Happy St Patrick's Day! -- Happy Friday!

Today is the 25th anniversary of my commissioning in the US military (1998). That event occurred in Butte, Montana, on the steps of the courthouse. My younger brother, who was then a Captain in the US Army administered my oath. At that time I could not imagine how much I would enjoy my career as a member of the US military reserve forces. That commissioning opened a door to an entirely new career path for me. Reflecting on that today reminds me that one can never see the future clearly. Consequently, one must be open to possibilities and be prepared for whatever the future brings. These photos memorialize that occasion.

 Here in Nepal, today started as usual, with Susan and me enjoying breakfast on the DLR restaurant balcony.

Late in the morning, we hired a car and driver who took us to the giant Shiva statue between Banepa and Bhaktapur. That was maybe a 20 minute drive. For the non-Hindus, Shiva is an important Hindu goddess. This is the largest Shiva statue in the world. It is 142 feet tall. It was completed in 2010. Within the last few years they've opened a suspension bridge to walk across a deep ravine and over the main highway to reach the statue. Although you can drive right up to the statue, we chose to walk over the suspension bridge. It cost us $1.20 each to cross the bridge and visit the statue.

Our driver suggested this place when we decided to stop and have a beer. We split a bottle of Gorka Strong at this establishment.

Back in Dhulikhel, we walked over to the Yummy DeResto for a late lunch. We sat on the balcony and split a Tuborg beer and ate some crispy momos, some fried oyster mushrooms, and some mustang aloo potatoes. It started raining quite hard with loud thunder. We had to wait out the rain before we could walk back to the DLR.

It rained the rest of the afternoon. After splitting two beers, I needed a nap. When we met for a 7 PM dinner I didn't think I was hungry, but then I saw the DLR dinner buffet and changed my appetite. I actually ate quite a bit. My plate has some chow mein noodles, some roasted potatoes, and white rice with chicken stroganoff. It was all really good. It kind of reminded me of comfort food from the US. None of this was spicy in any way: very mild and bland. I had two small pieces of cake for dessert.

Tomorrow we are planning to hike the nearby 1000 steps trail, but rain is forecast, so we'll see what happens.

You will notice that there was no green beer and no corn beef and cabbage served anywhere today. Happy St. Patricks Day and Happy Friday!