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I got up at 5:00 am (again!) in order to get some breakfast and be at the airport
for the Himalaya flight. This time the weather behaved perfectly, and the
views were beautiful. As you see, we all even got to spend some time in the
cockpit. I commented to the co-pilot that they had a great job, and that it
must be nide to have such amazing scenery. "Only the first couple of times,"
she replied!
Afterwards we went to the Pashupatinath temple, where the deceased are cremated on funeral pyres, and the ashes thrown into the sacred river. It was an amazing place, though tinged with sadness due to the number of people I saw getting ready for their "final journey." Despite being the shutterbug that I am, I couldn't bring myself to take any pictures (or video with sound) of the grieving families. Suffice it to say, it was pretty moving, being a in a few simultaneous funerals (I guess "in" isn't really the right word, because I wasn't involved, but it rather felt like it). We continued on to the Boudha Stupa, a colossal (and spectacular) temple complex. The colors, the sights, the sounds- It was great. Hita and I had a terrific lunch at one of the rooftop restaurants. After lunch there was a little time left before I had to go to the airport and back to Delhi, so Hita took me to the Kopan Monastery. Serene and beautiful on top of a mountain at the edge of the Kathmandu Valley, it had spectacular views of the civilization below. |
 Himalayas |
 Mount Everest |
 Himalayas |
 Himalayas |
 Himalayas |
 Himalayas |
 View from cockpit |
 Purple mountains majesty? |
 Houses on terraced hills |
 Less dense housing |
 Less dense housing |
 Houses on terraced hills |
 Houses on terraced hills |
 We didn't linger. |
Pashupatinath temple
 Pyre platforms |
 Getting ready for funerals |
 Flowers and prayer beads |
 Crowd gathers for the cremation |
 Lines up temples |
 Older temples |
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 Nice view from above |
 Holy man |
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 Monkeys everywhere |
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 View of funeral from across river |
 Buildings in rocks |
 Looks calm, but will defend itself |
 Holy man dons paint |
 Another departed ready to go |
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 Crumbling buildings |
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 New, or just painted? |
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 The sick must beg |
 No words |
 Flowers and prayer beads |
 Flowers and prayer beads |
 Flowers and prayer beads |
 Non-human citizens |
 Small square |
 Hindu only temple |
 Boating on the polluted river |
 Paint and souveniers |
 Road to Boudha Stupa |
 Safety isn't first |
 Road to Boudha Stupa |
 Grains for sale |
Boudha Stupa temple
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 Colossal Stupa |
 Square around the stupa |
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 Eyes of Buddha and steps to nirvana |
 Paint mixed here for stupa maintenance |
 Incense burning |
 The square from the dome |
 The clear-seeing eyss of Buddha |
 Prayer areas |
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 Prayer flags |
 Prayer flags |
 Meditating nun |
 Monastery |
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 Double Thunderball |
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 Colossal prayer wheel |
 Inside temple |
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 Bright painting |
 Bright painting |
 Detailed bell |
 My kind of graffiti |
 Painting school |
 Painting school |
 Common theme |
 Rooftop view |
 Rooftop view |
 Rooftop view |
Kopan Monastery
 Kopan Monastery |
 Good idea |
 A good question! |
 Suburban growth |
 Pretty (though smoggy) view |
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 Beautiful garden |
 New monastery going up |
 Leaving monastery |