Nepal 100 Day 4

August 1, 2016

I had a rough night. My throat was so sore, my eyes burning, a terrible headache. The pollution continues to take its toll on me. I even dreamed that I went to a pharmacy and couldn't buy Tylenol or ibuprofen. It wasn't legal. I have been to counties like that but then I've been to a country where you could be cough syrup with codeine in it.

Up and about, after sleeping in as much as I could, I got up at 7am. I went to the shared bathroom down the hall and showered to realize that I didn't have my towel. Soaking wet I looked carefully and then ran quickly to my room naked lol.

I only had some zicam but have started taking it to do,,,something.

It was cloudy but the sun brightened the clouds so, there was hope for the day. Breakfast consisted of the daily omelet, toast with butter and jam. And some yogurt with fruit and bee pollen. Interesting. The dog, Lola, would not leave me alone and even started barking at me and jumping up. I scolded her but she really didn't seem to care and gave me ...a look.

Debendra showed up soon and I told him of how I was feeling. He suggested some ginger tea. I talked with two young girls traveling across Nepal. one was from Tenerife, like Lucie, and the other, Valencia. They both study at university in Segovia. We talked about the conditions in Nepal and their experience as I wanted to know it it was just me. We talked about travel and different places that we enjoy, They were surprised that I had to so many places in Spain.

Debendra introduced a guy to me that had brought some Tylenol and allergy medication. That was so nice. He wouldn't accept payment and told me to use what I need and leave the rest. I thanked him.

The guide was here and ready - off we went.

I'm not going to go on and on about it but let's just say that the pollution getting out of town almost did me in. The traffic was horrific and the exhaust pouring out of all of those tailpipes with no filtration was overpowering. Again, I tried to hold my breath as much as possible.

So, about 45 minutes of that and we were out of the city. Another hour east and we reached the amazing city of Bhaktapur (1500 rupees).

It is known as Khwopa in local Newari tongue. It is the cultural capital of Nepal. It's history goes back to the early 8th century and was the capital of Nepal from the 12th century to the 15th century. It was surrounded by a wall with a number of city gates until the early 18th century. The city shelters almost 100,000 residents many of whom are handicraft producers with specialty is wood carving and pottery. A majority of the inhabitants are Hindu or Buddhists and they unite art he cultural festivals of each other with equal enthusiasm.

A blend of northern art and southern mythological philosophy,,the aged arts, architecture, and culture is the heritage of Bhaktapur. The Pagoda and Shikar style temples, Bahis and Vihara ( traditional Buddhist monasteries),'Lomba Hiti (stone spouts) ponds, pati, math and Satti (public shelters), stupas, city gates, terra cotta temples and so much more. These are major monuments of the ancient city. Bhaktapur Durbar Square is listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site...as one would expect.

Some highlights are the golden gate, the statue of King Bhupatindra perching atop a stone pillar. The palace of 55 Windows, rue Varsala and the big bell. My favorite was the Sidhi Laxxi stone temple from the 17th century.

Taumadhi Square is where the best examples of engineering of multi-roofed temples and rectangular temples can be observed.

Give a little more history XXX

The mix of architecture was interesting as the hard shapes and the soft shapes allow each other to stand out equally.

The museum at Durbar Square (150 rupees and 100 more for camera usage) has a great mix of sculpture and painted works spanning 6 centuries

We walked the trading streets, local made souvenirs but mostly goods of day to day life. We reached a very, very long line

Next, up,the winding road, I mean dirt path, to Nagarkot. The drive was on a steep and winding path of just over one car wide...in some places. Many area the road is partially or completely washed away leaving only dirt. Many times we had to stop and beep for a cow to move, goats resting in the path, or chickens running like crazy birds.

Nagarkot is considered one of the most scenic spots in Bhaktapur District. It is known for a sunrise view of the Himalayas including Mount Everest as well as other peaks of the Himalayan range of eastern Nepal. Nagarkot also offers a panoramic view of the Kathmandu Valley. The scenic beauty of the place makes it a very popular hiking route for tourists.It is located approximately 7000 ft (2000 m) above sea level.

Nagarkot commands one of the broadest views of the Himalayas in the Kathmandu valley (8 Himalayan ranges of Nepal out of 13 from here). The ranges include Annapurna range, Manaslu range, Ganesh himal range, Langtang range, Jugal range, Rolwaling range, Mahalangur range (Everest range) and Numbur range with views of the Kathmandu valley and Shivapuri National Park.

Situated in a strategic location, Nagarkot was an ancient fort of the Kathmandu valley built to monitor the external activities of other kingdoms. Later, it became a summer retreat for the royal family before becoming popular as an international hill station.

It was a partly cloudy day to we had good views of some of the ranges but it was hard to tell with the higher peaks as the clouds camouflaged some.mi was looking very hard and you could make out so,e but it was difficult.

