March 7-8
Hi All,
Wow……what a very busy and active beginning we have had so far on our Nepal tour. This is the first day we have had a few hours to relax and I’ll try to get a blog sent….I’m writing this on Sunday!!!!
We arrived on time and safely in Kathmandu last Tuesday, March 7 around 1pm. It is 1 hour 15 minute time change from Phuket…..really, what is the deal with 15 minutes???? We were able to do the Visa on Arrival…..go to a machine and swipe your Passport…..hmmmm……we keep swiping with nothing happening…..finally a guy comes by and hits a button and says do it manually…..ok, duh!!! It took about an hour to process and collect our bags with no issues,…..yeah!!! Raj, our tour organizer from Rhino Tour Agency was there waiting and took us on a quick tour and then to our hotel in the middle of the Thamel district…..the primary tourist spot.
Raj came highly recommended from our good friends Andy and Sue on sv Spruce, who came here last year!!! What a delightful young man…..will be 30 this year, not married although he says maybe next year…..we think it must be an arranged marriage as he has no girlfriend right now. He has been in the tourism industry for 15 years now and has many entrepreneur ideas to go off on his own. He talked to us for hours and it was a great beginning on our Nepal education. We wanted just a quick bite for dinner so chose the Roadhouse…..a Copenhagen owner……we had a wood fired pizza…..the best pizza we have had since leaving the USA…..who knew we would find it in Kathmandu!!!! Kathy had her first India wine…..not too bad and I had a local Nepal whiskey……Blender’s Pride…..part of Seagram but distilled in Nepal…..about USD3 for my 1.5 oz whiskey and USD4 for Kathy’s wine!!!! We then hit some of the stores……but didn’t really find anything….we later found out most of the goods are from China….like the 100% cashmere sweater….yikes!!! But, we did find a liquor store where Kathy bought an Australian wine for USD14…….she said definitely drinkable…..:))))
The next day, after a combined Nepali and Western style breakfast, we spent touring Kathmandu. Our guide was Anal, a very scholarly gentlemen who continued our Nepal education as well as teaching us all about Hindu and Buddhism. We went to 3 temples……the Swayambhunath (or Monkey Temple), Dubar Square and the Bouddhanath Temples.
Swayambhunath: “Perched atop a hill on the western edge of the Kathmandu Valley, the ancient Swayambunath Stupa (known to tourists as the Monkey Temple) is Kathmandu’s most important Buddhist shrine. The sleepy, all-seeing Buddha eyes that stare out from the top have become the quintessential symbol of Nepal. When this temple was founded about 2,000 years ago, Kathmandu Valley was filled with a great lake. According to Buddhist legend, a single perfect lotus grew in the center of the lake. When the bodhisattva Manjusri drained the lake with a slash of his sword, the lotus flower settled on top of the hill and magically transformed into the stupa. Thus it is known as the Self-Created (swayambhu) Stupa.”
The place is full of Rhesus Macaque monkeys…..our first sighting!!!
Dubar Square: “In the heart of old Kathmandu city in Basantapur never fails to impress first time visitors with its intricate wood carvings and rich history. Surrounded by concrete buildings, the complex is an oasis in a fast developing, chaotic modern city. Once the residence of Nepal’s Royal family, all coronation ceremonies were held here. The palace is an amalgamation of eastern and western architecture with additions by Rana and Shah rulers over the centuries. An unbelievable 50 temples lie within the vicinity including the temple of the titular deity, Taleju Bhawani. The Durbar is divided into two courtyards, the outer Kasthamandap, Kumari Ghar, and Shiva-Parvati Temple, and the inner section consisting of Hanuman Dhoka and the main palace. Some floors have been converted to museums dedicated to three generations of Shah kings.”
The museum was amazing…..full of 600-1000 year old Buddha and Hindu relics and a great explanation of the 2 religions. We also bought our one and only souvenir…..a singing bowl…..”also known as himalayan singing bowls or chakra bowls are widely used for meditation, sound therapy, sound massage & healing, space clearing and feng shui nowadays. In ancient times, these singing bowls were also used as food bowls mostly in the himalayan region of Nepal, India and Tibet. Singing Bowls produces a wonderful singing rimming sound when they are hit, tapped, struck or rubbed by a singing bowls wooden striker/mallet or dowel.”
