[SS-Traveller]

Who are the one people in India who celebrate their Durga Puja really seriously? You got it right - the Bengalis.

And then, just across the border, to the north, is Nepal - where the Goddess Durga is worshipped in all Her glory during the festival of Dashain.

So we agreed, some 4 months beforehand, to relax and chill out for a few days during and after the Durga Puja period, in Nepal.

Our first time there, and we decided to keep the trip short and simple - 2 nights in Kathmandu, 2 nights in Pokhara, then another night in Kathmandu again before we fly back home. We'd take in the sights, enjoy each other's company, find out more about how Durga Puja is celebrated in Nepal, and plan for a bigger exploration sometime later, preferably by road.

Little did we know back in June, that things would not go as per plan all the way.

[SS-Traveller]

Sometimes, the plan to mix family and friends on a trip falls apart, with financial loss.

• Supposedly close friends who were to join us on this trip decided to back out because we were travelling with my MIL - their excuses being that she'd slow them down, invade their privacy and a few other illogical (and unprintable) reasons. This was after we'd agreed that we'd also take her along (which was before I did the ticketing and reservations), but soon after I'd done the ticketing, they feigned ignorance about any previous discussions. My wife thought it would be a good idea to drop her mother from the group, but I decided I didn't want anything further to do with such 'friends', thank you. The cancellation charges for 6 people pinched, but it was a small price to pay for a little bit of eye-opening education from the University of Life.

Sometimes, the weather Gods decide that you deserve unseasonal pouring rain for 72 hours at a stretch, and then some more.

• The effects of Cyclone Phailin persisted over the Himalayas for days on end, with an incessant drizzle sometimes accelerating to a heavy downpour. Left with no choice between either getting soaking wet or remaining confined to our hotel rooms, we bought ourselves umbrellas and raincoats for uninterrupted tourism!
  

(But sometimes you are gifted with a beautiful rainbow into the bargain.)

• Thank you, Rudra-da, for bringing out such a beautiful pic from whatever I could capture. The rainbow appeared for just a few minutes, and before I could run to the roof and set the camera to capture a halfway decent photo, the rainbow was already fading away.

Sometimes, that highly rated hotel described on TripAdvisor turns out to be a little hole in the wall, down a lane that's not even motorable.

• We initially chose to accommodate ourselves at the (very budget but very highly rated) Blue Mountain Homestay. However, when there is only one loo shared between 2 rooms, neither of which is spacious, one does get a tad upset. To make matters worse, it's located down a 4'-wide lane, with the nearest spot to catch a cab some 5 minutes' walk away (naah, not in the rain!). However, the owners' other hotel (and this is a proper hotel, right in the heart of Thamel) called the Hotel Happy Home, was a whole lot better, and we were glad to have been switched to the latter at a reasonable tariff.

Sometimes, there are very few places open for lunch or dinner in a big city - and those that are, are overcrowded & understaffed, and the food takes ages to arrive.

(But sometimes the food is so delicious that you forget about the travails of the previous days.)

Sometimes, there are just no vehicles available to take you sightseeing.

• Empty streets on the days of Navami and Vijaya Dashami. Dashain is celebrated within the family, and one doesn't find an expression of celebrations on the streets. No rental cars are available since the drivers also prefer not to work, and the few taxis on the roads charge double and more "just because it's Dashain".

(But sometimes the highways are unexpectedly smooth, and the bridges across rivers are majestic though fragile.)

• This is the China Bridge at Damauli, which was constructed 40 years ago with the financial assistance of the Chinese government. Illegal extraction of sand and boulders is said to have put the bridge’s existence at peril.

Sometimes along come those days, when your jalopy of a taxi wants to mark its territory with diesel, leaving you stranded on the road.

• Cars in Nepal are frightfully expensive compared to the same models in India, and they are even more expensive to maintain. Even then, taxi and rental car hire charges are not stratospheric. The spinoff is the likelihood of getting a ride in a vehicle that is very poorly maintained.

(But sometimes you find a car so unfamiliar and odd-looking that it takes Google to figure out which one this is. And garlanded vehicles are a standard feature too, often with their wheels anointed with the blood of sacrificed goats.)

• This one's now a Mahindra too!

• Note the garlands, and the red streaks on the wheels!

Sometimes, the snow-clad mountain peaks that you so pine to see, remain cloud-clad and refuse to see your face.

• Nepal naturally has some of the best vantage points to admire the snow-clad Himalayan peaks from. But then, the rain and clouds simply would not relent, and there was not a single snow peak that showed its face to us in the 6 days that we were there.
  

• This is the view towards the north from Sarangkot, Pokhara, at sunrise.

