I have *got* to stop losing things. In the last few weeks I've lost sunglasses, shoes, two watches, earrings, two rings, a pipe, a padlock, my Lonely Planet Nepal, a notebook, a scarf, a hairclip, a Sharpie, earplugs, and countless pens and hairbands. I shouldn't be surprised; this is an affliction I've had since birth. I wonder where all this stuff goes and who ends up with it. Surely there must be other people losing stuff at the same rate so it stands to reason that with all this lost stuff floating around out there, I'd luck out and at least wind up with someone else's hoodie or at least a measly lighter. No such luck. I guess I should be glad I've managed to hold on to my passport, traveler's checks, journal, ATM card, money and camera without much difficulty. (*said with a sharp rap to the wood computer table*)

This is beginning to get a bit old I imagine, but I'm still in Kathmandu. This is officially the longest I've ever spent in any one city that I haven't lived in. That's scary. My plans to leave Monday fell through on Sunday night at Funky Buddha when, after free shots bought for me and my friends by a rich cigar-smoking middle-aged Floridian, I decided getting up at 5:30 AM to catch my bus no longer held much appeal. Aside from Lauren (miss you babe!), most of my friends were staying and I found myself feeling a bit of an emotional pull when thinking about the reality of leaving Nepal. So, I danced all night to shockingly good trance, went to sleep at 5:30 AM instead of getting up, and here I am still.

We're in the midst of another Maoist strike and Thamel is a ghost town. This is the fourth strike since I arrived in Nepal more than six weeks ago. There are different kinds of strikes lasting different durations and affecting different sectors (transportation, tourism, industrial, educational, etc.) The strike today is a "bandh," or forced shutdown, and is a longstanding form of political expression in Nepal most often used by the Maoists. They enforce the strike with intimidation and violence and in past bandhs, Maoists have attacked public buses, government vehicles, schools and private businesses with bombs in an effort to terrorize the population into observing the strike. I just overheard a Nepali man tell an Isreali girl requesting information about renting motorbikes, "Sorry. Nepal is closed today." It's not far from the truth.

Schools are closed (wonder if it's like a snow-day?) as are offices and all government facilities. Rolling metal door seal businesses shut. The usual hubbub of tourist activity has seemingly vanished overnight as most people spend the day hidden out in internet cafes, watching movies or hanging out in the few open restaurants. Despite the fact that tourists are not a target for the Maoists, it's difficult but not impossible for us to get taxis out of Thamel. Besides, do we really want to be wandering around the streets of Kathmandu?

There's another strike on Monday that's supposed to last five days, so I'm going to have to take my window of opportunity and get out on Friday. My ticket's booked and I'm off, if a bit begrudgingly. I'll miss this place.