This is a country that is currently in a state of transition. I do not know much about the political situation in other parts of Nepal but I do know that in Kathmandu Valley, the people always manage to strike a peaceful balance between the political instability of their nation, the rise and fall of tourists, hikers, hippies and workers, the somewhat harsh temperatures (I dare not make any other reference to temperature when dealing with Canadian readers{you know who you are}, and as a naturalised Canadian, I still cant get used to sub-zero temperatures, no matter where it is), and the 8 hour a day imposed power cuts. The locals are friendly and certainly not as imposing as those of a city such as Calcutta. Marco and I were staying in the northern area of the Kathmandu Valley in a place called Thamel. The locally made goods for sale brought out the inner consumer in me (surpressed, having lived in Canada for so long), for the clothes, niknaks, jewllery, hand made hats, gloves, scarves, wood carvings, masks, flags, laughing/smoking/sleeping/happy buddhas, prayer bells, delicious, freshly baked foods, oh I could go on forever. To say the least, I indugled. Had Marco not been there, I dont know if I couldve made it back to Calcutta in one piece. Speaking of Marco and shopping, what a wonderful experience, a match made in the heavenly Valley. Could I have asked for a better companion? I doubt it. His bargaining abilities surpass anyone I have ever met, with the exception maybe, of my parents. For example, we had our eyes on a smoking Buddha. One where a hollow, teak carved Buddha sits on a plate. Inside (or under) the Buddha incense is lit and placed, the smoke rises and escapes through the mouth of the 'Smoking Buddha.' Now, orginally, the young man who really had no idea what he was about to get himself into, quoted us a price of 1600 Nepali Ruppees (currency different from Indian Ruppees). This was followed by "Oh noooo, too much, too expensive, sorry." Then the standard, "you give me best price, this good quality product." This is when the fun begins, (I have learnt now not to enter into the battle field, cause I'm a bit of a softie, and cause Marco is just too good), and Marco the great conqueror of the Thamel market quotes "200 Nepali Ruppees!" Silence follows, then: "Nooooo, this no good. Not possible, this good quality product, you find no where else. Good quality. 200 Rupees, too little." Which is fair. So we bring them down a little, we go up a little, we taunt them with offering a final price, they reject it, we start to say "No thank you," and start to walk away. This usually is the last tactic, and the most effective, which this time of course worked. Long story short, we joked, we played, we spoke with neither prejudice nor in a taunting manner with the (I cant call him a shop keeper since he didnt actually have a shop to speak of) man-boy, and left with the Smoking Buddha, and another piece for 900 Nepali Ruppees. This same method was deployed wherever we went. We discussed what we wanted, and I let Marco do the rest. The whole idea is based on the fact that we are tourists (but not ignorant ones) with an edge because of having lived in India, and they are locals that live off their sales. They usually start ridiculously high, with prices more than double the original buying value, so Marco's tactic is that he starts so low, at the original price, and then we find a happy medium. Anyhow, Im not sure why Im speaking about how to haggle with vendors, but it's a skill (backed up by knowledge of how the markets work here) that one must learn, and learn well when travelling to places around here.
My film will be ready today and I shall post more photos. Stay tuned and enjoy the Digital series.
The Start of a Killer Trip
Breakfast on one of the many rooftops of Kathmandu
Friends of the Valley: Maurizio & Claudio
From One Cat to Another
Lunch!
Sayambounath Monastery
Photo by Marco
The Answers are Blowing in the Wind
Photo by Marco
Incidentally, our flight back to Calcutta took off at sunset and as we were flying out of the Kathmandu Valley we were greeted in the sky by a magificent range of mountains, The Himalayas, a sight incomparable to anything I have ever seen in real life or in a photo. The Himalayan Mountain range dominated the horizon, highlighted by the rays of the setting sun. Since we were flying south, away from the Himalayas, I was practically dumbfounded by the magnificence of geography and nature. The mountains transform into hills the further south you go, until eventually they turn into plains. What really intruiged me were the clear skies in the Kathmandu Valley and the surrounding hills. Once away from the Valley and flying over the hills that surround the Valley on all sides, I noticed that we were flying over a range of hills that were blocking the north-westward-moving clouds from approaching the Valley, thus depriving the very dry, cold region from any rain. I really loved Geography when I was in school, and now I know why, because I can finally apply what I was taught in school to the real world.
Bouddhounath Monastery (the Monkey Monastery)
View from the Monastery. If you enlarge the photo, you can see the Himalayas in the background.
A truly Kindred Spirit on the steps of Sayambounath
The photos that you have just seen was taken with the Canon D300 (a wonderful camera). Not to worry, I didnt leave my SLR at home. I just haven't had the time to get my film developed. I know, sad excuse, but now that Ive begun this blog, I must complete it in its entirety - digital, film photos and all.
It is quite late at night, so I will end this post for now, but I will be editing tomorrow and adding new ones before you know it! It's been a wonderously busy time of my life right now, because I recently started a new job. Finally a job that I am actually enjoying, where I can combine both my interests and skills that can be applied to my new profession.
I should also not forget to mention that I am in love.
I'll spare you the details, but I will say that it is nothing short of magical. I am only now starting to realise that I have found the greatest lover, friend, comrade and traveling companion one could ask for..And thats asking a lot..
It seems now that in every post I am finding myself apologizing for not posting regularly, and in true fashion, I apologize again. By not posting, doesn't mean that I'm not doing any photography, nor that I am living a boring life. Quite the contrary, in fact. Life is busy, exciting, mobile and always a pleasure it seems. Some days I want to SCREAM in frustration. Other days I want to SING in happiness (I now know at least one person who doesn't mind my singing, despite being tone-deaf).
I am constantly struggling to find inner peace, gratefully, there are moments (they are becoming more and more frequent) where I feel complete and utter peace not only with myself, but more importantly, with my environment and people that surround me. Then there are the bad days. And India (more specifically, Calcutta) is a place where the people, environment and clutches of time can thrust me into a whirlwind of intense emotions (often neurotic and expansive) that I desire so much to be back home (Canada, my second home), in the warm embrace of clean, efficient, friendly non-threatening and taxable Canada. Sometimes I imagine myself in old London Towne, the Forest City of my heart, in Gibbons park where the grass is thick, the trees are aplenty and in full bloom, the people few and far between, the air so clean you can smell cut grass half a mile away, the hilly landscape which hides you, eating mangoes with Lana, playing barefoot frizbee and smoking sweet Canadian ganja in the warm Canadian summer sun.
Yet, there is much left for me to learn here in India, where the Mother welcomes you with a warm embrace, then quickly sets you free to carve your own dusty path. All the while, the landscapes are anything from serene, translucent, indifferent, beautiful, tragic, sometimes almost malicious, yet somehow you still feel attached, like it would be a tragic love story if you just got fed up and walked out on this relationship you have built with this beautiful yet challenging nation of myths and missions.
I would muster more enthusiasm if it weren't nearly 3am, but I am DAMN excited for my friends from Canada to visit me in India. First Lyle in April, Lana in May and then Ashley in June. These are the months I cannot wait for.
2008 is supposed to be the year of New Beginnings. I can already feel the vibrations of change. Do you?
I will be adding many more photos, so please do check back later.
I need to blog more.
With that said, I bid thee goodnight, or as they say in Italian,
Buona Notte and Namaste!
LoveLoveLoveLoveLove,
Robo
PS: I dont think I have mentioned, but I am happily learning Italian. Not just the language, but the food, the culture, the politics and most importantly, the way to love. If anyone ever said that the French were the most romantic people in the world, that they know love, they've obviously never been in love with an Italian before.
