Friday, July 31, 2009
Pashupatinath, Kathmandu
The pyre was already laid and a man was busy soaking bundles of straw in the Bagmati River--the wet straw will help contain the fire and heat the pyre. I noticed a group of people walking down the stairs to the left, among them, supported by the sons, was the father, shrowded in orange robes, his face showing placcidly from beneath. They ascend the small platform and circle the pyre thrice--on the final round, the widow sobbing for for one last touch, supports her husband's feet clumsily, sweetly. Finally, the deceased is gently rested on the pyre. Many eyes are wiped. The sons strip to bare chests and wash briefly in the river, purifying themselves, and surround their father. The eldest has the fire, and leaning down together he lights the flame in his father's mouth. They stand a moment and begin carefully laying damp straw over the still body from head to the feet until he is fully covered, and just a thin whisp of ochre smoke rose from the head. The pyre is then set from beneath and slowly is enveloped in thick pungent smoke. It burns for some hours until nothing is left but ash, which is swept into the Bagmati unceremoniously and the platform is washed with river water for the next use.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
More Health Problems! (Ciprofloxacin)
So, staying in Ghorka, I not only drank some bad water ("Is this water boiled," I asked. "No. It's purified. No problem!" I was told.), but also chipped a tooth on a bone shard in a momo full of secret buffalo meat. Surprise!
For the tooth, I went back to the DentInn, in Kathmandu (http://www.dent-inn.com/). They recommended removing an old filling and re-filling the whole thing for overall strength of the tooth. I thought this sounded reasonable, but was quite a procedure: anaesthetic injection, drilling, and filling. My mouth was full of tools for what I thought would be a simple solution, and the dental assistant was rather absent minded, looking away from time to time, allowing the vacuum suction to slip around my mouth and throat. It seems to have been a well done procedure, though the overall professionalism and careful practice was slightly lacking.
Then I went to a doctor (www.ciwec-clinic.com -- near the English and Indian Embassies) to deal with a diarrhea problem--turned out to be bacteria not cholera or dysentery, thank goodness. Though if I thought the poo problem was bad, the cure was much worse. I was offered Ciprofloxacin, an anti-biotic, to take twice daily for three days. At first, it was not bad, but by the third day I was experiencing a gamut of side-effects:
I've had a rash over large parts of my body, dizziness, *severe headache, sleeplessness, frequent urination, dehydration, muscle aches all over, some stomach ache, eye pain, confusion, fever and lethargy.
Last night all of these ganged up on me and I had a really long night, and many of these effects are persisting into the day, though I have finished the meds this morning. I hope to be well again tomorrow...
If you plan to take this medication, think carefully and make sure you have somewhere comfortable where you can rest, because if my experience is an indication, you will become very uncomfortable.
Here are some websites to read:
http://www.askapatient.com/viewrating.asp?drug=19537&name=CIPRO&page=1
http://www.westonaprice.org/healthissues/cipro.html
Kathmandu is such an innapropriate place to recover from illness. Car horns, touts, pollution, a garbage crisis in the streets, dogs, noise, heat... Maybe sometime I'll come here feeling really well and have a great time. Though I was in Bhodnath yesterday; that seems like a place to stay for a few days. Pictures soon.
For the tooth, I went back to the DentInn, in Kathmandu (http://www.dent-inn.com/). They recommended removing an old filling and re-filling the whole thing for overall strength of the tooth. I thought this sounded reasonable, but was quite a procedure: anaesthetic injection, drilling, and filling. My mouth was full of tools for what I thought would be a simple solution, and the dental assistant was rather absent minded, looking away from time to time, allowing the vacuum suction to slip around my mouth and throat. It seems to have been a well done procedure, though the overall professionalism and careful practice was slightly lacking.
Then I went to a doctor (www.ciwec-clinic.com -- near the English and Indian Embassies) to deal with a diarrhea problem--turned out to be bacteria not cholera or dysentery, thank goodness. Though if I thought the poo problem was bad, the cure was much worse. I was offered Ciprofloxacin, an anti-biotic, to take twice daily for three days. At first, it was not bad, but by the third day I was experiencing a gamut of side-effects:
I've had a rash over large parts of my body, dizziness, *severe headache, sleeplessness, frequent urination, dehydration, muscle aches all over, some stomach ache, eye pain, confusion, fever and lethargy.
