Top: The Buddhist stupa at Swayambhu - also known as the Monkey Temple with many wild monkeys walking around.
Middle: The King's "Secret Well" at Lalipur. I washed my hands in the cold water but there was no way I was going to drink it!
Bottom: A cremation in progress with the body receiving final rights. They burn the mouth first, then cover the body with straw and wood and the fire is set. It can take any where from 45 minutes to 4 hours for the cremation to be completed.
The time zone in Kathmandu is 1 hour and 15 minutes behind Bangkok. I found out the sun comes up at 5 am here! Made the mistake of not pulling the drapes when I went to bed. During the night there were several very, very loud dog fights - or at least it sounded that way. Lots of barking. Before the sun came up, there were drums and I could hear the monks humming at their dormitory nearby. Once the sun came up the car horns started honking.
Had breakfast in the restaurant and got ready for my tour. Met my guide and driver at 9 am and we were off to explore the City of Kathmandu. We'll stay in this valley today and make visits to sites in Kathmandu and Patan. I hired a guide and driver - only way to do this here. My guide is Abhijeet Thapa - he is a part time teacher in English Literature and a part time tour guide. The driver knows very little English but is a very skilled driver.
The traffic was unbelieveable. I couldn't believe how close we came to some of the trucks and cars we passed. There was a political demonstration blocking the streets at one point and our driver had to take a detour. I didn't think we'd make it! The streets are so poorly maintained. And I saw one street light the entire day! They just "GO"!
Our first stop was up a hill at Swayambhu - a very holy Buddhist site. They call this the "Monkey Temple" as there were wild monkeys everywhere. The monkeys are revered here! We did a quick tour here as we needed to get to the next stop to see the Kumari at Hanuman-dhoka Durbar Square.
The Kumari is a young girl selected by a committee based on 42 qualities. Having very white skin is an important quality. The Kumari once selected is taken and lives in this palace with keepers (not her family) until she starts her period. Once that happens, another Kumari is selected. She makes an appearance at 11 am and 4 pm daily for less than one minute. She stands in the window - and that's it. This Kumari is now 5 1/2 years old. They put makeup on her face especially on the sides of the face by each eye to make the eyes look much longer.
We then drove by the former King's palace, now the Foreign Ministry. The King was overthrown in 2001 and Nepal is now a democratic republic. All of the demonstrations are over the new constitution - seems the government can't decide how to govern itself and the politicians can't agree on anything. Sound familiar?
Next we went to Lalitpur where there was an old palace and many temples. They had oxen intestines hanging over the door to one temple. An annual tradition. Also at this temple was the King's "secret well" - people come and get water and drink it without boiling it - not a good idea here in Nepal!
We took a short ride to the Mahabuddha Temple - completely enclosed by buildings but a beautiful structure. There was a monument here to the Buddha Mother. The story goes she gave birth to the Buddha from here side and Buddha took 7 steps when he came out of the womb.
The drive between stops was an adventure in itself. Cows in the streets - people - tuk-tuks (but they have another word), trucks, cars, vans, buses. The streets have no names and no street signs. Horns are honking non-stop. Holes are everywhere in the streets and there are no sidewalks. If a delivery truck makes a delivery, then it just stops and the cars (both ways) have to make their way around it. I'm amazed that more people aren't killed each day on the streets.
Last stop was the holiest of the Hindu temples - and also a place on the river (a very dirty river) where they do cremations. I watched 3 cremations. This was Pashupati. Lots of smoke - and smells. Many people watching the cremations. While I was there, there were 3 bodies being prepared for the fires, about 6 being burned, and 3 receiving final blessings and these are the ones I watched them start the fires. A humbling experience.
Traffic leaving this place was horrible so the creative driver took us over a side hill (more like a mountain) with large potholes. Amazing how they get around here. But the short cut brought us right out in front of the Hyatt.
It was late afternoon so I relaxed under an umbrella by the pool with a cold drink and read.
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