Geography Lesson

It's been a while since high school geography, at least for me, and just in case some of you haven't yet turned to Google Maps and Wikipedia, I thought I might take a minute to tell you about Nepal. 

Nepal is situated between China and India. At just over 147 square kilometers or 56,800 square miles, Nepal is slightly larger than Arkansas. The last population estimates (2014) were at 31 million. The 2014 estimate for the population of Arkansas? 3 million. 

(Image from http://www.visitnepal.com/travelers_guide/where_is_nepal.php) 

The prominent belief system is Hinduism (81%), followed by Buddism (9%), and Muslim (4%). That being said, I have been told that Nepal is a very tolerant nation and many Nepalese people practice a combination of religions. I'll have to get back to you on the accuracy of this statement, but I have already found a small gathering of members of my church in Kathmandu and plan to attend church with them every week. 

Nepal is most famous to westerners because...that's right, Mt. Everest! The Himalayan mountain range makes up the Northern border of Nepal. How far is Mount Everest from where I will be spending most of my time? I will be in Kathmandu for the majority of my time, with side trips to Bhaktapur, Pokhara, and Chitwan. Remembering Nepal is only the size of Arkansas-ish, it really isn't too far away. 

(Image from: http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/asia/lgcolor/npcolor.htm) 

However, I have no intentions of going to Everest Base Camp. Aside from the extreme cold, it is quite expensive. Another bummer, I will be in Nepal during Monsoon season, so my chances of even seeing Mt. Everest aren't good. I am not too terribly disappointed by this, as I seriously hate the cold and fail to see the appeal of dying of the mountain, but for you Dad, I will try to get a picture at least. I'll be there all summer, there's gotta be at least one good day, right?

Alright people, I need to study for my Radiology final tomorrow. ...I should come up with some sort of smart little sign-off phrase...any suggestions?