Wow, so, two days and I feel like so much has happened!
Kathmandu is an interesting place. There is something called 'load shedding' which is a nice way of something that you will only have power 16 hours a day. For two 4 hour blocks, 8 hours a day in total, a specific grid in Kathmandu won't have power. Why? The simplest answer I could find is that the government simply can't afford to power all of the city all of the time. It makes your day interesting though! And randomly power will just go off! So is life here.
On Saturday, Courtenay and I decided to walk to Durbar Sq. and just explore the Southern area of Kathmandu. Walking around Thamel, basically the downtown area of Kathmandu, is a very unique experience. Every 5 seconds, not really an exaggeration, you are asked to buy some tiger balm, or go trekking, or jump into a rickshaw, or try this mango, or put on this pashmina scarf. It can be a little overwhelming at times.
Anyways, en route to Durbar we were approached by a man giving us his business card asking us to buy his Thanka paintings, something was different about him because he wasn't trying to hard to get us to buy. So, we listened to him a little bit and he told us that he would show us the stupa (temple) near his shop. It was amazing. So gorgeous. As it turns out he is a Buddhist and was happy to teach us many things about the Buddhist stupas. I learned that you must always walk around them clockwise because clockwise is good kharma - counter-clockwise is bad kharma. He also took us into many rooms that I would guess a lot of people don't go into. I got to say hello and how are you to Buddhist lamas and learn a Buddhist mantra for good luck.
After a while he took us to his brother, or at least I think it was his brother, who was delighted to see us. He showed us all his paintings and explained them in their entirety. Some were of the Buddhas life, some were vertical diagrams of stupas which are representations of how people go through life, are reincarnated, and move closer to the center to achieve enlightenment. It honestly sounded a lot like a raggers! And he mentioned the importance of cleansing spirit, body, and mind!
Then he took us ALL the way across Kathmandu to the monkey temple. A giant stupa, the second largest in Nepal, that sits on top of a hill and there was a HUGE flight of stairs to get up there. The view was amazing, all the pollution clouded it a little, and there are prayer flags that go on for what feels like an eternity. At the stupa, he showed us around - going clockwise of course - and I learned why it was called the monkey temple. There are monkeys EVERYWHERE! And they will seriously come up witin two feet of you. I got some pretty great pictures! I'm pretty sure my mouth was open in amazement the entire time.
I experienced my first 'bandh' or strike yesterday. These days are scheduled where nobody works - i mean - nobody. Taxis don't run, stands don't open, restaurants are closed. everything. This is another reason why things get done when they get done - everything is so unpredictable. My LP says that I should just stay indoors, but I asked around and people said it was ok to walk around. Courtenay and I were curious about this because this was her first day to volunteer in the hospital which is a 45 minute walk away from the hotel. I offered to walk with her in the morning because neither of us knew what the strike had in store. it turned into quite the adventure.
I won't put all of the details of that morning - but let's just say it was a little...interesting...and I don't think I will leave my hotel anymore on days when there is a strike. However, at no point did I feel I was in any real danger, because I wasn't.
Although Kathmandu is a great place, I'm getting a little tired of the city, and my throat is hurting a little from the pollution. So, I am leaving tomorrow for the mountains. I will be teaching English at a school! I can't wait! It is the school where one of the guys that works at the hotel was born - and his family is there. He has arranged everything. We leave via bus tomorrow at 6 am and he will show me around and then he will leave. I will be living with the principal of the school and teaching 8-12 year olds. I will eat dal baaht everyday and I will be learning Newari at night. YES! I will be there for 45 days teaching and then I will return to Kathmandu to find my next adventure. The place is about 50 km away from Jiri.
I will write more about my experiences in the mountains in my next post. I hope all is well with everyone back home! My thoughts and spirit are with you! Until then, Preston.