(But sometimes, the sun comes out and you want to dance for joy.)

[SS-Traveller]

Of currencies, cars, cops and coughs

Hey, the INR didn't crash that bad! For a 100-rupee note, you can get 160 NPR worth of stuff.

The only downside of travelling in Nepal is your need to carry cash - literally, bundles of it. With all the prevalent counterfeiting activities, and given that there are very few experts who can identify a fake Indian currency note vis-a-vis a genuine one, the Nepalese government has banned the use (and even possession) of Indian 500- & 1000-rupee notes in Nepal. So one ends up carrying cash in the form of 100-rupee notes - a perfectly convenient way to ruin one's wallet! Credit cards are rarely accepted (some of the big hotels just have one EDC POS terminal), and those who accept credit cards charge 3-4% extra over the billed amount. I managed to shock a hotel manager by informing him that even I have an EDC POS terminal at my clinic!

When flying out of Delhi's T3, landing at Kathmandu's TI (Tribhuvan International) Airport is a bit of an anticlimax. The terminal building - well - terminates as soon as it begins. Lots of wood panelling and inadequate lighting make for a rather depressing welcome, though the gentleman at the immigration counter waved us through with a warm smile and a cursory glance at our IDs.

But then, with so many airports in a country of that size, one shouldn't expect too much of grandeur at just one, I suppose!

It's past 11 AM when we land, but the roads seem unexpectedly empty. Realization dawns a while later - not only is it a Sunday, it's also Navami. Trade, commerce and tourism have been suspended, and all Nepal is in a celebratory mood.

Smoking is the prevalent feature of Nepal, if one can call it that!

Almost everybody (and everything on wheels) smokes.

Cigarettes are cheap (the indigenous Surya brand costs 114 NPR, or about 72 INR, and the tobacco is excellent) and there's no restriction (unlike India) about smoking in public places. Everyone lights up in enclosed spaces like restaurants and shops, and no one seems to mind. Cough - cough...

The traffic cop on the road, of course, bears the brunt of the extreme air pollution - every one of them is equipped with masks, for whatever little protection they offer.

• No prizes for guessing what this cop might be thinking, every time a smoky jalopy passes by...

[SS-Traveller]

Thamel, where we stayed

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCaRf...ature=youtu.be

Lonely Planet calls the area the 'tourist ghetto' of Kathmandu. Indeed, it is congested and overbearingly noisy at most hours of the day (compare the noise and crowds with Barabazaar in Kolkata or the lanes behind Jama Masjid in Delhi), as we discovered during our second round of stay in the same hotel. However, on the days of Navami - and especially Dashami - the little lanes wore a fairly deserted (and drenched) look. Half the shops were shut (or wore a deserted look, probably due to the rains), as were most restaurants (the ones that were open were overcrowded).

Thamel is of course THE area where tourists to Kathmandu can indulge in the two activities that highlight any holiday - dining, and shopping. In addition, the adventurous can equip themselves with all kinds of trekking and camping gear, whether genuine, fakes, or second-hand.

Shopping

• How about some art? Whether it's corny paintings or weird art made of soft drink bottles, you have it all right here

• Camping gear? Butane burners? Swiss army knives? Tents? Backpacks? Shoes? Raincoats? Compasses? Arctic clothing? Well, there you are!
  

• Our daughter's Reeboks decided that they were allergic to rainwater, and the soles came apart. She picked up a pair of North Face shoes, and they seem to be doing well for now despite some heavy use, even in the wet

Dining: Our exposure to the dining experience was limited to the one restaurant we went back to repeatedly - not only because it was one of the few open, but also because the fare served was pretty good.

• Here's to (non-vegetarian) salivary nirvana

• The owner put in a good performance on the sitar, to celebrate the birthday of someone. The tables were full!

• Not just the Brezel Bakery, but all the others (and there are quite a few in Thamel) offer 50% off breads and 25% off cakes after 8 PM (which, incidentally, is 7:45 PM IST )

Kite flying is very prevalent on Dashain, but the rains made sure that the only kites we saw were those displayed in the restaurant!

[SS-Traveller]

The Dashain Walk

Deserted roads greet us on the morning of Vijaya Dashami. There's hardly any traffic on the road. It's the day that Nepalis celebrate by being with their close relatives, and the tradition of tika is evident on the foreheads of all the folk who venture out. But not yet - not so early in the morning. For now, we have been told that we cannot get a single vehicle to rent, because no driver is going to leave his family to drive us around.

The rain continues unabated, but we decide to be brave. Lonely Planet describes this tempting walk from our hotel to Durbar Square, taking in some significant sights. Armed with umbrellas, we set off. We cut the original 2 km walk down to about 1.3 km, but here's what we saw along the way.

