Well I'm at home. A fairly uneventful trip back, BA upgraded my seat on the way back so extra leg room for me which was nice. I ended staying in a fancy hotel in India for conveniance and comforts sake, I think it was a good decision as it all went very smoothly.
Anyway here is a link to some more photo's as promised.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=348310&id=621006137&saved#!/album.php?fbid=10150177421866138&id=621006137&aid=348292
Thanks for reading and see you soon I hope.
Sunday, 27 March 2011
Friday, 25 March 2011
Saying goodbye.
So tonight is my last night in Nepal. I am currently trying to get info about hotels in Delhi as I have a long over night stop over. It is proving more difficult than it should be, traveling would be great if you didn't have to travel.
Leaving work today was really difficult all the kids were being very sweet, and they were nearly all hanging off me as I went to leave. I really hope they do alright and that I might one day here from some of them again, they deserve a good life.
So this is it the end of this blog. I will post links to more photo's once I have uploaded them, but other than that that's it.
Oh I had dinner at the K-Too Steak House so I could watch the cricket. Ouch.
Leaving work today was really difficult all the kids were being very sweet, and they were nearly all hanging off me as I went to leave. I really hope they do alright and that I might one day here from some of them again, they deserve a good life.
So this is it the end of this blog. I will post links to more photo's once I have uploaded them, but other than that that's it.
Oh I had dinner at the K-Too Steak House so I could watch the cricket. Ouch.
Monday, 21 March 2011
My Special Day.
I have had an ace Birthday. I get to work and all the children have brought me little bunches of flowers that they have picked themselves as well as some origami flowers and birds. I get in the classroom and there is a Birthday message for me on the blackboard. We make party hats and the children sing me happy birthday whilst passing me my gifts, it is so sweet, all the children have signed a card for me too. The teacher also has a gift for me a Thanka painting of Buddha that her Nephew painted. It is fantastic, he is studying at a Thanka Art School in Kathmandu. This is all totally unexpected and very touching. They are all so sweet.
We play pass the parcel and musical statues, and eat lots of cake and sweets. Tonight I am going to eat pizza.
All in all a top birthday!
We play pass the parcel and musical statues, and eat lots of cake and sweets. Tonight I am going to eat pizza.
All in all a top birthday!
Holi Moly What A Super Stupa!
Today I go to the Stupa at Bhodanath it is the largest in the Kathmandu Valley and one of the biggest in the world. I am as always goingto walk there, I am doing this inspite of the fact that today is Holi, the Hindu festival of colour. This involves young men, women and childen throwing water and powdered paint at each other and everyone else. It is a two hour walk to Bhodanath.
As I leave in the morning at about 9:30 my street looks very earie. Everywhere is closed today and where one would normally find brightly coloured clothing and shiny brass statues there is now just grey metal shutters. I will have breakfast on my way or at Bhodanath.
The walk takes me in more or less the same direction as Pashupatinath as my destiantion is just a little to north so only the last half hour or so will be new to me. I am wearing my hiking trousers (waterproof and quick drying), my hiking shoes (Gortex) and a bright white Daz doorstep challenge winning t-shirt. After walking past a lot of closed shops and armed police I pop into a cold store to buy some biscuits and a coke for breakfast, so far I have only had to deal with a couple of poorly aimed water bombs thrown from rooftops. I have been walking for about an hour. My shirt is still whiter than white.
As I get into the more populated area's the streets narrow and the Holi celebrators multiply. Water is sent hurtling from the rooftops some in small plastic bags some straight out of a bucket, all you can hear is laughter and yells of "Happy Holi, Happy Holi!" I should point out that I have made it perfectly clear that I am up for playing Holi, it is true that some people who don't wish to play get splatted by what the papers dub 'Holi Hooligans' but I haven't come across this. Eveyone gestures before throwing powder or water and everyone incluing myself is in high spirits.
The further I walk the more I get bombarded, luckily for me despite having a whole day that involves throwing things the Nepalese don't appear to be very good at it and I arrive at the Stupa wet damp but with only
a splat of red on my front and a splattering of purple on my back.
I walk around the Stupa a few times (clockwise naturally), there are a few children playing Holi but there are a lot of Buddhist Monks here today for an anniversary of some discription and when I arrive the air is filled with the sound of drums and chanting. You can walk up onto the first raised part of the Stupa and I do this and have another walk around. There a re parts between the outside walls and the raised platform that I am on where gardens have been planted, these are surrounded by butter lamps, it must look stunning when they are all lit in the evening. I find a place to sit in the sun, read my book for a while and give my shirt a chance to dry.
