17 Jan 2003 Kathmandu, Nepal

Another sunny and warm day.  We walked to Patan, a few kilometers south of Kathmandu.  Durbar Square here is fascinating, lots of large Hindu Temples.  The carvings are very intricate.  We had a snack on a terrace restaurant.  The view was great and it was relaxing to sit in the sun and watch all the activity in the square.

Then we walked down to a famous Buddhist Temple (Golden Temple).  We had to remove any leather shoes and use sandals they provided.  The carvings and statues, all covered in gold were gorgeous.  We were able to wander around and go upstairs to the monastery where several people were praying or having a discussion.  One of the men from the front showed us around and wanted to have his picture taken with us.  He showed us lots of pictures of himself with other visitors.  He gave us his address and we will send pictures when we get them developed.

Nepal is five hours and 45 minutes ahead of GMT.  Apparently this is to set Nepal apart from India.

It is amazing watching the Nepalis carry large loads with their head.  They use a wide strap which goes across their forehead then to their back where it is wrapped around the load.  At the monkey temple we saw women carrying large baskets of bricks like this and have also seen them carrying water containers in baskets like this.  The best are the men with huge loads that tower over them and stick far out to either side.  They cross the busy roads and go up and down the sidewalks with their huge loads.

We have most of the lines down now.  Around the main squares (Durbar Square in either Kathmandu or Patan) they walk up (not hard to pick out the tourists wandering around, looking up, guide book in hand, camera around neck) and ask "where you are from?"
     "England"  (This saves a long story and most people believe I am English.  One shop owner picked Emma out as an Aussie)
     "London is the capital" he replies
     "yes, very good"
     "When did you arrive?" they ask.
     "Tuesday"
     "When are you here until?"
     "________" fill in next day, if you provide the real date and it is more than a couple days away they will try to sell you some kind of trip)
     "Is this your first time to Nepal?"
     "Yes"
     "Let me show you around and explain all the sites,"
Without fail, everyone who wants to be your guide will follow this same script.  You get it so many times just in one square that you run the whole emotional realm.  You try to be polite the first couple times then you get frustrated, then angry, then it becomes funny when the next one comes up and launches into the same routine.

As we walked past a large intersection in front of a large government compound containing the Supreme Court and other buildings.  It is one of the few intersections in Kathmandu with traffic lights and pedestrian crossing signals. (They all seem to be in front of government buildings on compounds.)  There is a large sign that says that this intersection was part of a program to improve traffic intersections around Kathmandu that was made possible by a grant from Japan.  It is funny that with all the problems Nepal has and could use aid for, I would guess that improving intersections in Kathmandu would be near the bottom.  It is ironic that two to three traffic officers still have to police the intersection because people rarely follow the signals.  Pedestrians run across if they even see the slightest gap and many of the cars keep going.  Even with the latest lights and signals they still need traffic police for the intersection.  More aid dollars (or yen) put to good work.

It is fascinating wandering the streets and seeing all the stores and street carts.  There are no large stores, just row after row of tiny stores.  There is the man with a small fry pan on his cart and a pile of eggs, ready to whip up an omelet for a snack.  The tiny butcher's shop, some just a small black hole with only one chicken chopped up on the counter.  There are lots of material shops, filled with wonderful fabrics covering the entire spectrum of the rainbow.  The tailor sits out front on the sidewalk (or edge of the street as is usually the case) sewing dresses or suits with his manual sewing machine.  There are lots of small restaurants where they use a large fry pot frying up Nepalese dishes while sitting on the floor near the door opening.  There are small (closet sized) tire repair shops, all that are in the shop  are a few bike tires and scooter tires and a couple tools.  The guy sits on the floor banging away with the compressor running in the background to pump up the tires.  Then there are the electronic repair shops.  Piled with ancient TVs, stereos, tape decks, appliances and other relics.  The guy sits at the counter, surrounded by several others working on a 30 year old TV.  In the street there might be a couple goats tied up and some cows wandering down the street.