• At Thahiti Tole, one comes across this 15th century Buddhist stupa without any history being explained

• The Nateshwar temple across from the stupa is dedicated to Shiva as the God of music and dance

• The brass doorway shows a variety of musicians, with two lions guarding the doorway, a very typical layout for temples in Nepal
  

• The Kathesimbhu Stupa further ahead dates from c.1650, and is a replica of the Swayambhunath Stupa

• Next door to the Kathesimbhu stupa is the Drubgon Jangchup Choeling Monastery

• The lane leading away has a multitude of (apparently ineffective & incompetent) dentists' shops...

• ...and here's the reason why I think they're incompetent! This piece of wood with thousands of coins nailed into it, can be seen at the end of the same lane - it is the Toothache God of the region. People with toothache come and nail a coin into the wood, and miracle healing supposedly takes place. In fact, the junction at the end of the lane is known as Bangemudha, which literally means 'twisted wood'.

• Down the same lane are tailors working away at making Buddhist prayer flags and scarves...

• ...as a couple of sparrows brave the rain to forage for food. Delhi's state bird cannot be seen so easily in Delhi.

• Then we walk on to Indra Chowk, bypassing Asan Tole, the latter said to be old Kathmandu's busiest junction - here we find the Akash Bhairab Temple

• Across the other side of Indra Chowk, is this Mahadev Temple

• We cut short a part of the walk again as the rain increases in intensity, and head directly to Makhan Tole and Durbar Square from Indra Chowk. Here's a pic taken while trying to admire the balconies with intricate woodwork along the lanes, as raindrops get into my eyes and camera

Coming up: Durbar Square (http://goo.gl/zfbHjQ)

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to Travelogues. Thanks for sharing!

[SS-Traveller]

Durbar Square, Kathmandu

The heart of old Kathmandu, with numerous palaces and temples. There are Durbar Squares in other places - like Patan, Bhaktapur, Basantapur - and each contains so many structures that you need a map and a good sense of direction to figure out what is what. The map in the previous post does just that. Now for the pictures...

As we approach Durbar Square from the Makhan Tole side, the Taleju Temple dominates the skyline.

The square’s most magnificent temple stands at its northeastern extremity but is not open to the public. Even for Hindus admission is restricted; they can only visit it briefly during the annual Dasain festival.

The temple was built in 1564 by Mahendra Malla. Taleju Bhawani was originally a goddess from the south of India, but she became the titular deity, or royal goddess, of the Malla kings in the 14th century, after which Taleju temples were erected in her honour in Patan and Bhaktapur, as well as in Kathmandu.

The temple stands on a 12-stage plinth and reaches more than 35m high, dominating the Durbar Sq area. The eighth stage of the plinth forms a wall around the temple, in front of which are 12 miniature temples. Four more miniature temples stand inside the wall, which has four beautifully carved wide gates.

This would be the one day of the year when the temple would be open...

But for now, we need to pay for tickets and get into Durbar Square. Folks from SAARC countries like India pay 100 NPR per ticket.

The ticket booth can be seen in the distance as this sadhu poses for his pic to be taken, and to be paid for posing.

I got myself this free pic!

Next to the entrance gate is the Mahendreshwar temple

[Sutripta]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

and the food takes ages to arrive.

Seems to happen to you often. Wonder why? Do you order exotic stuff in out of the way places?

Regards
Sutripta

[SS-Traveller]

A religious procession with army protection? Don't ask me!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXe01...ature=youtu.be

The statue of Kaal Bhairab dominates the side of the street leading inside.

The Mahendreshwar temple in the distance, and a corner of the Kakeshwar temple visible to the right.

The Indrapur temple, and the Vishnu temple to its left

Not the colours of Holi, but vermilion being sold to perform the tika on Dashain

The Taleju temple which is open to Hindus just once a year on the day of Dashain. Inside the courtyard is also the Hanumandhoka Durbar Museum, which (along with many other museums and palaces) remains closed during the 15 days of Dashain celebrations. The crowd in front of the gate is said to be thin due to the inclement weather - there are a lot more people inside, and we don't want to be so brave as to enter.

The Hanuman statue in ochre, adjacent to the gate

Profusion of umbrellas

Upper portion of the gateway

[SS-Traveller]

More visuals from around Durbar Square. It's a photographer's delight, except the overcast sky and continuous drizzle do nothing about getting good photographs. Streaks of rain are visible in quite a few pics, as are raindrops on the lens.