I repack my bag, wrapping everything in my waterproof jacket to keep it dry. My notebook, Ki Fed Membership Card and passport have all been victims and are pretty wet, completely my own fault of course. My plan is to walk to Kopan Monastery where there are a lot of Buddhist Nuns, nearly all Tibetan, I guess from my map that it is about forty five minutes to an hour away. As I make my way out of the square a man comes up to me wishes me a Happy Holi and after checking it is okay rubs some red powder into my cheeks. As I find out later this is a sign that I am well up for playing Holi.
Twenty minutes that is all it takes for me to be soaking wet and covered in red powder, my t-shirt is now a reddish pink and sticks to my chest, my neck, my ears and my face are totally smeared with red, yellow and blue powder. It is great fun and the locals love seeing a Westerner up for a bit of Holi fun away from the relative safety of the city centre. They genuinly seem delighted to see me and I cause nothing but howles of laughter from both adults and children as they see my bedragled frame make its way down the street. However I now look a bit if a state and almost completely wet though, although the hot day is helping to dry me out. The route to Kopan isn't as straight forward as I would have liked and amongst the chaos i decide not to go which is a shame but for the best I feel.
I retrace my steps back to Bhudanath. More water, more paint and more smiles. Everyone finds the sight of me hilarious (At this point I look like a skinny Henry Rollins from his 'Liar' video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxrd_jZJxkg) They can just about get out a "Happy Holi" before bursting into laughter. Its a real shame that more westerners don't venture outside of the tourist spots in Kathmandu for this festival, it really seems to mean a lot to the people of this city. Everyone is so happy and playful, I even get a Buddhist Monk throwing water at me. At first he gestures with the bottle and when I nod my head a massive grin spreads across his face before like an over excited child he hurls the contents of the bottle at me. Later just outside the Stupa I see several Monks packing brightly coloured water pistols, they really are big kids.
Back in Bhudanath I decide to have a look in one of the monasteries. The lobby walls and ceiling are all painted with religious art work it is stunning. Unfortunately the monastery itself is closed but there is still access to the roof which has great views.
Afterwards I head for lunch at one of the rooftop cafe's. As I have mentioned I am totally covered in red. As I walk in the waiter doesn't blink but the other immaculately dressed diners stare agog. I go and wash my hands and mouth before tucking into a bowl of thumpa and some banana fritters, all washed down with a nice cup of Nepali tea, delicious!
With my belly full I decide to head home by this point there are a fair few groups of very drunk lads walking around covered in colour and they all want to be my friend and cover me in yet more powder, by the time I get home I am a state. The friendly guy on the door of the hotel who always greats me with a big smile and a 'Nameste' doubles up when he see's me. I have really enjoyed the day, my only regret is that I didn't bring my white trousers and shoes with me.
In the evening I go and have a pre-birthday dinner with Lee-Ann and her other half Micheal at 'The New Orleans Cafe'. Jazz and blues is being played and we have a very nice meal in the courtyard outside. Micheal is an engineer at a power plant in Dubai and a really nice guy. They have both been in Bhaktapur for the past couple of days, I full Lee-Ann in with what went on at work and they tell me all about their trip and their terrifying bus ride. C'mon guys say I it was only an hour long. They shout me dinner which is very sweet and we head back to ourt hotels.
In the lobby of my hotel is a sign that says the front shutter will be closed from 22:30. I get back at 22:15 and the shutter is down. After trying unsuccesfully to find a way in through the back I go to the next hotel along as my room overlooks their garden and ask them i f they know of a way in around the back. "Have you tried banging on the shutter?" they ask I havce but go and do it again anyway, no response. They try phoning tyhem and yelling at them from their garden all to no avail. I am just about to ask them the price of their cheapest room when I guy ushers me outside, he has opened the shutter of the hotel. I thank him many times before sneaking back to my room and going to bed no questions asked.
As I leave in the morning at about 9:30 my street looks very earie. Everywhere is closed today and where one would normally find brightly coloured clothing and shiny brass statues there is now just grey metal shutters. I will have breakfast on my way or at Bhodanath.
