Kathmandu Kaleidoscope

It's five in the morning and we've just arrived in Kathmandu. The rain is pouring as we make our way to Patan where a Nepali family is putting us up for a week. I am with Karl, friend, photographer and anything but my guide (he can't tell between north and south). After the greetings, our hosts point out two things - that Indian rupees can be used in Nepal (the exchange rate being Rs 1.60 to one Indian rupee) and that tact must be employed in dealing with Nepalis since they do not take kindly to Indians who act the big brother.

Our hosts then feed us breakfast, and after a quick shower, we are whisked off in a cab to Thamel (pronounced Thomel by the locals). Our visit is the first of many for the next few days as the area is the focal point of all action. Thamel is all about restaurants, bars, shopping areas, food-joints, cheaper hotels and many non-Asian tourists. We get to the top of a four-storied restaurant and have lunch while soaking in the view of the surrounding mountains. A cloud cover spreads darkening the sky and suddenly it begins raining again forcing us to shift inside.

Palace of the royal family of Nepal

Kathmandu is located in a valley with Patan to its south and the ancient city of Bhaktapur to the north. The three cities, even if put together, are not too big. The distance between the farthest points can be bridged in about half-an-hour by taxi. Various checkpoints emerge in the night, where the Royal Nepal Army do their job with military efficiency asking the minimum of questions before letting you pass. The next few days are like a whirl, with little time for anything except visiting all the major spots of Kathmandu. The nights are dedicated to the hotspots at Thamel.

We leg it the next day after a heavy breakfast through the city of Patan visiting the numerous temples and Buddhist monasteries until we come upon Patan Square with its many monuments, temples and its grand palace. There is a statue there with a stone bird perched on its head. This is Narasimha Malla, king of Patan, who as per legend, disappeared after one of his subjects watched the king play with Lord Krishna. Locals believe the king is alive and the day the bird flies, they will know that Narasimha Malla has finally died. The Patan Museum, another attraction of the square, is run by the governments of Nepal and Austria. Rated as one of the best museums in the Indian sub-continent, it is housed in a part of Patan Palace, and has sections dedicated to religious texts, the king's articles and miscellaneous artefacts.

Two hours later, we decide to move out to see the kumari (a woman chosen every year for each city and designated a living goddess) at her residence, but an old man, who claims to be the caretaker of the king's palace, accosts us offering a glimpse of some secret places of the palace; for a price, that is. A little while later we find ourselves in the room of King Narasimha Malla. "In the winters, he slept without a blanket on the cold stone slab and in summers, he slept with a dozen blankets and a fire burning around his bed. This area is opened only once a year for the royal family and visiting dignitaries. Now you're seeing it," says the old man. We wonder how often he gives the same pitch in one day but we like the idea of being in the king's bedroom and the promised money changes hands.

We miss the kumari (she has timings for visitors) but see the bare shack where she lives. The evening is now pleasant, with the rains having ceased for some hours and we celebrate dry weather by going to Thamel and sit at a rooftop restaurant listening to a live band. Then the rains come and we shift indoors. A few beers later we pub-hop the hangouts in Thamel. A lot of beers and a few thousand Nepali rupees later, we head home with lighter wallets and heavy heads.

The next morning is the same - a heavy breakfast and a taxi waiting outside for us. We go to Hanuman Dhoka to see another museum, another palace, a lot of temples and a momo lunch. The evening is our first visit to a casino at Hotel Annapoorna. In Nepal, while gambling is off bounds for Nepalis, for tourists, especially Indians, it is encouraged. In fact, a phone call ensures that they pick you from wherever you are staying and drop you back later. At the casino, we shuffle between the slot machines and the roulette, pontoon and blackjack tables. It's our lucky day and we return richer by Rs 500 (in Indian currency, which is the only money Nepali casinos accept).

A brief trip to Nagarkot (32 kms from Kathmandu) to see Mount Everest disappoints due to the clouds. But what we lose in the view, we gain in interacting with local Nepalis and watching the filming of a Nepali movie.

We're nearing the end of our trip but it will not be complete without a visit to Pashupatinath and Bodhnath. We walk around the Pashupatinath temple complex and leave for Bodhnath by afternoon. The stupa is a place where people of every religion, probably even atheists, would do well to visit; not for the religious sentiment but to feel the positive energy that flows in the 40-metre area and the surroundings. Our visit is timed perfectly. Just as we enter, the prayer services begin. Monks dressed in red and ochre robes, sit in rows chanting. Women in traditional Tibetan robes and men in all kinds of hats walk around the base of the stupa, moving the Tibetan prayer wheels with the deftest of touches, as they ambulate clockwise around the structure. And as the sun sets, monks, vendors and seemingly the entire community gather in the alleyways around the great stupa. Young and old Buddhists, some dressed traditionally and some in jeans and T-shirts, come together to pay their respects to the Buddha.

We climb up the steps to the top of the stupa structure. At this point, we are just below the eye level of the Buddha. The entire valley is visible as the benign gaze of the Lord fans out in all directions. The wind picks up and it gets difficult walking on the top of the slightly curved structure of the stupa. According to Buddhism, a stupa traditionally represents the mind of the Buddha and has the power to convey the transmissions of his mind to those who gaze at it. Below, people sit sipping lemon tea and smiling at each other, their eyes almost disappearing as their smiles broaden. And this picture is like a painting on a canvas called Kathmandu.