Should you travel to Kathmandu or Chennai or London?

Travelling to Kathmandu, Chennai or London? Read before you travel...

You must be surprised to see why does someone want to tell you about ice, sand and coin at the same time and why does it have to bother you. Lets see if it does.............

I was born in Kathmandu, Nepal and traveled everywhere in Nepal except Pokhara, Solukhumbu and other places except Kathmandu. That means to say that all I know about Nepal is Kathmandu (whole valley). I stayed in Chennai for about 8 years so I know quite a lot (Mylapore to Sriperumbudur to Mount Road). I have been in London for the last 2 years (Shepherds Bush to Hyde Park to Victoria).

What is so unique about Kathmandu -

1. It is a lovely City with lots of things to see. You can smoke marijuana for a price of a cigarette (I know my friends tell me this), you can see excellent Hindu and Buddhist temples with a rich history that very few young Nepalese remember and many stuffs in a very cheap way.
2. You can see riot or mob almost everyday. If you dare to, you can very easily be part of the riot. If throwing stone at police is in your to-do-list but is illegal in your country, please visit Kathmandu. I can assure you that there is no other place in the whole wide world where you get to participate in this everyday local festival.
3. If you do not believe in global warming, you know where you should go. Kathmandu is situated at 1,355 M above sea level, surrounded by beautiful hills with a clear view of snow-capped mountains. You would assume climate to be cold or not warm. You would have been right 15 years back. But these days, smoke from sources you won't want to imagine, embraces you with so much love, I won't tell you how exactly you will feel. You should experience this for yourself.

What about Chennai –

1. It is a lovely city with nothing to do or see. You can see temples and beach and that’s it. And yet people are good in Chennai.
2. If you are a non-vegetarian and want to feel how chicken feel when fried, visit Chennai in May. Chicken are killed first and then fried but unfortunately people in Chennai do not have the pleasure of first dying before getting fried. Sun is so mercy-less.
3. Public transport is one of the few things you should praise in Chennai. An average bus will have 200 people or more inside. That is called full capacity utilization. But Public transport system in Chennai is highly sexist and discriminating. Bus seats on the right hand side are reserved for females and no male passengers are allowed to even watch those seats, even when empty. On the other hand, females can sit on the any side. When in the bus, you will surely wish you were born a female.

What about London –

1. It is a very well maintained city (north of the river only). You can walk around whole day and find that everywhere looks the same. Depending upon which country you come from, a good lunch here can cost about your full month's salary.
2. It is very easy to get stabbed here. Go to a borough which lies south of the river and man you are lucky if you come out without feeling (if not really) stabbed. Under 10s scare you more than teenagers here. I guess that is what a developed city means.
3. You will find people from every part of the world here. This leads to a real confusion. In Kathmandu or Chennai, it is very easy to differentiate a tourist from a local which helped everybody play pranks on tourists. In London you don't know who is who; you miss out on the fun.


There are so very many things I thought I knew about these places and I am stuck with 3 things each for a city now. Nonetheless I guess this should help you when you visit these places and not miss out on anything mentioned above.