The walk takes me in more or less the same direction as Pashupatinath as my destiantion is just a little to north so only the last half hour or so will be new to me. I am wearing my hiking trousers (waterproof and quick drying), my hiking shoes (Gortex) and a bright white Daz doorstep challenge winning t-shirt. After walking past a lot of closed shops and armed police I pop into a cold store to buy some biscuits and a coke for breakfast, so far I have only had to deal with a couple of poorly aimed water bombs thrown from rooftops. I have been walking for about an hour. My shirt is still whiter than white.
As I get into the more populated area's the streets narrow and the Holi celebrators multiply. Water is sent hurtling from the rooftops some in small plastic bags some straight out of a bucket, all you can hear is laughter and yells of "Happy Holi, Happy Holi!" I should point out that I have made it perfectly clear that I am up for playing Holi, it is true that some people who don't wish to play get splatted by what the papers dub 'Holi Hooligans' but I haven't come across this. Eveyone gestures before throwing powder or water and everyone incluing myself is in high spirits.
The further I walk the more I get bombarded, luckily for me despite having a whole day that involves throwing things the Nepalese don't appear to be very good at it and I arrive at the Stupa wet damp but with only
a splat of red on my front and a splattering of purple on my back.
I walk around the Stupa a few times (clockwise naturally), there are a few children playing Holi but there are a lot of Buddhist Monks here today for an anniversary of some discription and when I arrive the air is filled with the sound of drums and chanting. You can walk up onto the first raised part of the Stupa and I do this and have another walk around. There a re parts between the outside walls and the raised platform that I am on where gardens have been planted, these are surrounded by butter lamps, it must look stunning when they are all lit in the evening. I find a place to sit in the sun, read my book for a while and give my shirt a chance to dry.
I repack my bag, wrapping everything in my waterproof jacket to keep it dry. My notebook, Ki Fed Membership Card and passport have all been victims and are pretty wet, completely my own fault of course. My plan is to walk to Kopan Monastery where there are a lot of Buddhist Nuns, nearly all Tibetan, I guess from my map that it is about forty five minutes to an hour away. As I make my way out of the square a man comes up to me wishes me a Happy Holi and after checking it is okay rubs some red powder into my cheeks. As I find out later this is a sign that I am well up for playing Holi.
Twenty minutes that is all it takes for me to be soaking wet and covered in red powder, my t-shirt is now a reddish pink and sticks to my chest, my neck, my ears and my face are totally smeared with red, yellow and blue powder. It is great fun and the locals love seeing a Westerner up for a bit of Holi fun away from the relative safety of the city centre. They genuinly seem delighted to see me and I cause nothing but howles of laughter from both adults and children as they see my bedragled frame make its way down the street. However I now look a bit if a state and almost completely wet though, although the hot day is helping to dry me out. The route to Kopan isn't as straight forward as I would have liked and amongst the chaos i decide not to go which is a shame but for the best I feel.
I retrace my steps back to Bhudanath. More water, more paint and more smiles. Everyone finds the sight of me hilarious (At this point I look like a skinny Henry Rollins from his 'Liar' video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxrd_jZJxkg) They can just about get out a "Happy Holi" before bursting into laughter. Its a real shame that more westerners don't venture outside of the tourist spots in Kathmandu for this festival, it really seems to mean a lot to the people of this city. Everyone is so happy and playful, I even get a Buddhist Monk throwing water at me. At first he gestures with the bottle and when I nod my head a massive grin spreads across his face before like an over excited child he hurls the contents of the bottle at me. Later just outside the Stupa I see several Monks packing brightly coloured water pistols, they really are big kids.
Back in Bhudanath I decide to have a look in one of the monasteries. The lobby walls and ceiling are all painted with religious art work it is stunning. Unfortunately the monastery itself is closed but there is still access to the roof which has great views.
Afterwards I head for lunch at one of the rooftop cafe's. As I have mentioned I am totally covered in red. As I walk in the waiter doesn't blink but the other immaculately dressed diners stare agog. I go and wash my hands and mouth before tucking into a bowl of thumpa and some banana fritters, all washed down with a nice cup of Nepali tea, delicious!
With my belly full I decide to head home by this point there are a fair few groups of very drunk lads walking around covered in colour and they all want to be my friend and cover me in yet more powder, by the time I get home I am a state. The friendly guy on the door of the hotel who always greats me with a big smile and a 'Nameste' doubles up when he see's me. I have really enjoyed the day, my only regret is that I didn't bring my white trousers and shoes with me.
