Around Patan

As I mentioned in the previous post, my friend Pratibha took me around what I would consider "Downtown Patan," to explore and see some sights. Here are some more pictures! 

Roof of Golden Temple

Shrine/altar inside the Golden Temple

The picture doesn't do it justice, but trust me, the temple is aptly named.

Golden prayer wheels

RAWR!

Another temple on Durbar square, built in the Indian style

Pratibha and I with Durbar square in the background

One of Pratibha's friends joined us too. He was a very knowledgeable tour guide.

Shrine at Buddhist temple

Temple of 9,000 Buddhas. No, I didn't count them, but look at how many little Buddhas are carved into the wood. I believe there could be 9,000.

Not quite sure what this thing is, what it is called, or what it symbolizes. I've seen it around the Buddhist temples and when I asked my friends and others at the temple about it, nobody could explain it to me. It's rather pretty though.

Temple of 9,000 Buddhas. Under re-construction following the earthquake.

Remnant of the original top of the temple of 9,000 Buddhas.

After visiting temples we walked around the city for an hour and came upon this...structure. It's massive, and it leans precariously. It is a very tall spire atop a temple to a Hindu God of harvest. People worship this God for rainfall and for a good harvest. The entire thing is mobile too. You will see in the pictures below, it is on wheels, like a chariot, except it is pulled by men, not horses. It is brought into the center of the city and remains there for about 1 month, during which people pay tribute, offer sacrifices, and worship the God. Then it is removed and put back in storage until next year. The whole thing looks like it could topple over at any given moment. I asked Pratibha about this and she said that it is a bad omen if it falls over; that it would foretell a bad harvest. I would think if that's a concern you would build it a bit more solidly. Wouldn't you?

It is amazing to see such an ancient practice in today's world.

Patan Durbar Square

Patan is a remnant of one of the three reigning city-states of Nepal. It is south of Kathmandu, on the other side of the Bhagmati river. I actually live in Patan, and quite like it. It's not as crowded and noisy as Kathmandu.

My friend Pratibha, who also works for HSI, took the afternoon to show me Durbar Square and a few other sights around the city. I learned so much about the Hindu and Buddhist religions and about the history of the city. Once again, I was blown away by the craftsmanship and the age of these structures. Take a look -

 Lions at the entrance to one of the temples

Statue of the God worshiped at the temple. I don't know exactly which God, there are over 3 million gods in the Hindu religion. 

View of the palace

Another view of the palace

Stone carvings on the temple of scenes from Hindu scripture

Another temple with earthquake supports. Renovations are underway.

Temple entrance. Note the lions guarding the temple steps.

Houses around Durbar Square. They are just as old as the palace and are still standing, and some are still inhabited. 

Me on the temple steps

This was above the entrance to the palace courtyard

Temple within the palace walls

Carved stone pillar of Hindu gods

Do you remember when I wrote about the large phallus inside Pashupatinath temple? Well, apparently this is a smaller version of it. (Phallic...?)

King's throne

Much of the palace has been converted into a museum, allowing you to explore the ancient structure

View of temple from second floor of palace

Exploring!

Step well, they are everywhere. They fill up during Monsoon, but during the dry season they supply the city with water from the mountains.

View from the palace

View of the temple at the beginning of this post, but this time seen from the palace

Fancy door

Yes, that's real blood, goat blood. The day we toured the palace just happened to be one of the few days of the year that the inner temple is open and they were performing sacrifices. I didn't see the sacrifice, but I was able to poke my head into the temple and see religious practices performed.

Another shrine I think, and look, a dog. Shrines and dogs, they are EVERYWHERE!

The royal bathtub

Okay, so it is more of a sacred washing font. New babies were washed here, as well as members of the royal family before festivals and worshiping in temples. Seriously, the gold and the carvings on this thing were amazing.

Wood carving

More carvings, such intricacy that I have never seen anywhere else

Cooking with Cockroaches

I told you this post was coming. It is true, there are cockroaches here in Nepal. They happily reside in the kitchen where I am currently staying. AH! I know, it terrified me too. However, just like many other things, I told myself, "It's all part of the adventure." 

The critters and I have reached an understanding. They stay hidden during the day so I can peacefully eat my breakfast and lunch. Then, around 6pm, they are allowed to have free roam of the kitchen. I usually eat out for dinner, so we don't cross paths. We had a few rough days until we came to this compromise, they liked to crawl around the counter tops by my food and traverse the silverware drawer, but now we happily coexist. Anything is possible. 

