From November the tourist cafes on the Mall start to close, and the small kitchens in the old town start to fill with local customers.

Thukpa is a noodle soup brought over the passes from Ladakh and Tibet: hand-pulled noodles, a clear broth, vegetables or mutton, and a spoon of chilli paste on the side.

In one kitchen near the old temple the noodles are pulled to order, in front of the stove. The owner says the broth is the secret, and that it has been on the fire since six.

A bowl costs less than a cup of coffee on the Mall. On a cold evening there is a queue.