In the evening I go and have a pre-birthday dinner with Lee-Ann and her other half Micheal at 'The New Orleans Cafe'. Jazz and blues is being played and we have a very nice meal in the courtyard outside. Micheal is an engineer at a power plant in Dubai and a really nice guy. They have both been in Bhaktapur for the past couple of days, I full Lee-Ann in with what went on at work and they tell me all about their trip and their terrifying bus ride. C'mon guys say I it was only an hour long. They shout me dinner which is very sweet and we head back to ourt hotels.
In the lobby of my hotel is a sign that says the front shutter will be closed from 22:30. I get back at 22:15 and the shutter is down. After trying unsuccesfully to find a way in through the back I go to the next hotel along as my room overlooks their garden and ask them i f they know of a way in around the back. "Have you tried banging on the shutter?" they ask I havce but go and do it again anyway, no response. They try phoning tyhem and yelling at them from their garden all to no avail. I am just about to ask them the price of their cheapest room when I guy ushers me outside, he has opened the shutter of the hotel. I thank him many times before sneaking back to my room and going to bed no questions asked.
Thursday, 17 March 2011
Sorry, Did I Not Mention... Also Holi Approaches.
Looking back through my previous posts I realise there are a few everyday occurances that I haven't really written about but are important pieces of life in Kathmandu.
Simple things like shopkeepers throwing water onto the streets in front of their stores to keep the dust off of their merchandise. They generally do this without paying any attention to what or who is passing by, I have had to jump out of the way on a couple of occasions. Still it is better than being gobbed on.
Also there is only ten hours of electricity a day from the main grid. A good portion of this seems to come on in the middle of the night so people can charge their back-up batteries for the daytime. When the power is off they call it load-shedding. This means that people are very frugal with power and it also means that you have to get used to the sound of generators trundling away at all hours. The hotel I am at has a generator but it only powers the lights so I cannot watch TV or charge anything at these times. I have been leaving whatever it is that I need to charge plugged in over night this seems to do the trick. Because of all this I am getting a lot of reading and writing done which is no bad thing. I think I am correct in saying that all of Nepal's electricity comes from either hydro or solar power which of course is fantastic, there just isn't enough of it.
You are never more than a few steps away from a temple or shrine or stupa. They are everywhere on main roads down little side streets and in the middle of road works. Half of the city feels like it is being re-built. Unlike in the UK where large sheets of tarpaulin cover up whatever work is going on here it is out in the open for everyone to see. The tools are basic the scaffolding mostly bamboo, a huge amount of houses look half finished especially outside of the centre, it can be hard to tell what is falling down and what is being built.
Lately I have also seen a lot of women carrying massive cupboards and wardrobes on their backs. Something to think about next time your having a moan about Ikea's delivery service. Strap it to your head and carry it on your back.
The children of this city love saying hello. I know assume if I hear a hello that it is directed at em it normally is. Most are happy with a cheery hello back but some are a bit more demanding. I had a lad run up to me the other day yelling "Chocolate!, Chocolate!, Chocolate! I had no chocolate and when this became obvious he demanded one hundred rupees. They always want one hundred rupees. Some of these children have real chutzpah!
It isn't only shopkeepers that throw water. This Sunday is Holi the Hindu festival of colour. In the build up to this itis traditional for children to throw water at balloons at people especially westerners. I am yet to be hit but there have been a couple of close calls. Come Sunday I fully expect to be covered head to toe in paint as the children roam the streets with balloons and water pistols full of colourful paint, keeping an eye open for easy targets. Despite not standing out in a crowd unless I stay indoors all day Sunday I am getting splatted.
Simple things like shopkeepers throwing water onto the streets in front of their stores to keep the dust off of their merchandise. They generally do this without paying any attention to what or who is passing by, I have had to jump out of the way on a couple of occasions. Still it is better than being gobbed on.
Also there is only ten hours of electricity a day from the main grid. A good portion of this seems to come on in the middle of the night so people can charge their back-up batteries for the daytime. When the power is off they call it load-shedding. This means that people are very frugal with power and it also means that you have to get used to the sound of generators trundling away at all hours. The hotel I am at has a generator but it only powers the lights so I cannot watch TV or charge anything at these times. I have been leaving whatever it is that I need to charge plugged in over night this seems to do the trick. Because of all this I am getting a lot of reading and writing done which is no bad thing. I think I am correct in saying that all of Nepal's electricity comes from either hydro or solar power which of course is fantastic, there just isn't enough of it.
