A week in Kathmandu with not so much to do...

Did you know getting a visa to visit India from Nepal requires three in-person appearances at the visa office over the course of a week?  And then you might not even get a visa, but I won't go into that.  So, I've been in Kathmandu all week with a lot of free time.  Even after living in Nepal for nearly a year and a half, I've hardly seen any of the tourist sights, so I figured this would be a good time to start.  Kathmandu valley is home to seven World Heritage sites and I made it to four of them.

Durbar Square

 There are three different Durbar Square World Heritage sites in Kathmandu.  This one is located in one of the busiest pedestrian areas (that taxis and rickshaws also regularly force their way through) of Kathmandu.  In addition to lots of really old temples and palaces, it is an area groups come to perform.  I sat on the steps of a temple for a while watching a school group act out some ridiculous drama.  It was a nice thing to see after spending so much time in a community that has never really had the time or opportunity to engage in any activity not related to survival or culture.

Swayambhu

 Also known as Monkey Temple, this was probably my favorite visit.  Located at the top of some impressive stairs amidst a lovely piece of wilderness in the center of Kathmandu, Swayambhu is a Buddhist stupa/temple complex overrun with tourists and monkeys.  After wandering around a bit, I settled down on a bench at the base of the hill below the stupa to do a bit of crocheting (because isn't that what everyone does while visiting some of the world's most impressive sites?) and a monkey came and sat next to me, eying my bag.  When it became obvious I wasn't going to share any food with him, he grabbed my bag and tried to run away with it.  I won that tog-of-war, but he didn't give up.  I sat down on a different bench and pulled my bag full of yarn balls out, thinking I was safe because I didn't have any food and he had already failed to get my bag from me.  Suddenly my yarn bag was ripped away from me and the monkey ran off with one of the balls.  Sitting on a nearby temple, he kept biting and unraveling it, trying to find the food that must be inside.  We almost got in a serious fight before I could get my yarn back and that would have been a bad thing because, as we were taught in one of our first weeks of training, monkeys bite and they don't brush their teeth.  Moral of the story-- definitely visit Swayambhu, but don't bring food and don't hold still too long if you're carrying a bag.  And if you get in a fight with a monkey, kick it rather than getting in its face.

Pashupati

 Thanks to a very informative tour I was tricked into taking, I know more about this site than the others.

Long ago, a king got married, but had no children.  So he got married again.  And again.  And again.  After the tenth wife also failed to produce a child, a priest told the king that he would conceive a child with his 11th wife if he built one temple for each wife dedicated to Lord Shiva (the god of creation and, if the engravings on his temples are any indication, the god of reproduction).  Miraculously, all 11 of his wives bore children afterwards.

Pashupati, or Golden Temple, one of the most sacred Hindu sites in Nepal and one of the few temples only Hindus are allowed to enter.

The sacred Bagmati River (meaning roughly "from the mouth of the tiger") runs through the center of Pashupati.  It is here that the local dead people are purified then cremated.  There are separate platforms for members of different casts.  Once cremation is complete, the ashes are scattered in the river.  They say you can see the smoke from people being cremated 24 hours a day.

Just outside of Pashupati is an ancient palace that has been converted into a state run old folks home for those individuals who's families can't (or wont) support them in their old age.  I suppose there are worse places to hang out all day, but I saw the same loneliness on their faces as you can see in any similar institution.

Bauddhanath

One of the world's largest stupas, surrounded by dozens of monetarists, and I still almost walked right past it.  Despite being located in a relatively small courtyard just off a busy city street, Buddhanath is a pleasantly peaceful spot.  Although the souvenir shops and beggars that surround any heavily visited spot in Nepal were present, there was an overall feel that this was a place people came to pay their devotion, rather than to just gawk at the pretty buildings.