Kathmandu

Namaste.  Welcome to Nepal.  I finally arrived...

My flight from Bangkok landed on time in Kathmandu.  I didn't get the Nepalese visa in advance, so I had to go to the Visa On Arrival line.  Despite the warnings about long waits, it wasn't too bad, it took just under 20 minutes.  Something that nobody mentions is that in addition to the $40 fee, you need a passport picture to get the visa (fortunately I brought several passport pictures as I knew they were required for the trekking permit).  At the airport, a van from the hotel was waiting for me and after a longish wait for three other passengers that were in the same flight, we headed into Kathmandu.  My first impression wasn't that great.  Kathmandu is an extremely polluted, dirty, and noisy city.  Motorcycles and cars sound their horn all the time and the lack of sidewalks mean that you are surrounded by a pandemonium of people, bikes, motorcycles, cars, cows, and dogs.  Lonely planet warns about a sensory overload when arriving at Kathmandu, they were not kidding. 

After checking in at the Kathmandu Guest House (a historical lodge with a lot of character), I headed out for a walking tour.  I stopped at the Kaiser Library which is an old building with historical paintings and photographs from the 19th century and early 20th century.  The place is a fascinating portrait of Nepal under the colonial influence of Great Britain.  From there, I was walking to one of the temples, when  I was "approached" by a buddhist scholar that wanted to show me his temple.  I tried to get rid of him, but he stuck to me as I was walking to Thahiti Tole (which turned to be his temple).  He started explaining things to me and he turned to be a pretty competent guide, so I hired him for the rest of the day (he asked initially $80, we ended agreeing on $20). 

With my guide, I visited Bouddhanath, the largest stupa in Nepal.  The place is remarkable as a tiny entrance opens into a huge courtyard with the stupa in the middle.  A stupa is a large dome, topped by a representation of Nirvana with the eyes of Buddha painted on it.

Then, we went to Panchadeval, a Hindu temple to Lord Shiva.  This is a very strange place.  There was a cremation going on by the river while monkeys were frolicking in the water.  In a different area, Holy men were sitting around and they were very willing to start a conversation with anybody who cares to listen.  There is also a fertility temple with very explicit wood carvings and hundreds of Linga where people wishing for fertility make offerings of rice and milk.

We finished the day by going to Kopan Monastery, famous because it was founded by the Dalai Lama and for being the home of more than 10,000 Buddha. The monastery is a working place of meditation and study full of monks on colorful robes.  The monastery overlooks Kathmandu and it would have been a very nice view if it were not for the thick layer of pollution covering the city.

We then headed back to my hotel where I was surprised by the taxi driver turning off the meter and starting to re-negotiate the cost of the ride due to the fuel shortage in the city (they were actually hundreds of cars lined up waiting to fill gas in every gas station we passed).  To my surprise, he started at $60.  I ended paying about $30 which according to the hotel desk is about $5 more than it should have been, so I didn't do too badly (I'm a horrible negotiator). 

Overall a pretty nice day and a great introduction to Kathmandu and its very rich heritage.