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Published: April 10th 2007
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On Easter Sunday, we drove to visit the ancient city of Bhaktapur, about 6 or 7 miles from our hotel in Kathmandu. Bhaktapur, where Hindus and Buddhists have coexisted there since the 12th century or so, was definitely a place worth visiting, with intricately carved ancient temples, monasteries, and palaces. The city has banned heavy vehicles, and the absence of cars reminded me a bit of Venice. The most memorable thing I saw in Bhaktapur was a Hindu temple with blood from the sacrifice of animals (goats and birds). This was the first I'd heard of Hindus engaging in the practice of blood sacrifice.
The vendors in Bhaktapur were selling watercolor paintings as well as lots of other things. They were even more agressive here than the vendors we encountered in India. What especially annoyed me was that some of them used a "bait and switch" tactic, saying "One dollar only," but then raising the price as soon as you stopped to look. To escape the vendors, Susan and Hal and I climbed up the steps to a little Internet cafe with an open window overlooking one of the main squares. And before we left, I bought a flute similar to a recorder (although I can't make any sound come out of it). Now I have three Nepali instruments: a madel (an elongated drum), a salingar (stringed instrument), and the flute.
On the way to and from Bhaktapur, we drove by the palace of the King of Nepal, and our Kathmandu guide Sunil told us more about the country's incredibly volatile and dysfunctional political situation. Up until 1990, Nepal was ruled by a monarchy and all political parties were banned. Then after widespread unrest and protest, reforms in 1990 led to the establishment of a multiparty democracy under a constitutional monarchy. About 5 years later, the Maoists launched an insurrection in rural areas aimed at abolishing the monarchy and establishing a people's republic. Then in 2001, in a scene reminiscent of the massacre at Columbine, the crown prince of Nepal shot and killed several members of his family, including his father King Birenda, his mother, his brother and his sister, and then killed himself, ostensibly because his family didn't like the woman he was in love with. His only surviving brother, Gyanendra, who had been in Chitwan, became the king, although suspicions arose about whether he had helped engineer the whole thing somehow. So there were riots in the streets and several people got killed. Since that time, it seems that the political power in Nepal has shifted back and forth between the king, a four-party coalition government, and the Maoists. Right now it sounds like the King is almost in the situation "The Last Emperor" of China found himself in after Mao came to power.
Our final dinner in Kathmandu was great! We went to a Nepali restaurant built in a big, old palace with high ceilings and intricate wooden carvings like the windows in our hotel near Pokhara. Our group all ate dinner at a very long, very low table, and we were entertained during dinner by a wonderful troupe of dancers performing traditional Nepalese folk dances, some of which were quite amusing. Too bad I didn't have my camera! But I got to sit across from the restaurant owner Shree, who was educated in Jesuit schools and is now a very successful entreprenuer who operates a huge catering business with his wife. Talking to Shree and his partner Sunil, who seemed to be the person Shree turned to when I asked Nepal's culture, was almost like getting to have dinner with a Nepalese family.
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Ann C
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It's a joy to hear about your adventures. Sounds fascinating, and such a relief from the political maelstroms that swirl around us guys here in the nation's capital. But, other than reports of the devastation in Iraq, and the apparent near-collapse of our legal system under Fredo & Co., though, all is generally wonderful here. love