Kathmandu

Where do you start to explain what Kathmandu is like?! – errrmmmm firstly it wasn’t as manic as I was expecting but that is not to say that it isn’t manic….in fact compared to China it is utter chaos! Small streets are over crowded with people, cars, rickshaws, motorbikes and cows! As you’d expect it is pretty dirty – rubbish, dust, pollution etc follows you every step you take. You get hassled by people to buy anything, this ranges from Tiger balm and chess sets to big knives and drugs….if you stand still for more than 30 seconds they gravitate towards you with their goods and it takes a pretty harsh and forthright ‘No thanks’ to get rid of them – or just as they are about to tell you what delights they have on offer beat them to it by just saying random things, ‘banana’s, washing powder, chewing gum’ this just confuses them and they leave you alone! But aside from all this Kathmandu is actually quite good fun, for a few days at least. It has some beautiful stupas to visit, just wandering the streets and watching people going about their business is fascinating, Durbar square is full of old buildings and temples, there are little ancient looking temples and prayer points scattered all over town most of which are now being used as market place or for people to sleep on, Pashupatinath with it’s Hindu temples and holy river where you can see the gruesome spectical of an open cremation by the banks of the river, and more – and once you’ve done all that just escape the chaotic streets and sit in a roof top terraced bar and watch the world go by below you. You also have a few different types of traveller here, clear to all are the trekkers – decked out in super wicking, light weight trekking gear from home checking out all the fake gear shops where you can buy imitation stuff for a 10th of the price! Then you have the wannabe spirital ones who come to India or Nepal and buy up ethnic clothing like its going out of fashion and saunter around town with their beads and bindi like its 1960, plus you then have the actual spiritual ones that came in the 60’s and never quite left (plus look like they can’t pass a drug seller by with other doing a deal!). Then there’s everyone else just doing the tourist/traveller thing taking it all in then getting out again a few days later when it all becomes a bit too much. One last thing on Kathmandu before I go, Holy Men, you’ve seen the pictures – dressed in robes, long beards, dreads down to the floor, painted faces etc – scam or real?!? Now without being too cynical, devoting oneself to god is one thing but where does then stopping tourists asking for money to take their picture come into it – it’s just like the punks standing on Camden lock bridge having their picture taken with tourists for money! Does this make a punk more honest than a Holy Man? But they do look interesting characters and their pictures are cool, I’m just not paying so I’ll stick to sly pointing of the camera whilst walking past and a well timed cough to hide the shutter noise – problem is I generally just get the floor or half a holy man’s head!