You are never more than a few steps away from a temple or shrine or stupa. They are everywhere on main roads down little side streets and in the middle of road works. Half of the city feels like it is being re-built. Unlike in the UK where large sheets of tarpaulin cover up whatever work is going on here it is out in the open for everyone to see. The tools are basic the scaffolding mostly bamboo, a huge amount of houses look half finished especially outside of the centre, it can be hard to tell what is falling down and what is being built.
Lately I have also seen a lot of women carrying massive cupboards and wardrobes on their backs. Something to think about next time your having a moan about Ikea's delivery service. Strap it to your head and carry it on your back.
The children of this city love saying hello. I know assume if I hear a hello that it is directed at em it normally is. Most are happy with a cheery hello back but some are a bit more demanding. I had a lad run up to me the other day yelling "Chocolate!, Chocolate!, Chocolate! I had no chocolate and when this became obvious he demanded one hundred rupees. They always want one hundred rupees. Some of these children have real chutzpah!
It isn't only shopkeepers that throw water. This Sunday is Holi the Hindu festival of colour. In the build up to this itis traditional for children to throw water at balloons at people especially westerners. I am yet to be hit but there have been a couple of close calls. Come Sunday I fully expect to be covered head to toe in paint as the children roam the streets with balloons and water pistols full of colourful paint, keeping an eye open for easy targets. Despite not standing out in a crowd unless I stay indoors all day Sunday I am getting splatted.
Wednesday, 16 March 2011
On My Commute & Prayer Wheels
During my wallks to and from work I have seen many an unusual site (for me at least). A man lying prostrate on the floor praying outside a temple, a single prayer wheel spinning behind him. There was also a Monk nearby that day who was there on both my way and way back from work that is eight hours I wonder how long he was there for.
I also accidently scared a monkey by making a noise whilst pulling a monkey face. A bigger monkey nearby was very upset with me and scurried towards me growling, well as close to growling as a monkey can get, which to be honest is pretty close. I turned around and yelled "Heeey" at it and it sat back happy that a point had been made.
Now I am not a very spiritual person although I would consider myself agnostic (Lets not get into that) but there is somnething about seeing a prayer wheel spinning its mantra that fills me with hope. I don't really know how to explain it. Spinning a wheel doesn't take a lot of effort but I guess for me that it is saying that amongst all this poverty and squaler there are people who are thinking beyond themselves, towards a better future for everyone. They also bring a wall or building to life the wheels spinning long after the spinner has moved on. I like to think that no matter what time of day it is somewhere in Kathmandu there is a prayer wheel spinning its message onto the winds.
I also accidently scared a monkey by making a noise whilst pulling a monkey face. A bigger monkey nearby was very upset with me and scurried towards me growling, well as close to growling as a monkey can get, which to be honest is pretty close. I turned around and yelled "Heeey" at it and it sat back happy that a point had been made.
Now I am not a very spiritual person although I would consider myself agnostic (Lets not get into that) but there is somnething about seeing a prayer wheel spinning its mantra that fills me with hope. I don't really know how to explain it. Spinning a wheel doesn't take a lot of effort but I guess for me that it is saying that amongst all this poverty and squaler there are people who are thinking beyond themselves, towards a better future for everyone. They also bring a wall or building to life the wheels spinning long after the spinner has moved on. I like to think that no matter what time of day it is somewhere in Kathmandu there is a prayer wheel spinning its message onto the winds.
The Joy Of Work When Work Is A Joy.
I'm starting to get into the swing of things now. The kids are great, full of life, some have the eyes of somone five times their age and this is very sad, but also to be expected. We have painted portraits and today drew around some wooden shapes its lovely to see some of the children slowly gain confidence with their drawing and painting. We also did face paints and the kids absolutely loved it, we had monsters, fairies, angels, soilders as well as spiderman it was a massive hit. We played volleyball of sorts in the afternoon and a lot of the younger kids enjoyed using me as a climbing frame and being swung about. The children are so sweet and run up to greet us everyday looking forward to making some art and playing some games.
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