In and around Kathmandu

Great Stupa

Our first stop of the morning was the Great Stupa of Tibetan Buddhism, which is just outside Kathmandu in Bodnath. It is a collection of temples and shrines built high above the valley. They're serious about religion here; most people hit up a temple before breakfast. Also, the workweek is 6 days long, but this is offset by the huge number of religious festivals/holidays that are celebrated.

Durbar Square

Heading back into Kathmandu, we explored Durbar Square, which is where the old palaces and temples are. The pagoda architecture of the temples is really cool. The woodwork of the temples and palaces looks pretty good even though it's 400 years old. At the palace, I was lucky enough to see the living goddess. The goddess is a 6yr old girl chosen based upon lineage and 32 different physical traits, and she lives in the palace until she reaches puberty. Yes, it does sound a little weird and creepy, and it was made even worse by the heavy makeup she was wearing. (No pics allowed. Sad.)

Bhaktapur Temple

Next, we drove out to the feudal city of Bhaktapur. The palaces and temples there are similar to Kathmandu's Durbar square, but the setting in the smaller town with hardly any vehicles made it a little bit more intriguing. We had a traditional lunch of lentil bread and vegetable curry and then yogurt for dessert. My body is craving some regular fruits and vegetables. Everything in India and Nepal is caked in oil and sauces. You get the feeling they're trying to hide the poor quality of the food.