Nepal was a country whose doors were closed to the outside world till 1950. It wan in 1970’s and 1980’s that it became a popular destination for the tourists. Some of the early “tourists” were those travelling overland from Europe via Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India to Nepal. Some of them were called “hippies”. In Kathmandu they were living in “Freak Street” or “Pie Alley” and later in Thamel. The writer was writing a diary describing the people he met in those years. Some of these are reproduced here.