off to Bhaktapur

We all got to have a bit of a sleep in as we weren't due to depart till 9am for Bhaktapur - this gave us time to organize our last 4 nights in Nepal with a tourist company that Irfan overheard them saying "charge them 50% more" on some aspect.Lucky he didn't tell everyone that on the spot so we paid our US $250 per person which included 3 nights at Chitwan Park Jungle Island resort (2 star) plus 1 night in Kathmandu (Tibet Guest House) at a 3 star which we realized afterwards that we paid US $100 per room.

Painting 1

Back to jump on the tourist bus cofeeless (the price we pay for an up with the birds call, the power was out from 6 - 9 am) and onwards for the 30 min trip to Bhaktapur (which took more like 1hr 30 min due to the Kathmandu rush hour traffic).

Painting 2

Made a pit stop at the local Piranha pond before our accent on this dive of a town that was full of poverty and touts, not to mention that everything was on the menu was out for display (town water supply, rice, veges, goats, chickens, dogs, nappy-less bottoms. Also saw the latest in pottery being created in front of our eyes with photo's being allowed for minimum of 10 rupees. The buildings resembled something out of Japan made from carved wood and red crumpled brick, even found our own version of Regent Street. One of the buildings where we had lunch about 4 floors up in the open air deck which you had to by pass the kitchen (with the toilet next door) where we thought the safe option for food was in order. The Dal was more like soup while the others dishes both had the dry-est (worst) Vege fried rice (although Sky thought it was good hmmm) in their life.

Painting 3

We went for a pleasant stroll through the town, watching the locals dry rice and other food items in the town streets. One annoying thing was how the rode motor cycles through these cobbled, winding streets, forcing us to be on the constant look out. Among the things, we visited a paper factory were they made the paper, and various different items out of it such as the cover for books, bookmarks, cards etc etc. At the end of it we ended up in the inevitable tourist shop for the factory to buy items. Me and Amanda bought some pretty card sets, much to Bens disgust and protests. Following on was a trip to an Art school which was very awe inspiring. The sheer detail, perfection and magnitude of them mad even the most skeptical person sit up and take notice. I loved it here as we even entered a rooms were half a dozen artists were sat and painfully doing these paintings. In the last room was the best were there were some very big paintings that took two artists something in the order of a year or two to complete. No one bought anything from here, due to cost and also inconvenience of taking things back.

Painting 4

Following on from our disappointing lunch Ben decided it was time to retire to the room where he passed out, as did Amanda. This passed the afternoon nicely in this rather rank town, and by the time we woke up and played a few games of 500 (not to mention the demolishing a packet of short bread meant for the hike), we experienced an organized/timed power outage from 3-6pm so sat in the darkness with light from the mag-light and mobile phone until Irfan came to our rescue with the candles and Quality Streets. Dinner outing again that night and we were hoping for the best. A nice modern quest house with another rooftop view. The boys were instantly drawn to the "macaroni and cheese" after their poor lunch while Amanda was a little less fortunate, firstly asking for the aubergine lassangia. Where the waiter responded "it takes too long" with a look that made me understand that I better order something that the others had. So it was Vege noodle soup with chapati or actually on its own (as chapati takes too long too !). Lucky Amanda had changed her option as she turned out to be the first one to be served from the group with a few spaghetti strands. Ben's garlic bread (literally normal bread with a splatter of garlic) hardly hit the spot. When the macaroni cheese (which was last) finally came out, the boys tucked in. Soon they realised it wasn't macaroni as they knew it (or most of the world). It was the same vege flavoured goop that was i the noodle soup but with pasta spirals and strigy cheese that ws stuck in the back of our throat. Could Pudding save us?? Thought my silly brain. So I couldn't resist the Chocolate Pudding, as I fantasize over some lovely spongy chocolate cake in hot thick creamy chocolate sauce. Oh how foolish, as all that was served was some hot custard looking slop, an even that was an insult to custards everywhere. Andrew managed but I had wasn't going to sit and eat that insult to pudding kind and my resulting protests and wise cracks had the whole table in hysterics. I managed like one spoonful of it and left it well alone. Luckily Amanda decided to put me out of my misery and take pitty on me. She shared some of her Lemon Sugar Ruber pancake with me.

Painting in progress

Pretty much everyone was in be by about 9pm, but that just wasn't my style. So I decided to sneak out with Andrew and his full on camera. For some nighttime photography of the immediate surrounding grounds. All was going well until we bumped into one of the waiters from the place we had just had dinner at. Let's just say he didn't have all his senses about him. And proceeded to spurt out all sorts of gibberish to me for the next 15 to 20 mins. Needless to say I made my excuses and dissapeared. Enough town nightlife for me (think way too much rice wine drinking go's on here).

Pottery

Rice drying

Serpent washing area

town centre street

Town centre temple