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Nestled up a short driveway in busy Gairidhara, Noya (meaning “beauty of god” in Hebrew), is a peaceful 11-room boutique hotel set in its own courtyard. Being an original Rana house, it seems fitting that, since Rana architecture was heavily influenced by British neoclassical traditions, Noya serves traditional English afternoon tea.

I have personally been doing the rounds of places that provide afternoon tea. A short round, as no one in Kathmandu does this! The Hyatt used to provide afternoon tea in their lobby lounge but according to the head waiter, they stopped several years ago. Fairfield by Marriott periodically provides an afternoon tea menu, but with very Indian inspired eats. As distant from an English afternoon tea as, well, India is from England.  

Naturally it’s possible to buy excellent cakes and tea/ coffee in many restaurants in town. But there is something luxurious about having sandwiches, cakes and scones presented as a three-in-one meal, in a stunning setting. So Noya Hotel is filling a much needed gap in the market. And this might be the perfect thing to do over the Easter weekend!

Recently I talked to Santosh Bahadur Shah, the owner of Noya, to ask how his idea of creating afternoon tea in Kathmandu came about. “As a London based commodities trader, my passion for tea and coffee led me to form a UK company trading in tea and coffee,” explains Shah. Growing up in London was the main reason for him becoming involved in the afternoon tea culture—think Fortnum and Mason, and Kensington Gardens Hotel, the pinnacles of afternoon tea. “Travelling around Europe promoting Nepali tea and coffee, I also had the chance to sample a lot of afternoon teas in different countries. You could say I am a connoisseur not only of fine teas, but also of afternoon tea culture,” laughs Shah. 

Returning to Nepal to open Noya Hotel was the perfect opportunity to pass on his passion and fascination for tea to both those living in Kathmandu and visiting tourists. I asked if he thought Kathmandu was ready for an afternoon tea culture. “Tea growing was established in Nepal long before coffee was introduced and if you think about it, every Nepali family drinks tea in the morning and afternoon. In Darjeeling there is a culture of having scones and pastries with tea in the afternoon, so why not Kathmandu?”  

Buying tea directly from small plantations in Illam, Jiri, and Dhankuta, and from major tea companies, Shah offers a variety of Nepali teas as well as teas from China, Japan, Sri Lanka and Thailand. In the afternoon tea set you can chose from Japanese Matcha tea and Thai Pea tea, to Blooming tea and hand-rolled Himalayan tea. All teas are served in real antique silver teapots (imported from London), with silver plated tea strainers and the finest bone china cups.  

But no afternoon tea is complete without the food! Noya offers a variety of finger sandwiches, savouries, scones with jam and clotted cream, Victoria sponge, and other cakes. Your typical English afternoon tea. But again in-keeping with that fusion of cultures, Noya also offers afternoon tea Nepali style. On offer with Nepali chai is a range of savouries such as bara, chatamari and khapse, and sweets. Determined to keep away from Indian sweets, Shah sources his sweets, including barfi, jeri-swari, and gulmadi, from small family-run, traditional sweet shops in Patan, Bhaktapur and Kathmandu. Tasty, and helping to keep alive the dying tradition of Nepali sweet making! All the goodies in the English and the Nepali afternoon tea sets are served on a three-tier plate stand, a pure afternoon tea etiquette, starting with savoury on the bottom and ending with the sweetest titbits on the top. 

Afternoon teas are available daily by reservation only (one day prior). From Rs 2,500 per set (for 2 people). For further information, and to make reservations, see Noya on Facebook.

The Matka Café can be found not just in Thapa Gaon, New Baneswor. It is ubiquitous on Twitter, where owner Prakash Pyakurel (@Jitpur) regularly tweets and communicates with his customers, and where he debates contemporary topics—even about how expensive the tea is at Matka!

 The Matka, probably the only café in Nepal with a strong Twitter presence, is also the hub for a big group of Nepali Twitterati who spend hours socializing and chatting in the cozy café. Free wifi, a separate smoking zone and good company make it an ideal place to spend one’s leisure time, or drop by for a quick bite.

 The debate over the pricing of Matka’s Rs 120 masala tea served piping hot in a hardened clay cup (matka) is just an excuse for its followers (or non-followers) to have a bit of fun, we think. The APEX food sleuths have had more expensive tea at far less appealing joints.

THE MENU

Chef’s Special:

- Milk Masala Tea

- Mutton Khaja Set

- Saadheko Mo:Mo

Opening hours: 8 am to 8 pm

Location: New Baneshwor

Cards: Not Accepted

Meal for 2: Rs 1,000

Reservations: 9851075260

 With its famous star insignia and signature rubber soles, Converse is easily one of the most recognizable shoe brands in the world. First created in 1908, Converse has for decades been ruling the sneakers section of the global shoe market. Originally designed and made for American basketball players, these durable and comfortable shoes are now as popular among sportspersons as they are among hip urbanites.

 Converse sneakers first entered Nepal in 1979. Not much is known about their early Nepali customers except that most of them perhaps came from rich and elite families of the yore.

 “No one knows who introduced Converse in Nepal,” says Madhu Rai, the store in-charge of Converse New Road branch in Kathmandu. “Some say it was an Indian businessman, while others think the local Marwari community was responsible.”

 Right now, in Nepal, Converse shoes are sold from its five official outlets: at United World Trade Center (UWTC) Tripureshwor, New Road, Durbar Marg, and in Kathmandu Mall and Civil Mall. Customers from outside Kathmandu valley can order the shoes via phone, e-mail or social media.

