One of the "advantages" of having jet lag is that I get to wake up with the sunrise. I've noticed that Kathmandu is very quiet during this time. The sounds of honking horns, un-muffled motor scooters, people shouting, dogs barking, and everything else that blasts through the air during the day are strangely silent at the sunrise. Instead all I hear are the morning birds and the occasional rooster, kind of like what I hear in the morning in Kauai.
The same phenomenon occurs at night. After around 8 pm or so, the streets here are virtually empty. Streets that are scary to cross during the day become a cakewalk at night. I was afraid that the reason people were off the streets at night was because of crime, but I asked one of my Nepali colleagues about that and he said that wasn't the case. People were just at home.
I have to say that I have walked the streets at night here many times and while I've always been vigilant I've never felt scared or threatened. Perhaps it is because I'm staying in a relatively affluent neighborhood (relative being the important qualifier here). I'm not sure. There doesn't seem to be much of a police presence. The only time I've seen them is when there is a political protest in the area.
Who would have thought that Kauai and Kathmandu have something in common...
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