Last night all of these ganged up on me and I had a really long night, and many of these effects are persisting into the day, though I have finished the meds this morning. I hope to be well again tomorrow...
If you plan to take this medication, think carefully and make sure you have somewhere comfortable where you can rest, because if my experience is an indication, you will become very uncomfortable.
Here are some websites to read:
http://www.askapatient.com/viewrating.asp?drug=19537&name=CIPRO&page=1
http://www.westonaprice.org/healthissues/cipro.html
Kathmandu is such an innapropriate place to recover from illness. Car horns, touts, pollution, a garbage crisis in the streets, dogs, noise, heat... Maybe sometime I'll come here feeling really well and have a great time. Though I was in Bhodnath yesterday; that seems like a place to stay for a few days. Pictures soon.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
[update] Heavenly Path; Lovism
Anyone know the meaning of these? I can guess, but who makes them? This circular symbol, and 'lovism' and the 'heavenly path', all appear everywhere around Nepal.
Last night, in Dhulikhel at the Nawaranga Guest house, Purna explained that Heavenly Path is kind of a sect of Buddhism called "Monokranti", led by Swami Picasa Anunda; he says they have some extreme purification acts, lke long-term fasting and isolation and hot-coal walking.
Here's a website that might shed some insight, though I can't navigate past the home page.
http://www.heavenlypath.info/
Solar Eclipse: July 22, 2009
The Solar Eclipse of July 22, 2009 5:45-7:46AM as seen from Tainimai, Bandipur.
Standing on the hill in the pale dawn, we were diappointed by clouds. But in the distance, far to the North East the peak of Dhaulagiri shone clearly; the sun was rising. The rays extended skyward as gaps in the cloud cover, opened by nearby mountains, allowed a shimmering glimpse and shortly the landscape was visible. But the light was soft and indistinct, the light of an overcast day. By 5:30 the sun was up and the rays beamed earthward through the golden disc was reduced to a misty glow. In a short fifteen minutes the land began to dim; the moon had begun to block the sun. In 45 minutes it was again almost dark and at 6:42AM the sun was nearly gone, and through the now thinning cloud cover I could make out a sliver of sun, round and glowing, two unattached points straining to complete the ring from behind the dark moon. Within minutes the light once again emerged, slowly a large arc, then a half, then the full circle and daylight appeared again and with it blue skies. The eclipsed sun re-emerged. No cataclysm that I was witness to, just an extraordinary cosmic display.
Standing on the hill in the pale dawn, we were diappointed by clouds. But in the distance, far to the North East the peak of Dhaulagiri shone clearly; the sun was rising. The rays extended skyward as gaps in the cloud cover, opened by nearby mountains, allowed a shimmering glimpse and shortly the landscape was visible. But the light was soft and indistinct, the light of an overcast day. By 5:30 the sun was up and the rays beamed earthward through the golden disc was reduced to a misty glow. In a short fifteen minutes the land began to dim; the moon had begun to block the sun. In 45 minutes it was again almost dark and at 6:42AM the sun was nearly gone, and through the now thinning cloud cover I could make out a sliver of sun, round and glowing, two unattached points straining to complete the ring from behind the dark moon. Within minutes the light once again emerged, slowly a large arc, then a half, then the full circle and daylight appeared again and with it blue skies. The eclipsed sun re-emerged. No cataclysm that I was witness to, just an extraordinary cosmic display.
eeew...
A festival is going on down the street, celebrating the execution of a progressive 500years ago by burning him in effigy. People are banging drums and cymbals and offerings of rice are being made. The scene is interrupted however as two dogs begin copulating when a third barges in attacking the male dog, throwing him on his back. He doesn't however, detach from the female and he is dragged one way by the yelping female and attacked viciously from the other direction. Finally the trio agonizingly move down the street and the bustling energy of the people returns.
Actually, in this picture, the dogs are upright and the attacker is attempting to hump the female in the leg. Bad dog!
