Bhaktapur

Upon arrival to Nepal, we were picked up by our guesthouse and transported to the Unesco Heritage city of Bhaktapur. When we arrived in Bhaktapur not a soul could be seen outside as we pulled into Durbur Square where our guest house was. (Aside from the stray dog that came up to say hi). The owner took us in and led us up to our fourth floor room overlooking Durbur square and her beautiful old temples.

After over 48 hours without having lay down in a bed, our heads finally hit the pillow at 1 am and we were intent on sleeping a full 8 hours. Before even having a chance to close our eyes, a commotion of barking and snaring dogs could be heard, and we looked outside to see at least six dogs running around the square, chasing after each other (sounding like they were out to kill each other). They disappeared, I put my ear plugs in and drifted off into slumber.

I awoke having heard dinging - like the sound of a bell on a trolley car. When I came to a little more it had stopped and I assumed I must have been dreaming, Then it started again. I looked outside to see a couple of Nepali women carrying candles and walking around the square. A man stood in front of two full baskets joined on either end of a pole, and picked it up to carry it away. I looked out the other window towards one of the temples and could see the glow of candle light coming from inside. More people started arriving and upon entering the temples would reach above them and ring a bell - sometimes just one quiet shake and sometimes with more excitement.

Temple outside our window

More people started arriving. One woman walked by with a plate full of a few offerings - flowers, fruit, rice, etc.... There was a chorus of pigeons cooing as they watched from above.

I looked at the time and it was 6am.

Through our bathroom window I could see people bringing small bags full of garbage and adding it to a pile. Later a women arrived with a cart and started shovelling it in and hauled it away.

At exactly 7:57, a much louder bell in the square was rung vigorously out front of the palace.

After watching and listening out our window for 2 hours, and still feeling pretty exhausted and jet lagged, we fell back into slumber.

We next awoke at 10:30 and looked outside. It was a completely different world. Tourists with their cameras roamed around the square, sometimes by themselves and sometimes led by guides who had successfully pitched their services at the entrance into the city. Sellers tried to sell their wares - flutes, necklaces, etc... - to people sitting out front drinking chai. The temple that had woken us up so early was closed, doors locked, no ringing bells. You would never even had known it was used on a daily basis for worship.

We had our first shower in over 48 hours, and went down for our first Nepali lunch consisting of dhal, curries, rice, and some of Bhaktapur's King Curd. We then left to explore Bhaktapur.

Bhaktapur is one of three medieval city states in the Kathmandu Valley - the other two being Kathmandu and Patan. The old Newari name, Khwopa, means "City of the Devotees" and the name fits! Bhaktapur has three major squares full of towering temples and at its peak it boasted 172 temples and monasteries, 77 water tanks, 172 pilgrim shelters and 152 wells! The oldest part of the city was laid out in the 12th century. From the 14th to 16th century Bhaktapur became the most powerful of the valley's three Malla Kingdoms and Durbur square was constructed at this time.*

Most people arrive in Nepal and head to Kathmandu's tourist district of Thamel and just visit Bhaktapur on a day tour, meaning the Bhaktapur during the early morning and evening is an incredibly different place than the Bhaktapur in the middle of the day.

We wandered around the city, leaving the relatively quiet and vehicle free Durbur square and stumbled across another square called Taumadhi Tole full of locals selling their produce, and with motor bikes zipping by and honking as they tried to manouver through the crowds of people. Greeting us amongst the chaos was a massive five-story temple called Nyatapola temple, the highest temple in all of Nepal and one of the highest buildings in the Kathmandu Valley. The temple was built in 1792 and the construction was so sturdy that the 1934 earthquake only did minor damage. The stairway up to the temple is guarded by stone figures of Rajput wrestlers, elephants, lions, griffons and goddesses.

Taumadhi Tole

Nyatapola Temple

From there we wandered down the busy streets and found our way to Potters' square. The square is used for drying pottery but also for drying grain (which we soon saw everywhere around the city). Because of Tihar, the Festival of Lights, there were many little pottery candle holders drying and for sale on the streets. Locals line the streets with them on the third and fourth night of Tihar.

Getting water from the well

We stumbled across one of the large ponds (Guhya Pokhari), and a group of boys ran past, stripping down to nothing and jumping into the water. In late afternoon we weaved our way through local streets and farmland, up a hill to a temple overlooking the city. We returned to Taumadhi Tole in the evening to a market  still packed of locals selling their produce in the dark by candle light, motorbikes still zipping through, and men singing and playing instruments in front of one of the temples.

The next morning, we awoke at 4am when the temple outside our window opened and the devotees started ringing the bells. At 6:30 we decided to go and check out what the real Bhaktapur was all about. Back at Taumadhi Tole it was almost like nobody had ever left. It was packed once again! 

*info taken from the Lonely Planet