You think I am kidding? I am dead serious. My tolerance for bugs and general uncleanliness and being uncomfortable, has all greatly increased. I've mentioned in other posts about the pollution and different concepts of "clean" between myself and Nepalis. Granted, some may say I border on "clean/neat freak," but I just really value a clean dishtowel and NOT seeing visible dirt on the water dispenser that I get my drinking water from everyday. Does that make me crazy? 

Let me prove my point further - Littering is not a crime, it is the norm. There is trash EVERYWHERE! There is no garbage disposal service. So when you garbage guys come by and pick up your trash this week, wave at them, give them a smile, leave cookies for them. If they weren't doing there job, the trash would fill the streets and the rivers in no time at all, like it has here. Then there is the decreased frequency of showering, see previous post. As another example, I went to Saleways (think of it like a MUCH smaller version of Safeway). I was looking for bleach or iodine, something to help sterilize my produce so I could eat more vegetables. I should mention that up until now, I have not had lettuce or apples, nothing without an outer skin. Which has severely limited my options to bananas, oranges, and...well that's about it. I did use my Wet Ones wipe to wipe down an apple last week before eating it, and I haven't gotten sick yet, so I think that worked. Anyway, I was craving something green, so I asked the clerks for bleach or iodine and they looked at me like I was crazy. "Bleach?" They had absolutely no idea what I was talking about. I tried to explain that I wanted something to clean my vegetables with and they still just looked at me like I had blinked a third eyelid. Mission aborted. Guess I'll have to wait another couple months before I get that salad. 

The Power of a Shower

What's the longest you have gone without a shower? You were probably camping, or "roughin' it" somewhere, right? In a regular week (at home, working everyday), how often do you shower? Everyday, or at least every other day? I usually shower everyday, and often twice a day. "Gee, Jess, kinda excessive don't ya think?" Have you seen my hair when I get up in the morning?!? Trust me, the only way to have any hope of taming the beast is to start with a shower. After working/studying all day, it's time to teach fitness classes. I come home dripping in sweat and hop into the shower again. On top of that, ask any one of my past roommates or my family and they will all roll their eyes when they tell you that I have never been known to take a short shower. I really like my "me" time in the shower, no distractions, no interruptions, it's nice and warm and clean. I LOVE my showers! Well, there's been a major paradigm shift living here in Nepal. 

As I mentioned in previous posts, there is both a water shortage and an electricity shortage. The water shortage means that the water you use, for everything - laundry, dishes, showers, toilets, drinking water - must be trucked in to you. Think about that for just a second. It gives new meaning to the tune from Barney "I never let the water run. No! I never let the water run." (I grew up watching Barney, and I can still sing a good handful of the tunes.) Just as an example, the toilet here has a tendency to leak. The water just overfills the tank and runs into the bowl and down the pipes. It isn't making a mess, but it is wasting water. So, you must turn the water on when you need to flush, and then you turn the water back off. Tedious? Not as tedious, or as expensive, as having to truck in that water. 

The electricity shortage has a domino effect and results in a lack of water because the pump from the tank to the shower/faucet has no power. There may be water in the tank, but that's exactly where it is staying until the power comes back on. 

Even before moving to Nepal, I knew about these things and I knew that showering twice a day, or even once every day, was not going to be an option for two reasons. One, there is a shortage and there will inevitably be a time when I literally cannot take a shower. Two, it would be irresponsible and wasteful to continue my habits. I have written about my showering adventures before, but something about my shower this week left such an impression that I felt the need to write about it. So let me tell you...

I have developed a new system where I only shower once or twice a week. In between these days I wash my hair once or twice. This last week though was a rough one. I went 6 days without a shower. Day 0 = shower. Day 1 = Just got my hair wet and scrunched it. Good to go. Day 2 = slow day around the office, no where to go, no one to impress (interpret that as, hair in a ponytail, no make up, t-shirt). No pressing need to take a shower. Day 3 = Wash my hair. Day 4 = no electricity, but I do manage to shave my legs in the evening when the power comes on. Day 5 = no power in the morning, and by the time it comes on and I am back at the house, I am wiped out, so I just go to bed. Day 6 = "Jess, this is getting gross." I know. I took a shower today. There was both electricity and water, even warm water, and I lathered up twice. It was a spiritual experience for me. I felt like I had been reborn, that I could take on the world, that I could do anything! 

