Nepal 2017

Monday20November

7 AM. The hotel jeep drops us off at the bus "station" from where buses depart for Kathmandu.

Before departure, just enough time to enjoy the early morning and the accompanying landscape.  

This white zebu will be more than enough to fill my camera.

And just like us, a house crow (Corvus splendens) patiently awaits departure.

That's it, we're off! Kathmandu is 150 kilometers from here. Which means we now perfectly know that it will take us a considerable amount of time to reach our final destination... If it took us 9 hours to cover the 170 kilometers separating Lumbini from Chitwan, we expect to do the journey in less than 8 hours if all goes well...     Well, no! It will take us 12 hours to get there!   A truck half-fallen into the ravine will put an end to our progress towards the capital. The line of buses and trucks immobilized on the small mountain road speaks for itself...

5:30 PM. Night has fallen and we've been driving for 10 hours (traffic jams and lunch break included, phew!). We have now arrived in the Kathmandu agglomeration and the car headlights betray the suffocating pollution of the city... It will still take us 2 more hours to finally get off the bus... 

Tuesday21November

After the last 5 rather exhausting days (especially the road), we are finally calm for the last 3 days of our trip. Three calm days doesn't mean doing nothing! We still have to finish our visit to the Kathmandu Valley that we started on the first day with Pashupatinath and Boudhanath! Today, we stay in Kathmandu and visit the Durbar Square area and the Swayambhunath stupa. Tomorrow, we will continue with Bhaktapur. Then the day after tomorrow, we will finish with Patan! A beautiful program but in complete tranquility!

We are in the middle of a political campaign period. Nepalis will go to the polls in 5 days for the first round of legislative elections. Here we cross the parade of the FSFN, the "Federal Socialist Forum Nepal" party, led by its representatives: Shyam Krishna Prajapati, Rajendra Shrestha, and Gyanendra Mohan Shrestha.

The neighborhood surrounding Durbar Square hides many small religious treasures. Here is the Yetakha Baha stupa.

Beware! Buddha is watching you!

At the four corners of the stupa, the celestial kings, guardians of the cardinal points?

In the streets, the scars of the 2015 earthquake are still present, some still held up by wooden beams...

Change of atmosphere at the Mahadev temple, under the singing loudspeakers. The immersion into the Hindu world begins...

Launch this video to find yourself for 45 seconds at the foot of the Mahadev temple!

The temple gate under the protection of Shiva and his trishula (the trident).

We enter Durbar Square, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1979 along with the entire Kathmandu Valley. From here, several monuments follow one another.

This temple is said to have been the residence of the first king of Nepal, Akash Bhairav, more than 3000 years ago.

Inside, well hidden but at the center of the temple, the "head" of Akash Bhairav is presented to the faithful who come to venerate him.

Come discover the head of Akash Bhairav with me...

This Buddhist monk gives alms, reproducing the Buddha's "Abhaya" gesture, hand raised and palm forward, signifying fearlessness and appeasement.

Basantapur Square, severely affected by the 2015 earthquake. The buildings still standing are undergoing restoration.

Kumari Ghar is the house where a living and very real goddess lives, the reincarnation of the goddess Taleju.   This is at least the incredible tradition maintained by Nepal since the 17th century. The "Kumari" is a child chosen by several religious figures, including the royal astrologer... This "chosen" child will reign until she has her first menstruation... She can only leave this house for official ceremonies. The President of the Republic himself comes to receive her blessing once a year.

Just 2 months ago, on September 28, 2017, a new Kumari was designated to replace Matina Shakya, who, according to traditional laws, had to step down after 9 years of reign. This new Kumari is named Trishna Shakya and is only 3 years old... Needless to say, this tradition is widely contested, but for now, beliefs have their reasons that reason ignores... 

The entrance to the house is guarded by lions.

Detail above the door.

Here we are in the courtyard of the house.

It is through this window that you might catch a glimpse of the Kumari... One way to attract the little goddess to her window is to pay a few rupees...   And you will have to engrave this memory in your mind because it is forbidden to take her picture.  

The Shiva Parvati temple, from whose window you are observed, not by a Kumari, but by a Hindu God and Goddess, Shiva and Parvati!  

Right next door, the ruins of the Maju Dega temple.

Three ivory windows, well hidden until 1975 when they were rediscovered.

The Shwet Bhairav temple and its "tunalas" (the oblique rafters supporting the roof) adorned with couples.

Behind this large window hides the face of Seto Bhairav, the dark aspect of the god Shiva. This large statue, made in 1974, is brought out once a year for the Indra Jatra festival.

Behind, one can guess the teeth of Seto Bhairav...

The Jagannath temple dates back to approximately the 16th century. In the middle of the square, the column has been deprived of its capital since the 2015 earthquake.

The tunalas of the Jagannath temple.

The UNESCO stone remaining on the ground since the earthquake.

The Hanuman Dhoka Durbar Museum was originally part of the royal palace. The 2015 earthquake also passed through here and did not spare the palace. Therefore, not everything is accessible.

The museum entrance is guarded by the statue of Hanuman, the Monkey God. His head is covered with orange paste, a kind of offering...  

Hanuman is seconded by two guardians and their mounts...

Of all these guardians, only one is truly effective.  

The inner courtyard Nasal Chowk, still under restoration.

Portraits of the last kings of Nepal.

King Girbanayuddha Bikram Shah (1797-1815) and King Tribhuvan Bir Bikram Shah (1906-1955).

To the right, the Panchamukhi temple and its 5 "umbrella roofs".

The restoration works are financed and supervised by China...

The Taleju temple is not open to foreign tourists and is only open one day a year, on the 9th day of the Dasain festival, in September or October depending on the year.

The impressive statue of Kala Bhairava trampling Brahmā, the latter having had incestuous desire for his daughter-wife...   

Braziers made available for burning offerings.

The topi, the traditional Nepalese headdress.

We are in a historical site, but that doesn't stop us from encountering a fish seller here, and a vegetable seller there...

And also sellers of sheep heads...  

We gain a little height by going to have a lassi (India's typical fermented milk drink) on the terrace of Cosmo de Cafe.

It's a good place to get a nice overview of Durbar Square and Kathmandu.

The palace, the Shwet Bhairav temple and the Taleju temple.

Back on Kathmandu ground, in the streets sometimes well-populated with its inhabitants and tourists from all horizons.

We move away from Durbar Square and reach the Jana Bahal temple, also named Machhendranath Bahal.

This temple cheerfully blends Buddhist and Hindu references.

In the center of the temple, the "murti", the statuette representing the god to be worshipped by Hindus.

And prayer wheels, Buddhist in nature...

Some bas-reliefs enhanced by shadows and light...

Silver goddesses versus golden goddesses?  

Representations of Vishnu (or Brahma) on tunalas.

Here, representations of Brahma. Unless it's Vishnu??? We no longer know who is who with all these Gods and Goddesses!  

Street cleaning amidst pedestrians!

No one will escape the banners of the parties campaigning for the elections...

Spices and peppers, make your choice.

Here are the Kathmandu representatives of the Communist Party (or Unified Marxist-Leninist Party), the country's majority party in 2017.

We leave the area by taxi to reach our next stop of the day: Swayambunath.

Hop into our taxi for 2 minutes of immersion in the streets of Kathmandu...