Crazy Kathmandu

After two weeks of trekking we were back to the crowded, chaotic, polluted streets of Kathmandu...a far cry from the relaxed, quiet mountain villages we enjoyed so much on our trek to Gokyo. It took a few days of relaxation at the local cafes before we were ready to explore the capital's cultural heritage...

Our first stop was Swayambhunath, a Buddhist temple located on the top of a hill overlooking the city. It's one of the most famous stupas in Nepal, and is also known as the "Monkey Temple" for the large population of monkeys that love to play around the temples. After a long climb up the stairs, we commented how we hadn't seen a single monkey. A few seconds later a pack of monkeys were sliding down the railings and jumping from tree to tree. All of a sudden the largest monkey was running straight at us. He ran past Dustin and headed right at me. He reached for the half full Fanta I was carrying. I resisted at first but the monkey literally jumped up and ripped the bottle out of my hands. He promptly sat down, unscrewed the cap with his hands, and proceeded to chug every drop in the bottle. Here's a picture to prove it:

We also took a day trip to the Bhaktapur Durbar Square, which is traffic free and retains the old-world Nepalese charm. Temples, courtyards, and shrines, all built between the 8th and 12th centuries, are connected via cobblestone streets. Walking through Bhaktapur was enjoyable and we were able to see the centuries old traditions of wheat thrashing, potters, weavers, and wood carvers. (Not a show put on for the tourists, this was how they actually lived.)

Also, we wanted to provide a quick update on our health. Before our arrival in Nepal, many people we talked to who had been there recommended we become vegetarians while in the country. Seeing the open air butcher shops with no refrigeration, the slabs of meat being carried by porters in woven baskets for days to the villages, and the fact that electricity is unreliable, if available at all, we figured this was great advice.....we lasted for 8 days before we broke down. It all started with Dustin ordering a yak burger in Gokyo (located at over 15,000ft & probably a good 3 day walk from the nearest refrigerator). After that our vegetarian diet was thrown out the window - yak steak, water buffalo momos (dumplings), chicken, wild boar, and mutton became our staples. There were only a few times our stomachs weren't too happy with us, but we never really got sick (knock on wood).

Typical butcher shop:

We just flew from Kathmandu to Singapore yesterday. Tonight we catch our flight to Bali, but until then we're savoring all of the fabulous dishes Singapore has to offer.