Kathmandu and Boudhanath Stupa
I started visiting Nepal to trek and climb in 1993 and my most recent visit was just two years ago.
On this latest trip I was amazed at how the Kathmandu valley had grown to become a densely crowded metropolis.
At about 220 square miles, roughly half the size of Fairfax County, it has 2.5 times the population at about 2,500,000 and it’s growing at four percent a year.
The first surprise is the temperature.
The altitude is about 4,600 feet but the longitude is 28 degrees, roughly the same as Florida, so it’s seldom frigid and often very warm.
Even before this catastrophe the urban infrastructure was hardly worthy of the name.
A Crowded City
Many streets outside of Thamel, the western and tourist enclave, are unpaved or so full of huge potholes as to be barely usable.
In 2013 I stayed in Boudhanath, only a mile or two from Thamel, but the trip by taxi could take forty-five minutes.
It was much faster to hop on the back of a scooter or motor bike.
A Chhetrapati Market
The inner city is a thousand-years-old with newer buildings, often of dubious construction, constantly taking the place of those torn (or falling) down.
Much of the daily commerce, such as food shopping, takes place right on the street and the streets are apt to be alley size and a maze to the unfamiliar.
Thamel
The “suburbs” of Kathmandu stretch for miles in all directions.
Those and the crowded villages beyond them will have their own dilemmas as there is no emergency service system in the valley.
Kathmandu Fire Station
There are less than a handful of fire stations for the entire valley and they are inadequately staffed and equipped.
There is no fire brigade in the modern sense.
Large scale emergency response for floods and other disasters seems to be the province of the local police and the Nepalese army.
Food, water and medical assistance will be very high on the list of needs.
KTM Firefighter
Twenty years ago I first went to Nepal to climb Kala Patar, the 18,514 foot peak near Everest.
The route in was the same taken by Sir Edmund Hillary, a 14-day walk from Jiri to Gorak Shep and then out to Lukla for the flight back to KTM.
The daily trek was from village to village and perhaps not surprisingly, the highlight of the trip, despite the stunning scenery, were the wonderful Nepali people, especially the children.
Brothers
This is their hour of need and may be bring them comfort, aid and support.
Oxfam Nepal Disaster Relief
https://secure2.oxfamamerica.org/page/content/nepal_earthquake/?gclid=CLin6f65lMUCFdQ9gQod1nkAoA