TRAVELMAN NEPAL: A Trip to Swayambhunath, the Monkey Temple, in Kathmandu (Part 1)

Swayambhunath is a Buddhist temple set atop a hill in Kathmandu. Swayambhunath means “self created.” It’s also known as the monkey temple because of the holy monkeys running around. NOTE: Holy monkeys are also aggressive thieves.

Matrika, the head of the volunteer organization with which I’m working, took me by bus to the temple. I discovered that the bus likes to keep moving. It will start moving as you’re boarding.

The bus comes tearing down the road, pulls to the side of the road, a ticket taker hangs out of the open swing doors and lets you on the bus as he takes the money of those exiting. Matrika got on in front of me and the bus began pulling away. They pulled me on like I was hopping a freight train. I’ve come to learn that this is the norm.

—-Buddha statues at a site below the Monkey Temple—-

While on the bus I learned about Nepal’s recent political history from Martrika. In the early 2000’s Maoist Revolutionaries raised a ruckus. They started bombing and shooting up the country. Kathmandu remained relatively unscathed from the fighting. After a few years a deal was reached with them and they were included in the government.

Matrika had been working for the U.N. At that time teaching employees Nepalese. The Maoists kicked the U.N out of the country and Matrika was out of a job. That’s when he began his own volunteer organization.

I could barely fit in the seat next to Matrika, they are not spaced for the length of male westerner femur bones. It was a bouncy, dusty, and thrilling ride.

—-All areas of the bus are used for seating and standing. Riders often surround the driver.——

We exited the bus on a corner. A lot of riders were getting on and off so it actually stopped for a few moments. I saw a lot of random cows wandering the streets of the city during my time in Kathmandu. I don’t know if somebody owned them or they were strays (that notion makes me laugh, a “stray cow”), but I did see one of them sifting through a mound of trash on a curbside.

—-The giant Buddha statue is visible in the background as well—-

At the bottom of the Hill (as the previous pic revealed) there is an area of Giant Buddha statues. I don’t know what this area was called except for “The big Buddhas on the way up to the Monkey Temple.”

—-Ornately decorated base of the statues—-

——View of the city from the Buddha Statues—-

—-Behind the Buddha statues- So many things were crowded around this area that it was a bit more like an outdoor showroom with its wares on display. I almost expected to see 30% off President’s Day Sale tags on some of them.—-

Matrika Nepali-splained me the lotus. The lotus grows in the muck (the world). The lotus hovers above the muck, Buddha sits atop a lotus (above the muck as well). The lotus is pure. If any of the muddy water touches the lotus, it beads up and rolls off. That’s how you wanna be, you want to be able to let the muck of life bead up and roll off you. To be like Buddha, you hover above the muck like the lotus. Be like Buddha, not like Mike (That reference dates me. It’s an old Nike Air Jordan Slogan.)

—The un-mucky lotus—

The Monkey Temple is up on that hill. I’ll talk about it in part two. I’m breaking it up so you’ll have something to look forward to while Game of Thrones is on Hiatus...

P.S. These pics were NOT easy to upload. Nepal needs Google Fiber.

!steemitworldmap 27.7149 lat 85.2904 long Swayambhunath, the Monkey Temple Part One in Kathmandu-Nepal, d3scr