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Published: September 2nd 2006
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Fruit Stand in Kathmandu
This is the fruit stand where we bought the awesome mango shakes. After all that time in the mountains, the big city of Kathmandu seemed like New York. The streets were crowded and bustling, it was noisy, and it was hot with the sticky monsoon weather. The usual shady Nepalis were out in Durbar Square, and the “peanut gallery” was stationed at their everyday spot in Sundhara. It felt great to be “home” in good ol’ Kathmandu again.
One of the best parts about returning to Kathmandu was eating fruit and Indian food again. Our eyes nearly popped out of our heads as we saw the variety of fruits and vegetables available in the markets: green beans, carrots, peppers, cauliflower, tomatoes, bananas, melons, oranges, papayas…and I finally got some of that tandoori chicken that I dreamed about! Mandarins are no longer in season, but mango season is in full swing. I think we ate about 2-3 kilos of mangoes in one sitting. We usually bought a few mango shakes a day at this great fruit stand off New Road and indulged in mango or banana lassis at our favorite Indian places. It was great getting to eat dhal makhani (black lentils), garlic naan and biryani again. No more eggs or potatoes!
Sadhu
These guys are the original hippies. They have minimal personal possessions and wander from one Hindu religious festival to the next. Besides wandering around the streets, I bought a few books on Nepali culture, history and politics, as well as some works on Tibetan and Nepali deities. I also went shopping for thangkas, which are Tibetan religious paintings. Thangkas are painted or embroidered banners that are hung in a monastery or family altar and carried by lamas in ceremonial processions. In Tibetan, 'than' means flat and 'ka' stands for painting. A thangka is a painting done on a flat surface, but can be rolled up when not required for display.
I agonized for what seemed like hours over which thangkas to buy. There are so many different designs and the quality of the work varies. I narrowed it down by deciding that I definitely wanted a wheel of life and something else. We managed to talk the price down by requesting discounts because I bought several. I don’t think those guys were very happy with how the bargaining ritual turned out for them, but I certainly was. Judging from the quality of the work and the prices I was quoted in other places, I am very happy with how things turned out. To give you an idea, I will probably
Mail truck
Maybe this is the reason Nepali mail isn't too reliable. pay twice as much for framing as I did for 3 beautiful thangkas.
We also spent an afternoon at Swayanabath. This is an ancient Buddhist temple that sits on top of a hill. The all-seeing eyes of Buddha are painted on each of the four sides. Swayanabath is also known as the monkey temple, because of all the monkeys that live here. Monkeys are considered to be a sacred animal. The monkeys hang out chewing on bread and whatever other food people leave as offerings for the gods. They run around being monkeys, playing and swinging over everything.
It was a long hot climb up hundreds of steps to the top of the hill, but it’s definitely worth it. There are many stupas at the top with prayer flags waving in the breeze. This is an active religious site for Hindus and Buddhists, so there were many worshippers and monks, not just tourists. The views of the Kathmandu skyline were not too clear due to the haze, but you could still see many Kathmandu landmarks. And of course, you could spend hours up here just watching the monkeys.
I extended my air ticket a few times, but
could no longer postpone the inevitable. On June 14, more than 2 weeks after I was originally scheduled to leave Nepal, I returned to Bangkok to begin the countdown of my final days in Asia.
Naturally, the Royal Nepal flight was delayed due to mechanical problems, so I was stuck in the departure lounge for more than 2 hours. I landed in Bangkok 2 ½ hours late and immediately ate a cheeseburger. While it was nice to eat Thai curries and shop at 7-11s again, Thailand is boring compared to Nepal.
Nepal is such a fantastic country and I was sorry to leave. It has everything: friendly people, beautiful mountains and forests, amazing exotic temples and shrines, fascinating culture…I could go on and on. This is a very poor country, but if the king would leave and allow the democratic transition to continue, then this conflict can end and the Nepalis can finally enjoy the peace they deserve.
Because it’s a very positive, spiritual place, I don’t think that anyone is ever completely the same after a journey to Nepal. That is certainly true for me. Nepal has been good for me and to me. My experiences
in Nepal have helped me make some tough decisions about the way I am living my life and change myself for the better.
I can see why people keep coming back to Nepal and I know that I will return one day soon. I'm already dreaming of Kathmandu and missing those amazing Himalyan skies...
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rajesh
non-member comment
nice to read your diary
I was searching about irkutsk and came across your diary. I am from Nepal but it was really nice reading about your time in Nepal. We need people like you to tell the world what is Nepal and how you feel when you are there. I miss my country but situation, time and ambition supress your feelings towards your country and make people to live in differnt country. Again thankyou so much for your true words about nepal...