Eye eye Captain

At last I can see. Out of both eyes. Properly. Only took 52 years! Thank heavens for Tilganga and the Fred Hollows gang. I had my initial appointment there on Monday and they managed to squeeze me in yesterday (Wednesday) which was great.
Here I am in my gorgeous operation outfit - which fits so well in all the right places! Obviously I was smiling as I had little idea what was in store for me.. last year's op went very smoothly but this time I wasn't quite so lucky. The cataract was reluctant to leave my eyeball, and I suspect that the local anaesthetic in my eye didn't work because I could feel everything - like the slice, the crochet hook thing to pull it out and all sorts of other stuff. But it finally relented and I am now enjoying a life of relaxation for a bit.
If you are keen to see my cataract op, you will find it here: I don't think I'll be tuning in any time soon....
And in other news, had a charming lunch at the embassy on Tuesday and our favourite bar reopens tonight HOORAY. No more having to make do with the sheer incompetence at Delima Garden (not known as Dilemma Garden for nothing).
Friends are gradually making their way back into Kathmandu, crappy runway notwithstanding. The TIA runway has been closed I think 5 times in the last few months because the firm who got the tender to repair the one runway had to spend so much money in bribes (for what, I have yet to find out) that they don't have any money for materials. So, they fill the cracks at night (in monsoon, so very wet) with a bit of sand, rubbish or whatever and a light icing of bitumen which of course doesn't set. And it is right at the point where planes touch down.
All aboard for a thrilling landing at TIA. Fasten seats belts and assume crash position!
Robin and I have joined the Hotel Malla pool and gym so once I get the all clear I can splash about a bit. And we are planning to take a short trip to Sri Lanka in a few weeks to help with Robin's visa situation in South Asia - he can't go back to India yet and can't spend much more time in Nepal right now. Tibet is now open again but has no beaches, Thailand is on the way home, Clifton Beach in Karachi is not really a sun lovers paradise so Sri Lanka it is. We've never been there so we are really looking forward to that. If it happens.....
Right, I'm going to recline now and look pathetic in case anyone comes to visit.
And I'll wait for the STAR movies James Bond festival which is on every afternoon.

time for festival shopping

Yesterday morning I went to Tilganga again for another check up and  got the thumbs up. I am now seeing better out of my left eye than I have for decades and I am now back to roaming the streets as carelessly as ever.This is a pic of some of the shoes of people who were waiting for attention while I was there - another pile was further up the stairs.

Tihar is coming in a few days so I have been busy buying myself a present - well I'm worth it! This time of year everyone also does work on their house to make it pleasing for the goddess Lakshmi to enter. In honour of this I purchased a new shower curtain for the hotel room - how glamorous is that for only Rs350! I also need to start thinking about a present for my bhai for the bhai tikka day on Sunday - we have to exchange gifts and eat lots of sweets - I think I can manage that one OK.

Meanwhile Kathmandu has been swamped by tourists in the last few days - all the hotels were full and people were being sent out of town to get rooms. How crazy. And yet the government (if you could call it that) is hoping a million tourists will come next year. God help us. The airport won't cope, there aren't enough hotels, and we already have rations of electricity and water. So I don't think it will be a grand success. But I could be wrong - I was once before!

Robin and the boys are now in the Limi Valley and heading for a pass to get back to Simikot - they've had fine weather and all is well. Their menagerie of horses, donkeys, dzopkios and yaks is also doing well.

Today I went shoe shopping and had to take some photos for you girls - just tell me which ones you want!

I CAN SEE!!!!!

I am thrilled to the back teeth (fillings included) to report that the operation was a success. And not scary. The scary part was the local anaesthetic injections in/around the eye. Well the first one anyway. Lucky I made them give me some diazepam or I would have run a mile. Actually I probably couldn't have considering I didn't have my glasses on and was wearing the Nepali version of a hospital gown - purple baggy too short trousers and a short kurta top with fetching hat thing like the North Korean nuclear scientist sport. Lovely. And no, I didn't have a photo. The doctor did 52 cataracts yesterday morning, and I was of course the only foreigner so I made lots of new friends who I got to see again this morning at the clinic. We were all smiling from ear to ear today, instead of looking scared like yesterday.
Dr Ruit  told me he would only take 6 or 7 minutes to do the op and that was true. My friends who came with me got to watch it on the big telly outside the theatre and they were pretty impressed. They were also glad it wasn't happening to them! I didn't feel a thing and it was rather fascinating to see through the murk what was happening. And I am a WUSS so anyone can do it. Really! I have another eyepatch till Sunday - I have to boil it every morning for 15 mins to stave off infection, and of course I have some more stinging eye drops 5 times a day. But the care I received was second to none. And a bargain compared to home.