There is a tower to climb.( ladder is straight up) for a but better view above the tree line. After Uzbekistan, I've mastered difficult ladders that are straight up :-). I marveled at the panoramic views of the mountains and the valley - here I was with a view of the Himalayas. Wow!

There were black clouds coming in from the south and I could hear thunder. It was time to go.

The guide asked me if I wanted to go to Changu Temple. I asked for more information. He said that it was more of the same but different dynasty. I declined and we started the descent.

Thirty minutes later we paid a vehicle entrance fee to...Changu? We stopped and got out. I episode just go with the flow.

I paid a 300 rupee fee for the entrance and then we climbed the slippery stone path through the ancient bazaar / trading area turned local shops and handicraft stores. It was all local as I saw blocks of wood turned into masks and carvings.

Upon entering the passage through the gate, I knew this was special. The detail I could see even before walking into the courtyard was breathtaking.

Changu Narayan is considered to be the oldest temple of Nepal. It remains a milestone in Nepali temple architecture with rich embossed works. The two-storey roofed temple stands on a high plinth of stone. According to Professor Madhan Rimal, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Tribhuwan University, the temple is neither in Shikhara Style nor the Pagoda style. It has an architectural style which he would like to describe as a traditional Nepali temple. Many similar features are found at Gokarna Mahadev. The temple is surrounded by sculptures and arts related to Lord Vishnu.

Also we can find the temples of lord Shiva, Ashta Matrika, Chhinnamasta, Kileshwor and Krishna inside the courtyard of main temple. There are four entrances to the temple and these gates are guarded by life size pairs of animals such as lions, sarabhas, graffins and elephants on each side of the entrances. The ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu and the other idols are carved in the struts, which support the roof. The entrance door is gilded with carvings of Nagas (snakes). On the main entrance gate (i.e. western entrance gate), we can find the Chakra, Sankha, Kamal and Khadga all at the top of a stone pillar. These stone pillars has inscription in Sanskrit. This inscription is considered to be the oldest inscription of Nepal and the stone inscription pillar was erected by Lichhavi King Manadeva in 464 AD. The following monument are located while visiting the temple from the right side after entering from the main entrance (Eastern gate) to courtyard.

These are the great monuments / temples / statues of Changu -

Historical pillar erected by Mandeva in 464 AD

Garuda:- flying vehicle of Lord Vishnu which has got a human face and is a devotee of Vishnu.

Statue of Bhupalendra Malla, King of Kantipur and his queen BhuwanLakshmi.

Chanda Narayan (Garuda Narayan):- 7th century stone sculpture of Vishnu riding on Garuda. This sculpture has been depicted in the 10 rupee paper note issued by Nepal Rastra Bank

Sridhar Vishnu:- 9th century stone sculpture of Vishnu, Laxmi and Garuda which stands on the pedestals of various motifs.

Vaikuntha Vishnu :- 16th century sculpture of Vishnu seated on the lalitason position on the six armed Garuda and Laxmi seated on the lap of Vishnu

Chhinnamasta:- Temple dedicated to Chhinnamasta devi, who beheaded herself, offered her own blood to feed the hungry Dakini and Varnini.

Vishworup:- 7th century stone sculpture- beautifully carved that depicts the scene from the Bhagwat Gita, in which Lord Krishna manifests his universal form to his devotee Arjun.

Vishnu Vikrant :- 7th century sculpture of Trivikram Vishnu that depicts the scene of popular Hindu myth of Lord Vishnu and his beloved Bali Raja.

Narasimha :- 7th century sculpture of Narasimha, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu, killing the demon King Hiranyakasyapa to save his beloved devotee Prahalad.

Kileshwor:- small two storied temples of Lord Shiva, who is believed to have appeared in this place for the protection of the hill.

The main image in the sanctum is worshipped by Hindus as a Garuda Narayan, and by Buddhists as a Hariharihari Vahan Lokeshwara. Only the priest is allowed to see the image.

What an incredible place, one thing that really stands out is that you can still make out color of many of the temples and that's crazy given the age. It's very well preserved. The significance here is staggering, I'm so glad that there was a miscommunication.

It started to sprinkle and as we walked to the gate, it got harder. By the time we reached the stone path to descend, it was full on raining. I had my super umbrella, of course.

I had to take a quick toilet break and wished I had just used a tree as there was no light and the smell made me long for the pollution. Ugh!

I hoped that the rain would lessen the poison I was breathing and it did to a small extent. The trip back was shorter as I had hoped. The rained has lessened something - people, motorcycles, anything. I think it had as partly due to the standing water in areas making it difficult to pass.

Back at the B&B I had a wonderful salad of veg and fruits with a side of rice and carrot cake for dessert.

I'm beat, not feeling good and laying down was the order of the evening.

A great day was had and worth the pain and suffering that my respiratory system took