffic to enter the airport, and on top of that people were sitting in the street. There were lots of banners (couldn't read them) and lots of megaphones shouting (couldn't understand them)!
We found our way to the entry 'path' - on the pavement to the right of the road, got the surfboard bag lined up, and headed in. It was all going so well, when one of the protesters at the front started to get agitated. Then, before we knew it he was shouting at us "Go away from here", "No Airplanes today", "No flying", "Get away from here, I tell you, GET AWAY FROM HERE" Hands were grabbing at Michael's shirt, all yelling the same thing.
We were 5 meters from the entrance to the airport. Holy crap, just let us through!
Michael grabbed one of the hands that was on his shirt and said "Do not touch me. Take your hands off me." Over and over again. I was yelling "Don't touch me, Don't touch me" (no-one was!!!)
With a little shoving, and some yelling we made it to the gate where the military let us inside. Thanks, I think.