Just after the op when I got home

yo ho ho and a bottle of rum

Here's how stupid reading glasses look over an eye patch

So now I'm relaxing at my friend's place in Budhanilkantha, overlooking the valley and the smog, lazing in the sun drinking cups of tea and supervising the pets. It's tough.
2 nights here then back to the mayhem for more clinic visits and social engagements. It's a wonder I have time for anything these days.

On a serious note, if any of you are ever thinking of donating to a worthy cause but can't think which one, please consider the Fred Hollows Foundation. They help people with sight problems all over the world, and they make the intra ocular lenses that will one day replace yours if you get cataracts. And you are helping a person with no income get their eyesight and livelihood back.
Time to go back into the sun and maybe put some more eyedrops in. Robin is somewhere near Yari today - I wasn't really paying attention when he called yesterday as I was too excited about ME!
Of course I have to thank everyone at Tilganga who looked after me (and all the other patients there) as well as my friends and family here: my excellent bhai Puru and niece Yashu who came with me to the hospital and held my hand, Uttam for walking me out for dinner and drinks last night, Rafi and Petra for being seen in public with me, and Sam, Stephen Darling, Verena, Clare and all the others who offered help. And Robin, next time you have to come with me!
bye for now

and it's hello again from Kathmandu

where as usual the internet is slow and unreliable, but at least since Dashain we only have 2 hours a day of powercuts (without a schedule as yet so it is always a surprise!).
Our flights here were fairly uneventful and we had the boys all primed for the sprint to the visa desk. Buying a visa here is much cheaper than at home - you just have to queue for a bit. Anyway, they all got through and there I was with my passport full of Nepal visas and a request for another. The man glared at the 90 day visa I had earlier this year (of which I used about 30 days!) and said "You can't have that visa I will only give you 15 days." Oh dear. I attempted to reason with him, and show him exactly how many days I had stayed as you are only allowed 150 days in a calendar year. He wasn't buying it and by now I was holding up about 50 people who were getting a bit cross. So he took me aside - "are you handling it dear?" asked Robin . Yes go away! - and said that he would take my passport and send it to Immigration. What a good idea I said - as I know that the people in the office are about 10 times smarter than this idiot appeared to be. So I got into the country but didn't have a passport or visa. Oh well.
We were flat chat from the moment we got out of the airport  with people coming to see Robin. Nobody comes to see me anymore :(
On Wednesday we sent the boys sightseeing while Robin had about a hundred meetings and I went to the Immigration office to see about my passport - the nice Mr Gautam was very busy as it was their first day of opening after the holidays, so he asked if I could come back on Thursday and of course I said yes. And when I did get there on Thursday after dropping the boys at the airport I got my passport and a visa for 90 days which takes me to the 10th of January - which is way more than I need. And my new BFF Mr Gautam and I agree that the people at the airport cannot think.
Meanwhile, yesterday I spent about 4 hours at the Tilganga Eye Hospital having tests and getting poked in the eye and having 3 lots of stinging drops put in. Ouch. Not only do they sting but they make your eyes sensitive to the light - and when you are walking from one building to another in the bright sun following someone in a crisp white coat it HURTS. Good thing Puru was with me to hold my hand and stop me crashing into some potted geraniums. He was also useful for distracting me when I had to have a blood test. And of course he speaks Nepali which came in handy once or twice.
Anyhow, I am booked in for next Wednesday (my goodness so fast) but unfortunately they can't restore my sight to 20/20 in that eye as it is now at -14 (so where is my white stick?!) but they will get it to -7 the same as the right eye, so at least my eyes will be balanced - unlike my brain. So soon it will be back to the world of contact lenses.
And emma chisit I hear you ask? Well, first of all, the current exchange rate is about 68 rupees to the Aussie dollar. So, I paid Rs 50 to register as a patient. I paid Rs 650 for all the tests I needed (which at home were going to be $755) and I paid Rs 25 for antibiotic eyedrops which I have to put in 4x a day from today. Oh, and then when I go on Wednesday for the op, with a private 'relaxing room' as Puru put it, I have to take Rs 10,500. Yes that's right about $150. For the best eye surgeon on the planet to treat me in a brand new hospital. Go figure.
So, today I am off to meet some friends at the markets at 1905 for chocolate croissants and other goodies.
 But just before I go, imagine if you will my surprise when I opened the door yesterday and saw this:

Don't try this at home