A pair of original Converse will cost you anywhere between Rs 4,490 and Rs 9,000

 A pair of original Converse will cost you anywhere between Rs 4,490 and Rs 9,000. (Fake ones and copies, which are more ubiquitous than the originals, are available for as little as Rs 1,000.) “Most Converse shoes available in Nepal are brought from Singapore,” says Amrit Shrestha, the overall manager of Converse Nepal.

 Shrestha adds: “Just as Goldstar was once considered synonymous with rural populations, Converse has come to represent the modern, elite class of Kathmandu.”

 He says Converse shoes are popular among the capital’s brand-conscious youths who are looking to make a strong fashion statement with their preference for trendy brands.

 Ganesh Bhujel, 28, an IT Student found at Khichapokhari, loves the shoes for their tenderness, smooth surface, and unique color scheme.

 “Wearing a ‘Chuck Taylor Converse All Star’ makes me feel like I am marching in a mega-fashion parade,” adds Bhujel. A Converse fan for the past six years, Bhujel likes to flaunt his “few dozen Converses” on Instagram and Snapchat.

 Yet it is not just the urban teens and sports enthusiasts who wear Converse. Says Samir Shrestha, a hotel entrepreneur and another Converse fan, “Besides the urban youth, I also find that many entrepreneurs, bankers and industrialists also love this brand.”

 Samir Shrestha refers to the original Converse. The cheap fake versions from ‘Hong Kong bazaars’ and footpaths of Ratnapark are perhaps even more popular. Rare will be a longtime resident of Kathmandu who has never sported a pair.

 Or foreign tourists to Nepal, for that matter. “I have a collection of around 20 dozens Chuck Taylor Converse Shoes at my home in Alabama, USA,” says Nathan Morris, an American IT expert and tourist who was recently spotted in a pair of Converse in Jhochhen, Basantapur.

 But how different are the originals to their copies? “I have been wearing these shoes for a long time and I am still unable to differentiate between the original Converse and their good copies,” says Madhav Chhinal, a young design executive working for a media company. “In fact, I have never bought what you would call original Converse and yet nobody in my circle has been able to tell the difference.”

 Back in the Converse store in New Road, store in-charge Rai estimates that on average an official store in Kathmandu sells anywhere between Rs 60,000 to Rs 150,000 worth of original shoes a week. There is no telling how much the roadside vendors who are selling Converse copies by the NAC building not a kilometer away earn in the same time.

“When I was around 6, I remember going to Bagmati with a pot to fetch drinking water for our family. And I used to bathe here when I was 16. The water then was so clean!” reminisces Gopal Prasad Ghimire, 80, a resident of Bhaktapur. “Now, it is so disgusting I do not even want to touch it with my feet.”

 Back in 1940s, he remembers walking all the way from Bhaktapur to Pashupati to worship at the temple and just hang out with his friends. “I came here once every two days,” he recalls. Vehicles were extremely rare at the time, and Ghimire would rush to the road to see if one zoomed by. On foot, it took him an hour to reach Pashupatinath temple. “I used to gather 4-5 friends and we used to start at 4 am from Bhaktapur. We would be home by 8 am. Now, I try to come here once a month.”

 Kancha Shrestha, 72, who is originally from Ramechhap, migrated to Kathmandu in 1960. “At that time we used to wash our clothes using cooked ash mixed with water and take bath using red clay on the banks of Bagmati. Soaps were not available. Our clothes were clay dyed if we wanted some color in our clothing,” he says, remembering the “simpler times”.

 But, in recent times, unregulated ground water extraction for industrial and domestic purposes, along with unchecked waste disposal along the river bank, has greatly polluted the water of Bagmati. It has become unfit for human use and inimical for the survival of aquatic plants and animals.

 But there have of late also been some laudable clean-up efforts. With the help of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), local community clubs around Pashupati area are making an effort to clean up the sacred river. ADB’s ‘Bagmati River Basin Improvement Project’ focuses on better water resources management at the Bagmati River Basin. According to an ADB report, projected improvements include “an upstream water storage dam system to increase the river flow in the dry season and riverbed oxygenation weirs”.

 The Department of Irrigation has initiated the construction of a 24-meter high dam in Dhap area of Shivapuri. This dam is being constructed at the headwater of the Nagmati River, a tributary of the Bagmati River, in the Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park on the outskirts of Kathmandu.

 One community club involved in clean-up efforts of Bagmati in order to restore its recreational and cultural importance is the Nawa Amarkanteshor Youth Club-Pashupati.

 Treasurer of the club, Pralhad Lama, 29, says he grew up in the Pashupati area. Now he is a resident of the area around Guhyeshwari temple, a kilometer east of the Pashupatinath temple. “It was so clean before. Forget octogenarians! Even I remember swimming, taking bath and washing clothes in Bagmati. Now, there is no water to swim, just sewage.”

 But Lama says the condition is improving, “at least here in the Pashupati area due to our weekly cleaning efforts.” Lama’s club is involved in cleaning up the stretch of the river around Pashupati. (Other such clubs have the responsibility to clean up other sections of the river.)

 He grieves that even though there are fines for polluting Bagmati, some people still sneak at night to dump their waste into the river. “We need to somehow stop those polluting the river. Only then will the river become cleaner,” he says.