Put yourself in my shoes (Dad-grab a towel because just reading this is going to make you sweat) and imagine what it would be like to go about your life for 6 days, but now there is no such thing as air conditioning, it is 83 degrees Fahrenheit everyday, and only gets down to maybe 71 degrees F at night, oh, and the humidity stays pretty consistently at 85%, and there is no ice or cold water. (WHY is drinking water always room temperature?!?) You sweat everyday. Not like, just finished my cross fit set sweat, but you are sticky. everyday. all the time. (Unfortunately I have not been able to exercise as much as I am used to, but that's because I know I will sweat even more here, AND I won't get to jump in the shower after. Jumping back in to teaching 5 fitness classes a week in the Fall is going to be ROUGH!) Now do you understand how finally having water, electricity, and time to shower was such a life-changing, mood-lifting, perspective-shifting experience for me?

I have compiled a list of 10 things that I have learned relating to this topic:
1. headbands = greatest invention EVER
2. ponytail when paired with a headband can make anybody presentable for a day...or three
3. Going a week without shaving your legs won't kill you, no matter how much it scares you
4. That feeling of super soft just-shaven bare legs is euphoric. Go ahead and rub your legs together, who knows when you will shave again.
5. Deodorant can only do so much
6. Putting on clean underwear can do a lot to lift your spirits when you can't shower
7. Humidity is a &!#@/ 
8. You lose a lot of hair everyday. With curly hair, it falls out, but not off. So when you shower, you always end up with a nice little hairball. When you don't shower for a long time, you will be convinced that you are going bald. Take a deep breath, it'll all be okay, you are not bald, but you will have to clean out the drain. 
9. You will never feel completely dry after toweling off if it is a humid day
10. As long as you buy something at the coffee shop, staying there for 4 hours because they have fans, is not rude.

Tune in tomorrow for "Cooking with cockroaches." No, I'm not kidding. 

Bhaktapur Durbar Square

Kathmandu, Patan, and Bhaktapur each have their own Durbar Square. "Durbar" means palace. These three cities were the medieval city-states that ruled Nepal. These squares are the royal palaces, gardens, and temples of those kings. Sadly, Bhaktapur Durbar square was severely damaged by the Gorkha earthquake. The damage was very evident, as next to each toppled structure there was a picture of it in its former glory. Most of these structures were originally built in the 14th-16th centuries. Walking around the square is like taking a trip back in time. 

 Steps leading up to what used to be a temple

Many of the pieces of the temple remain close by

The Golden Gate

Constructed 1696-1754

There are temples everywhere in the square

Broken pieces, still extraordinary

Naga Pokhari

17th century

Water tank used for the ritual immersion of the idol Taleju. It is encircled by a stone cobra and more serpents rise up in the middle of the tank.

View from the other side

Taleju Bell

Erected in 1737 to mark morning and evening prayers at the Taleju Temple

King Bhupatindra Malla's Column

Created in 1699, it is now the only surviving royal pillar in the valley

Not sure which temple this is, but you can still admire the incredible metal and wood work.

Siddhi Lakshmi Temple

17th century

Some earthquake damage, hence the support beams, but still standing

Stone lions with the Siddhi Lakshmi Temple in the background

I am fairly certain this is the Pashupatinath Temple

Originally built in 1475, it is the oldest temple in the square

The super steep stairs remain, although most of the structures at the top have been destroyed. In the picture below is the shrine to Shiva that is at the top of these stairs.

View from the top of the steps looking down. They were super steep and shallow steps, kinda scary.

Stone lions viewed from the top of the steps. They have curly hair!

This is a view of some other buildings in the square from the top of Pashupatinath temple. Look to the right of the picture and you will see that the earthquake has completely destroyed part of the building. Even though this is my first time to this square, and it's not my nation's history, one can't help but feel sad when you look at this amazing structures that have been damaged so terribly by the earthquake. I talked with some friends and they said that they do not like to go to Durbar square anymore because they remember it as it was before the earthquake and seeing it now is just too depressing. Although it's not as impressive as it used to be, there are still many structures that have survived and it is definitely worth the trip.