Kathmandu , Nepal ( CNN ) When the earthquake struck , we huddled under a concrete beam -- and prayed . In another room , my grandfather could not comprehend what was happening and , instead of seeking cover , drifted towards the window . Outside , a brown dust-cloud rose from the ruins of cottages that had dotted the next hill . I was at my uncle 's place in Ramkot , west Kathmandu , some 12 kilometers ( 7.4 miles ) east from my family home . After escaping the building for the safety of open air , my first thought was for news of friends and family . Calls did n't go through but thankfully texts and data did . I heard from everyone except my mother . Worried sick , I foolishly went into the house for a second time to get my belongings and leave for home . Another tremor -- the first of many to aftershocks that have continued to strike an already traumatized city -- shook the house . I took refuge under the same doorway . The journey towards my family home in Sifal was a map of quake destruction , with many houses -- old and new -- torn apart . A high wall surrounding a monastery had collapsed and the nuns had run to a nearby field . A mud-and-brick cottage had fallen on a blue motorbike but no trace could be found of its rider . A woman perched on top of rubble tried to reach for a water container from what used to be her kitchen . Everywhere , survivors gathered wherever they could find open space -- fields , private compounds , empty roadside lots . In Chhauni , an ice cream seller ran double-time with his cart , while his radio relayed the latest . Further ahead , a mother and daughter sat down on a pavement so that a grandchild could be fed . Across the Bishnumati River , uphill towards Maru , I ran to get away from the tall houses and made towards the Kathmandu Durbar Area . It was reduced to rubble . A blood donation camp was said to be buried by the same structure that sheltered it . Locals were searching for survivors , but progress was slow . The Kasthamandap temple had caved in . Temples that sat on impressive staircase-style pyramids were now dust . The western façade of the Basantapur palace had fallen apart and nothing remained of the remained of the nine-story medieval palace nearby . Meanwhile , the curio fleamarket was flooded with people who had made it out of the cramped quarters of Jhocchen , Indra Chowk , New Road , and nearby neighborhoods . In Putalisadak , I met a cousin who was sitting an entrance exam for a prestigious high school when the quake hit before the allotted time was over . He kept wondering out loud whether he could retake the test . The two of us walked through Bagbajar , trying to trace a few acquaintances , and up Dillibajar to Kamalpokhari . A hawker was selling momos -- a Nepalese type of dumpling -- under a seven-story building , while policemen guarded a jailhouse . People gathered mostly in the middle of crossroads , on traffic islands and around metal pulpits , which looked out of range of falling buildings . The aftershocks kept coming . I reached home and found both my parents alive and uninjured . I could n't believe that our 30-year-old house was still standing . As I walked my cousin to where his parents were , we kept hearing rumors : `` More quakes forecast by experts for 5 p.m. and midnight . '' As if to confirm , tremors shook us at six and more would follow at 10 p.m. and midnight , with smaller shocks throughout the night . Along the northern boundary of the former royal museum , the wall had collapsed and people had poured out of the Uttar Dhoka neighborhood onto the palace lawn . Green military tents meant for two people were now packed with six and the army was trying hard to accommodate as many as possible . In Thamel , an electricity pole had squashed an abandoned taxi . A few men took turns taking photos with the wrecked car . In Kantipath , a handful of backpackers were discussing where to make camp . Back home , my parents decided against going to the nearby Sifal Chaur football field where families were sleeping on plastic mattresses under rudimentary tents . Instead , their tactic was to stay on the ground floor , be awakened by tremors , and then scamper to a corner of our garden that seemed relatively safe . I did not sleep a wink .
Journalist Sunir Pandey was visiting relatives with Nepal 's 7.8 magnitude quake struck . He said the earthquake had killed at least 10,000 people and injured more than a million in Nepal.