Graffiti

Nepal has been experiencing incredible political turmoil. Last week, the government failed to come up with a constitution and dissolved congress. There have been many protests and a fair amount of violence. We've been safe but I feel bad for those who are in danger as well as those whose lives have been disrupted by strikes. In some places of Nepal, strikes have lasted 30 days now. What I share below is from an art project near our house--but protest is represented as well. I particularly like the one "bandh (strikes) ruined my life" which is a protest of protests.

 

 

Lucie's middle school graduation

Lucie graduated from Lincoln Middle School last week. We're very proud of her! I couldn't get her to pose for the camera so I'll just share a couple of shots of Betsy, her and of Eli.

Bumping around Patan and Boudhanath

A couple of weeks ago friends were in town--always a good excuse to get more pictures. These are of Boudhanath (a place I've photographed and written about before) as well as Patan which is a 10 minute walk from our house.

Fire at a shrine in Patan

1

The stupa at Boudha, from a different angle

Detail of a prayer wheel

Nuns at Boudha

Boudha at sunset

Gentleman reading

Flight around Everest

This morning, Betsy and I took an early flight around Everest. It was a great way to celebrate our 23rd anniversary! We saw the stretch of the Himalayas going from Langtang (to the north of Kathmandu) to Everest (heading east). In that stretch (only a portion of the Nepali Himalayas), we saw 15 peaks higher than Aconcagua--the highest mountain in the Western Hemisphere. Three of those peaks were more than a mile higher than Aconcagua. And then there was Everest's peak, five and a half miles above sea level. Simply too difficult to convey the majesty.

Trojan horses

Yesterday, Betsy and I wandered down to Kupondole Rd., about 5 minutes from our house. We saw a huge trojan horse in preparation for a festival--or maybe it WAS the festival. These festivals happen several times during the year. I wish I had a fuller description of the trojan horse (not the real name) and the festival. But I don't. Suffice it to say that this horse was about 6 stories tall and made of wood, straw, rope and copper (I've taken pictures of some of the elements; for example, you can see the copper in the last photo).

The scene was all a bit too chaotic for us. In addition to 15 or 20 elderly men--seated on the ground and playing a harmonium, small cymbals and a drum--something we enjoyed, we were also approached by a drunk man and some rowdy kids who were aggressive and wanted money. In our experience, this is rather unusual in Nepal.

An axle of the cart with colorful ribbons around it.

There are eyes on 3 sides of the axle.

Metalwork on the axle.

Bhaktapur description

Bhaktapur is a Newari town and one of the 3 ancient kingdoms of Nepal (Kathmandu and Patan being the other two). Bhaktapur includes Siddha Pokhari, a large rectangular water tank built during the reign of King Yakshya Malla (early 1500s). Durbar Square is at the center of everything. It includes pagodas and shikhara-style temples grouped around a fifty-five window palace of brick and wood. The golden effigies of the kings perched on the top of stone monoliths, the guardian deities looking out from their sanctuaries, the wood carvings in every place - struts, lintels, uprights, tympanums, gateways and windows all seem to form a well-orchestrated symphony. [Thanks for the language, Wikipedia!] In Durbar Square, one can find:

The Lion Gate (1696 A.D.) As its name implies, the gate is guarded on both sides by two huge statues of lions. In addition, there are two stone images of Bhairab (the dreadful aspect of Shiva) and Ugrachandi (the consort of Shiva in her fearful manifestation).

The Golden Gate (widely regarded as one of the most beautiful and richly moulded specimens of its kind anywhere. The door includes a figure of the goddess Kali and Garuda (mythical man-bird) plus two heavenly nymphs, monsters and other mythical creatures. King Ranjit Malla erected the gate at the entrance to the main courtyard of the palace of fifty-five windows.

The Palace of Fifty-five Windows was built during the reign of King Yaksha Malla in 1427 A.D. The palace contains a balcony of fifty-five windows.

The Statue of King Bhupatindra Malla in the act of worship.

The Batsala Temple contains a bronze bell, known locally as "the bell-of barking dogs" because when it is rung, nearby dogs bark and howl. King Ranjit Malla hung the bell in 1737 A.D. and it was then used to sound the daily curfew. Now it is sounded each morning when the goddess Taleju is worshipped.

The Pashupati Temple: This is the one with the erotic carvings on its struts. Sorry guys, no pictures. You’ll have to come to Nepal to see the struts.

Of course, there are many other very interesting sites including the 5-storyed Nyatapola Temple (1702 A.D.),  the Bhairab Nath Temple (the dreadful aspect of Shiva), the Dattatraya Temple (consecrated by King Yakshya Malla in 1427 A.D.), and the Kailashnath Mahadev Statue (at 143 feet, it is the World's tallest Lord Shiva statue).

One of my favorite parts of our experience today was seeing one of the many chariots that are constructed for Nepali new year (Bisket Jatra) which are wheeled around the city. They're huge and a lot of fun! (see pictures below).

Bhaktapur

Our guide, Rajendra