Upset in Kathmandu

Okay, I really have no idea of what is going on here. The Prime Minister fired the head of the military today which seems to have really pissed off a lot of people. Since he was exposed for planning a military coup a week or so ago, I can't say as I blame the PM for sacking him, but I'm guessing there is a lot more going on here than I understand. I think part of the problem is that the PM made a unilateral decision that the other parties in the coalition government didn't get a chance to participate in. The bottom line is that both the political types and civilians feel the need to voice their opinions so things could get a bit rocky over the next little while. (To hell with cricket and football...I think that demonstrations and tire-burning should be named as the national sports of Nepal.)

My friends are all quite concerned about this, but I refuse to get too worried until I am actually given a reason to. I was out and about for most of the day today and didn't see any trouble, although I've seen footage of today's demonstrations on the news. I have to admit that I'm almost disappointed that I never get to witness these supposedly riotous situations first hand. Kathmandu is not a big city - I have to wonder where this stuff happens that I never get to see it. I went out again this evening to pick up a few things, and everything is normal on the streets.

I have no immediate need to go anywhere, so if things escalate I can just stay home. The government is apparently pretty quick to impose what they call curfew, but which is more like a lock-down, if things have the potential to get rough. From what I understand, if this happens we're allowed out of our homes for an hour per day to buy food. My only concern is that I'm not going to be able to leave when I'm supposed to. I was thinking that if the airport closed I could get to Delhi by bus and fly from there, but with the way the things are in the Terai (see yesterday's post) I don't suppose I'd be able to get anywhere near the Indian border on land.

I don't really know where I'm going with this post, and I know I'm kind of rambling (and the grammar is awful!). I guess I just wanted to let you know that even if things look bad on the news, there's no reason to worry about my safety. Worst case is that I'll have some logistical issues getting out of here. I'll keep you posted as things unfold. I'm sure that by tomorrow morning I'll know which way this is going to go.