Day 48: Patan
Trip Start
Sep 21, 2006
1
49
228
Trip End
Jun 01, 2007
Kathmandu,
Nepal
Wednesday, November 8, 2006
The square is busy with brass-figurine sellers setting up stall, early worshippers and parties of school children posing on guardian animal statuary prior to a museum visit. Idle men linger on the corners of temples, shaded by the pagoda roofs.
The Newari temples are certainly the equal of those in Kathmandu. There are weeds sprouting from the tile roofs but generally the temples are in good repair and use
01 Hen at Vishwanath Temple, Patan
. There are several explicit positions carved into roof struts of the Jagannarayan and images of torture on the Hari Shankar temple alongside figures of Shiva, Parvati and Bhairab, often in the cross-legged pose of a lakshi (tree-goddess).Vishnu's vahana (mount), Garuda, kneels on a column facing the Krishna Mandit. He's a popular roost for pigeons that feast on the grains scattered below.
Atop another column is the figure of King Yoganerendra Malla (1684-1705), facing the Royal Palace. Much of the palace has now been converted into a wonderful museum. Well ordered, lit and modified, The Patan Museum contains exquisite examples of Hindu and Buddhist statuary, mostly metalwork from the Patan region, benefiting from informative texts in English. This is a great introduction to Hindu and Buddhist beliefs and an aid to recognizing the pantheon of gods and deciphering their various poses and possessions. The garden is delightful setting for the café. The only disappointment is the lack of western tourists visiting. (It is busy with school groups, however.)
Heading north (and avoiding the Durbar Square ticket booth to the south), I follow a recommended walks through the back streets. Here, beyond souvenir shops, there are many fine examples of beautifully carved, Newari screened windows. Patan's oldest temple, Kumbeshwar (1392) is now a rather decorative five-storey pigeon coup. It is surrounded by shrines, baths and cud-chewing goats. Statues and lingams are coated red and sprinkled with marigold petals. In one courtyard is a collection of ancient megaliths. The tallest has been appropriated as an ad-hoc telegraph pole.
Just south of Patan is Nepal's only zoo. I hope to find some of Nepal's rarest species here, but, despite claims in Lonely Planet, there is no red panda. Most animals are ferreting around in dust and pigeon poop but none look unhealthy. There are pairs of Bengal tigers, rhinos, hippos, an elephant giving rides and two immobile gharials. (I stare at them for minutes for a sign of life when one finally moves an eyelid slightly.)
A Maoist march passes me on the way back to Thamel. Police with riot shields and canes sit, rather bored, further up the road, so I assume the march passed peacefully.