As part of the Square we went into the Golden Temple. Here 12 year old boys are the Head Monk for a month to learn about the Buddha religion and what it is to be a monk. We met the “Head Monk” after we saw him playing with typical 12 year old toys. He was very shy but said he was learning a lot and hopes he will be a good Head Monk!!!!
Bouddhanath…….”is the largest stupa in Nepal and the holiest Tibetan Buddhist temple outside Tibet. It is the center of Tibetan culture in Kathmandu and rich in Buddhist symbolism. The stupa is located in the town of Boudha, on the eastern outskirts of Kathmandu. Bodnath was probably built in the 14th century after the Mughal invasions; various interesting legends are told regarding the reasons for its construction. After the arrival of thousands of Tibetans following the 1959 Chinese invasion, the temple has become one of the most important centers of Tibetan Buddhism. Today it remains an important place of pilgrimage and meditation for Tibetan Buddhists and local Nepalis, as well as a popular tourist site.”
You walk clockwise around the temple……and surrounding this large temple are many retail shops but also many monasteries…..we saw many different monks all dressed in there very colorful robes.
That night we had dinner with Raj…..he took us to a local Nepali restaurant and we had our first Dal Bhat……a very popular Nepali meal…..dal means lentil soup and bhat means boiled rice. It was served with potatoes, mixed vegetables, greens and we had a sweat and sour chicken….delicious with just the right amount of spices…..and they kept serving as much as you wanted…..wow!!!! We had our first Nepal beer……Mt Everest, well, of course….a very nice lager!!!! (We have since had this dish 2 other times….once at a local restaurant near Bardia (our next stop) with fried local fresh fish….yummers….and then at the Bardia lodge…..just so so as it had very little spice/flavor.)
Our impression of Kathmandu…..well…..glad we only spent 1.5 days…..very dirty, crowded, noisy and aggressive street hawkers. First, the air quality is some of the worst we have breathed in the last 30-40 years. It is dry season now (monsoons start in June) and everything is coated in a thick layer of brown dirt/dust. The dust is from all the construction which is everywhere…..homes, stores, offices, roads, water pipes…..everywhere!!!! Some of this is from the earthquake in April 2015 which killed over 10k people, and some of it is growth. We did see quite a bit of damage from the earthquake…..it was explained that older buildings were damaged where modern buildings built with rebar were less damaged or not damaged at all. Both Anal’s and Raj’s homes were not damaged. Most of the buildings are 1-3 stories high with the tallest being 8 stories. It was explained to us that the City is poorly planned but they have lots of land so everything is spread out. The roads are in very poor condition and most of the side streets are just dirt roads…..or maybe the pavement is permanently covered:)))) Of course, some of the smog is man made…..lots of cars, factories et al. But the City is trying to improve the air…..cars >20 years old are banned, the small tuk-tuk taxis are electric and solar is becoming more affordable. Kathmandu is in a valley, and at this time of year, experiences a lot of air inversion which certainly doesn’t help. It really is too bad as you could make out the surrounding Himalayas in the background but all you saw was a brown haze…..yuck!!!
Nepal is also in political upheaval. The Monarch was dissolved 8 years ago and a Constitution passed. But, they have not been able to hold elections so the country is in political chaos. Local elections are scheduled in May but protests are frequent and violent. The day we arrived 3 people were killed in a protest down south. A good example of a protest: many Nepali that live close to the Indian border marry Indians. But, Nepal will not give citizenship to the spouse, which is not popular. The government is concerned that doing so will increase the already strong Indian influence and in fact could result in Nepal becoming part of India. Both sides have good points and no solution seems to be available.
OK…..that’s it for Kathmandu……we will be back for a night in about a week!!! Next up is Bardia National Park in western Nepal!!
Hope all is well!!
John
touring Nepal!!!!
PS: Pictures on the galley: http://mysticmoonvoyages.com/photo-gallery/nggallery/main-album/Kathmandu-Nepal
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