Life in Kathmandu is pretty good and I might need a firm kick in the ass to remind myself how lucky I am to be here.

I called my sister the other night. It was the first time we'd talked in about six weeks and we had a lot of catching up to do. Right around this time I am beginning to feel a bit homesick. I miss my family terribly. I daydream about coming home, giving my nieces neverending hugs and whisking them away to spend the day exploring the city.

I miss my friends. Dancing, hikes in Marin and lazy movie nights. I miss San Francisco. Hills, bay, restaurants, fog, funky freaky people. I miss good music. Breakbeats, Qool, my stereo, my car stereo, outdoor parties. I miss food. Eggs Benedict, American pancakes with real maple syrup, bottomless coffee, chicken enchiladas, salad, wine.

But really. I am in frickin' Nepal. I developed wanderlust in Australia when I was 22. I've wanted to come to Asia ever since hearing the stories of friends who'd traveled here. I love this place and every minute I am relaxing in a cafe with other travelers on a Tuesday afternoon or breathing pure mountain air or swimming in a holy lake, well, I should be grateful dammit!

Lauren and I spent most of yesterday hanging out at an Isreali restaurant called OR2K. They have blacklights and play low-volume trance. The food is yummy. It rained on and off most of the day so we hung out and made friends with a few of the 15 or so Israelis hanging around eating and smoking in their trademark Thai fisherman's pants and headbands. After dinner, we went for a bit of an explore and found ourselves on a cycle rickshaw out of Thamel's confusing and eye-boggling maze of lit up businesses and onto a little night temple tour.

I'll be in Kathmandu for at least a few more days while I wait for my Indian visa to get processed. I'll be enjoying Thamels's unusually good culinary offerings and the company of my friends in the meantime. My motley crew of companions at the moment includes Lauren, Hiro, Jai, Maria, and a newly-acquired group of friends at OR2K. We've been having a blast together and while it's not the cultural-immersion of India or the rigors of a trek, it's certainly nice to get some R&R. Makes for fascinating reading I am sure, so I'll try to stir things up in the next few days.