Bhaktapur Trip

The Himalaya!!

My second week in Banepa Sam, new volunteer Maggie, and I met up with a couple of other Papa’s House volunteers Tomomi (from Japan) and Patti (from Canada) in a town called Bhaktapur. Bhaktapur is about halfway between Banepa and Kathmandu, and was one of the three kingdoms (Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, and Patan) united back in the day to form the kingdom of Nepal. Bhaktapur is especially famous for its Durbar Square. The squares in the city were quite amazing with some really old temples--including the tallest one I’ve seen (five stories high!)--some really cool sculpture (a little erotic art thrown in there), and lots of pools for ritual washing. The art was beautiful and the city is seriously stuck in the middle ages--the ticket price helps fund conservation for the entire old part of the city, so most homes are very old looking. We also did a lot of shopping, which is probably lucky for you if you’re reading this blog.A view up the tallest temple in Bhaktapur

After a day in Bhaktapur, we grabbed a bus up to Nagarkot, well known for it’s views of the Himalayas. The hotel where we stayed, Hotel At The End of the Universe, was unfortunately true to its name, or at least the kitchen was a universe away from the restaurant; both supper and breakfast the next morning took two hours. Eek. Our sleeping quarters, however, were awesome--the five of us shared a cabin (with THE biggest bed I’ve ever seen) for about $5 each. We got up early to watch a sunrise over the mountains obscured by clouds, but by the time we left Nagarkot for a lunch in Bhaktapur on our way home to Banepa, the skies had cleared and I got some great views of some giant mountains. Ah, to be so close to the Himalaya--they are truly beautiful, especially when I can see them, as I discovered just the other day, on my way home from the hospital.Our little cabin, complete with garden.