Nepal where I "voluntarily"lost my heart

Friday -8 February 2008. /Saturday 9 February 2008
Athens. At Zoe and Andreas.
On the flight from Heraklion to Athens I was sitting next to Ka. Maria. A lady from Agios Nikolaos, where she is having a jewellery shop. Having a nice conversation about different subjects. Than she asked me were I was going in Athens and it turned out that her sister, who she was going to visit, was living in the same area.
We decided to go together with the metro ( 5 euro) to Panagitis, where her sister was going to pick her up and they would drop me on the corner of Pericleous.
Arrived around 16.00 in Zoe’s house. A nice relaxing few days with Zoe and Andreas.
Unfortunately I had to work a lot of hours in the computer, because I received a test project just before leaving, which – when I pass this test – will give me a very nice opportunity to make some extra money on the computer during the season and next winter. Bad timing, but an opportunity I could not walk away from.
While I was working on the computer, Zoe was also working, trying to finish an order of one of their clients.

Sunday 10 February 2008.
Athens.
Around 11 in the morning walking to the church where the bus to the airport stops. About 10 minutes later the X94 came. Only 3.20 euro to get in half an hour at the arrival/departure hall of the airport.
First to the business centre to connect to the internet to send my project. With a few late nights typing I finished on time the 100 pages required. Around the 20th of February I can expect a reply whether I ‘ve got the job or not.
Around two o’clock Renske arrived. Straight to the bus stop and again with the bus to Athens (2 x 3.20 euro).Half an hours. Super nice house, truly Zoe style.
(Rita’s 10 minutes walk from the bus stop to Zoe’s house, is of course half an hour exercise, in the rain and with heavy load on the search for Zoe’s house.
Arriving there time for coffee, a wine, mezedes. Mimi – Zoe’s mother – passed by to say hello. We stayed at home for the evening, having a nice diner, with some drinks and around 1 o’clock made the beds for a good sleep, thanks to the wine.

Monday 11 February 2008.
Athens-Bahrain.
At 9.30 out of bed, shower, coffee. Woke up Andreas around 10, so he could make Zoe’s coffee and leave for work. Again, but now with Zoe – also an early morning person like us – another coffee, ready to face the world and walk to the main street for the bus station. Arriving at the main street we decided to grab a taxi, which could drop us of at the busstop going to the airport. Again it took us half an hour to arrive at the airport.
There we could check-in our luggage immediately, so we only were left with one hand luggage backpack each. 14.30 we took off. The plane was almost empty. Renske had a seat at the window at the emergency exit, I had a seat on the other side at the window, with six empty seats between us.
A quiet flight, something to eat and we slept a lot.
After 4 hours we landed in Bahrain, got our voucher for the hotel (The Carlton!!!) and then had to wait about an hour, before they transferred us to the Carlton.

Indeed it was the Carlton, but in a downfall state. Just arriving in the room, the reception called that our diner was ready: a small buffet, some left over salad, white rice, something that looked like spinach, with filling but with the flight to Kathmandu in our mind we better left it. So, a plate with French fries and something fishy. Coffee as desert and than we went to the fifth flour, where like an announcement in the lobby told us, was a coffee room, a disco and the Hawaiian Bar. And again an experience:
There were some Ethiopian girls, written on their faces that they were more than just a waitress. We had a glass of wine at the bar and then it was really time for us to make a quick exit to the room.
I wanted to charge the battery of my laptop, so we called maintenance for an adaptor. The plugs here are the three pointed (English) plugs. The maintenance man came, put his screwdriver in the top whole so that my to pins of the plug could go into the two bottom ones. And Eureka: it worked!! (Children, don’t try this at home).
After a nice shower time to go to sleep, with the rhythm of the “disco” at the background.