A Living Goddess

Today I walked for six hours touring the center of Kathmandu. Kathmandu can be exhilarating but also very tiring with the people constantly coming up to you wanting something and the traffic beeping at you. I had to find a store and buy a bottle of wine at the end of the day. I guess this is as good of an excuse as any.

Central Kathmandu is where Thamel and Durbar Square are located. It is filled with Temples, shops, hotels, restaurants and people. This is where most of the tourists stay. I am very happy I am in Patan.

I finally conceded and hired this gentleman to take me around the temples. He was very interesting, although hard to understand. I was able to visit many of the back roads where some unusual temples were hidden. I have included a picture of the most unusual statue (can’t remember any of their names now).

All the shops are getting to look alike; I refrained from buying anything today. After I ate I was not ready to fight the crowds and cycles back, so I found a place to have a massage (good excuse). I love to get massages in Asia. It was a wonderful hour massage for $20. Actually it is more expensive than other places I have been but much cleaner.

Now totally relaxed I had a little more patience with all the people selling me things. I had to rush back to see the living Goddess in the temple in Durbar Square, but she was not there. The living Goddess is a young girl from 4 to puberty that has been selected as the Goddess (the real goddess chooses to reside in her body). Once a girl bleeds, she can no longer be the Goddess and goes back to normal life; a new Goddess is selected. A Goddess is housed in a Temple until that time. There are three Goddesses around Kathmandu.

Back in Patan I was finally successful in getting a phone, after three attempts. I now can contact people within Nepal so I will have fewer issues.

You can imagine how tired I was, so my dinner was wine, almonds, and cookies. I was in bed by 8pm. Tomorrow is TEWA to discuss the marketing plan project.

Namaste