This European-style building, dissimilar to the other structures around Durbar Square, is called the Gaddi Baithak, and it was built in the early 20th century during the era of the Ranas. It currently houses government offices.

The Kumari Ghar

A big brick building on Durbar Square in Kathmandu, the Kumari Ghar (or Kumari Chowk) houses the living goddess of Kathmandu. Built in 1757, the temple is known for its magnificent carvings as well as its divine inhabitant.

The Kumari Ghar, or House of the Living Goddess, was built in 1757 by King Jaya Prakash Malla. Known for his paranoia and weakness, the king offended a Kumari in some way (various stories speak of an act of sexual indiscretion or not believing a particular girl to be the goddess) and was so overcome by guilt that he built a home for her as an act of atonement. The temple was renovated in 1966.

Overlooking the south side of Durbar Square, the Kumari Ghar is a three-story brick building richly decorated with wood-carved reliefs of gods and symbols.

Tourists can enter the courtyard, where there are more beautiful reliefs over the doors, on the pillars and around the windows. Photos are permitted in the courtyard, but it is strictly forbidden to photograph the Kumari.

The Living Goddess sometimes appears in one of the first-floor windows, especially if her handlers are paid well enough, and is said to answer devotees' questions with the expressions on her face. She is most likely to appear in the morning or late afternoon.

The Kumari is a young girl who is believed to be the incarnation of the demon-slaying Hindu goddess Durga. Dating back at least to the Middle Ages, the cult of the Kumari is popular among both Hindus and Nepalese Buddhists - another notable example of the mingling of religious traditions in Nepal. There are about 11 kumaris across Nepal, but the Kumari Devi (or Raj Kumari - royal goddess) in Kathmandu is the most important.

The selection process for finding the Kumari Devi resembles that of the Tibetan lamas, who are believed to be reincarnations of their predecessors. She is chosen from girls aged three to five in the Buddhist Shakya clan. Elders meet with hundreds of girls, approving only those with 32 auspicious signs of divinity (mostly to do with natural perfection and symbolically significant features). The girls' horoscopes are also checked to ensure they are compatible with those of the current king.

The small group of would-be goddesses are then placed in a darkened room with freshly severed buffalo heads and dancing men wearing demon masks. This is certainly frightening to ordinary girls under five years old, but the goddess would not be frightened. Therefore the girl who shows no fear is likely to be the incarnation of Durga. In one final test, the girl must be able to pick out the clothing of her predecessor.

Thus discovered, the Kumari moves into the Kumari Ghar and is worshipped as a living goddess. Her needs and those of her caretakers are paid in full by the Nepalese government and she spends most of her time studying and performing religious rituals. She only leaves the temple a few times a year during festivals and her feet must never touch the ground.
http://www.sacred-destinations.com/n...du-kumari-ghar

Our first sighting of a taxi happens since the morning. We hail it, agree to pay the exorbitant charge that the driver wearing a tika demanded (after some fruitless bargaining), and we set off to say our prayers at Pashupatinath.

[SS-Traveller]

Photographs from around the Pashupatinath Temple Complex.

• Holy cow!

• Free parking for your shoes!

[SS-Traveller]

The main temple itself is off-limits for non-Hindus, cameras, mobiles, binoculars, tape recorders (do such things exist any more?), leathers goods (sic.), shoes and sandles (sic.).

Someone's got to hang on to those prohibited stuff while the others go into the temple - so here's yours truly, overladen with the baggage of everyone else!

Unfortunately, there are no safe deposit boxes to lock up your valuables while you offer prayers, but I did find this rather interestingly branded lockable donation box.

Spent some time taking pictures of the exterior of the entrance gate

It would be no wonder that people who write Lonely Planet are debarred from entering the temple - some might say their description of the statue of Nandi is tasteless enough for them to be allowed in no further.

Originally Posted by Lonely Planet

From the main gate on the west side of the compound, you can view the mighty golden behind of an enormous brass statue of Nandi.

[0xTKB]

Awesome pics. This thread reminded me of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

Seems to happen to you often. Wonder why? Do you order exotic stuff in out of the way places?

Ummm... I thought that happened to you in Tawang - our order arrived faster than yours!

Originally Posted by 0xTKB

Awesome pics. This thread reminded me of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.

Don't quite get the connection - I have no idea about Uncharted 1, 2 or 3.

[0xTKB]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Ummm... I thought that happened to you in Tawang - our order arrived faster than yours!

Don't quite get the connection - I have no idea about Uncharted 1, 2 or 3.

It is an adventure game for PlayStation 3. If you don't have PS3 then, I suggest that you shell out about 16k for the console, and then 3k for the trilogy of the series. This game was one of the reasons why PS3 sold in good numbers.