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Bandipur
The little town of Bandipur is a string of jewels along a ridge between Pokhara and Kathmandu. Like a living museum it exhibits the attractive style of Newari architecture and is also a bustling town seemingly populated more by children than adults, as it is also home to the long-standing Notre-Dame school where kids flock to for their education. I stayed only a couple days, but wish I could have hung around longer, just sitting on the side of the slate-cobbled road sipping chai and watching the activity.
Made this drawing from the troof top of a derelict building at the end of the main street in Bandipur. The sun was setting and it was beautiful. The building is kind of an example of Newari architecture which seems to use slate tiles for the roof, rough brick and stone walls, dark doors and wooden frames often ornately carved, and especially the wooden struts under the eaves, though not featured here except as support under the balcony. Bandipur is a living museum of these buildings and I gathered it is trying to stay that way, though I wonder what will become of it as more tourists discover this little gem in the hills.
On the first night there, a festival was held with a clamour of drums and cymbals and a straw effigy was burned and thrown from a cliff. Apparently it's been going on for 500 years since a man, some progressive type, so described, was executed for his ideas, or it's Ghanta Karna the enemy of Vishnu, I don't know. People weren't that interested, it seemed. But it was a spectacle.
Nearby is Siddha cave, said to be the largest cave in Nepal. I went with Sebasitan a Finnish fellow I met, but we found our flashlights to be all but inadequate for the 35 meter caverns inside, and also just a little scared off by the bats flittering past our ears. So we didn't make it far. But later I came across a cave guide, and though I've come to really avoid "guides", the opportunity to explore the cave in it's totality was intriguing. So he took me deep into the cave where it was darker than night and cool and smelled of ancient guano and minerals, where without a torch it might be impossible to find an exit, and your voice comes back to you in echo rather than escape to the daylight.
Siddha Cave: 427M scrambling over rocks and through gorges into cavernous 30M ampitheaters, all under earth, creaking with bats and drip dripping drops through ancient cracks, eerie and infinitely remote, dark echoing, otherworldly underworld.
Made this drawing from the troof top of a derelict building at the end of the main street in Bandipur. The sun was setting and it was beautiful. The building is kind of an example of Newari architecture which seems to use slate tiles for the roof, rough brick and stone walls, dark doors and wooden frames often ornately carved, and especially the wooden struts under the eaves, though not featured here except as support under the balcony. Bandipur is a living museum of these buildings and I gathered it is trying to stay that way, though I wonder what will become of it as more tourists discover this little gem in the hills.
On the first night there, a festival was held with a clamour of drums and cymbals and a straw effigy was burned and thrown from a cliff. Apparently it's been going on for 500 years since a man, some progressive type, so described, was executed for his ideas, or it's Ghanta Karna the enemy of Vishnu, I don't know. People weren't that interested, it seemed. But it was a spectacle.
Nearby is Siddha cave, said to be the largest cave in Nepal. I went with Sebasitan a Finnish fellow I met, but we found our flashlights to be all but inadequate for the 35 meter caverns inside, and also just a little scared off by the bats flittering past our ears. So we didn't make it far. But later I came across a cave guide, and though I've come to really avoid "guides", the opportunity to explore the cave in it's totality was intriguing. So he took me deep into the cave where it was darker than night and cool and smelled of ancient guano and minerals, where without a torch it might be impossible to find an exit, and your voice comes back to you in echo rather than escape to the daylight.
Siddha Cave: 427M scrambling over rocks and through gorges into cavernous 30M ampitheaters, all under earth, creaking with bats and drip dripping drops through ancient cracks, eerie and infinitely remote, dark echoing, otherworldly underworld.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Biking around Phewa Tal, Pokhara
The views from the edge of the lake can be stunning, even in the monsoon when the clouds obscure the mountains.
Sexy Struts
Under the rooftop of the Jagannarayan temple in Durbar Square in Patan, you'll find these super sexy scenes played out in high relief on the wooden struts. Of course, being a puritanical North American, I couldn't help but photograph them all and mostly ignore everything else there. Except the bird-man, Vishnu's God-vehicle, Garuda. He was outstanding as well.
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