What do you mean we are out of water…………..

Coming from the land of plenty, running out of water is a new phenomena to me.

I don’t think it has ever happened to me before we moved here. Running out of hot water, sure – but running out of water altogether? No so much.

We have easily survived water shortages in the U.S. Someone announces we are reaching dangerously low water levels and we should all stop watering our grass and washing our cars. Not really a big sacrifice – especially if you weren’t doing those things in the first place. Shhhh. I am not a big car washer or grass waterer. Tell me to take two chores off my list I wasn’t going to do anyway – fine. Happily. Done.

But in India, there is the real potential to be out of water. Completely out. There are lots of people who never get it in the first place – so they aren’t out of water – they just never have it. It’s hard to fathom really.

The other day our water tank was empty. Empty? No water. Not even one drop. It ran completely out. Hmmmm. Give me a second to digest that. Empty? What happened?

Well, it turns out the guard is supposed to turn on some faucet somewhere and fill our tank. He is supposed to do that twice a day. We have new guards (long story) and apparently they did not get the memo. The night guard did not turn on the faucet. Righto.

So someone called someone and a big water truck showed up a couple of hours later. They filled our tank. It took about 5 people to watch the hose fill up the tank. Kind of funny really. In India, it often takes lots of people to complete even the simplest of tasks. Then our cook told me that the tank was dirty and that “hopefully” they cleaned while they were here filling it up. Yeah – gross. And, even more so, yeah – hopefully. We now have water – how clean it is, I really cannot be sure.

Then this morning, in the middle of my shower, the water instantly turned cold. Brrrrr. Then it stopped. Completely. It completely stopped coming out of the faucet. Did I just put conditioner in my hair and soap up? Dumb question – of course I did.

Wait. one. minute. Didn’t we solve this problem already? Doesn’t everyone know to turn on the faucet – twice a day?

I hopped out of the shower, cracked my door ever so slightly, and called out to our cook. I asked if anyone was running the water in the kitchen. It is strangely connected to the bathroom – so I was hoping against hope that they were cleaning up and that the dirty dishes could wait. He. was. not. using. the. water. ARGHHH. Now we have what you call a mystery.

Back to the bathroom. I turned the water back on. Mystery mysteriously resolved. There was once again water coming out of the faucet and now it was scorching hot. I turned down the heat and finished my shower and got dressed.

Number One Hubby is at work, so I went into the kitchen to explain the injustice of it all to someone, anyone who would listen. I had conditioner in my hair for pete’s sake. That water was cold. Dag nab it. It was all terribly inconvenient.

I started to tell my tale of woe to my cook – yes, that would be my cook who takes water home from my house every night because his water makes him sick if he drinks it. I doubt he has a bathtub or much hot water – I wonder if he even has an indoor toilet.

Yes, I shut the h-e-double toothpicks up and quickly decided I didn’t have much to complain about.

Where’s my pumpkin……….

The Canadian Ambassador recently hosted a Thanksgiving Ball at the Canada House in Delhi. I have not gotten dressed up for a formal affair in a while, so I felt a little like Cinderella. I just needed some helper mice and a fairy godmother. Luckily I had an outfit I could wear.

The night was actually a fund raiser for CanAssist. The meal was authentic with turkey and, dare I say it, gravy. There was also stuffing. Yum. I got to enjoy a real Thanksgiving meal while helping people with cancer – yes, that is a win-win.

If you ever move to Delhi – this is the woman you want to know.
She can tell you where to get your hair done, who to trust with braces, where to effectively donate your
time and energy, and she will tell you about fun things like this Thanksgiving ball.
She is a Delhi Rock Star!

Anypumpkin, the night was great fun. I didn’t stay past midnight because I am not
21 anymore and don’t have that much energy. But it was a blast!
My pumpkin was waiting and took me and my tired feet home.

Monkey love…………….

On every trip we take, we cross our fingers and hope, hope, hope to see monkeys. They are supposed to be everywhere in India. And it seems they are – everywhere we are not.

But not in Kathmandu! In Kathmandu, you can get your fill of monkey love.

And that is true monkey love – picking bugs off of one another. Smooch.

You talking to me?

I loved how these monkey mamas watched out for their little ones. They scooted them under their arms and wrapped them on their backs. It was delightful. These little guy is clearly not a teenager yet – he still doesn’t mind holding his mother’s hand in public.

And this son of a monkey stole my lollipop. Okay – he didn’t actually steal it – but he scared the monkey out of me and I threw it onto the ground so that he would stop coming toward me.  But be sure he knew exactly what he was doing. And it was a brown tootsie roll pop – my favorite. He seemed to enjoy it though.

So, if you need a monkey fix, Kathmandu might just be the place for you.

Save the Date…………

AWA

Holiday Mela

Sunday, November 15th
10:00am to 3:30p
at the
American Embassy School
New Delhi
Entrance fee: rs. 200
(children under 13 free)

Over 100 vendors
food court
used book sale
kids activity center

The Temples of Kathmandu – part 2…………

Yesterday, I wrote about the Pashupati Temple in Kathmandu. If you have nothing but time on your hands today, you can read that post here.

If you are new here, I’ll catch you up. Last weekend, my family went to visit Kathmandu in Nepal. We saw Mt. Everest from the comfort of an airplane seat and soaked in the markets. It was an amazing experience! Today, I am going to continue to share our trip with you and today’s post will be about more of the temples we saw.

I have gotten a lot of positive feedback (thanks guys) from my last few posts and what I really want to say is – if you can ever go to Kathmandu – go. Go. GO. Go! Kathmandu really surprised me. I had absolutely no idea what to expect. And it hit me right in the soul. I have really had a hard time explaining why. It is a magical place. Really and truly magical.

There was such beauty in the tangible manifestation of prayer – the fact that something lingers even after the prayer has been answered or denied. Stunning. It is also humbling to see just how many worries are out there in the world. We are certainly not alone in our request for help and guidance. We all need it sometimes. I wonder how many of the flags represent prayers that have long gone out of consideration. Worries that are no longer worrisome.

It helps to put our concerns into perspective about what to really focus on. I know that if I had to put a permanent mark on the world for all of the prayers I have offered, there would have been far fewer of them. That truly helps define what really deserves our energy. I felt so lucky to currently just have global prayers like health for the world and peace for the world and nothing really immediately personal. I always pray for people who are alone in the world and anyone who is struggling in any way – so I included them. But my own heartache is simply being away from home – that can absolutely feel overwhelming at times – but going to Nepal was perspective changing. The sadness of being away from family and dear friends is lessened ever-so-slightly (and effectively) by the experiences my immediate family is sharing together. We only wish our friends and family were here with us.

The second temple we visited was the Bouddhanath Stupa. It is a Buddhist Temple. And it was the first place I had ever seen prayer flags and the prayer wheels. If you want to get a 360 degree view of the stupa, click here.

There does not seem to be a clear understanding of who built this stupa and several different versions of its beginnings are offered. They are all very different and not seemingly connected. So, I won’t try to turn this into a history lesson.

The walkway around the stupa forms a circle. Number One Hubby and I agreed that the “town” surrounding the temple felt very European. Of course the walkway is lined with merchants selling trekking gear and souvenirs.

There are four sets of eyes on the temple. One set facing each direction. It is my understanding that they represent the fact that we are always being watched over for protection and that they watch for assurances that we are doing our best. They are the eyes of wisdom and compassion. Kind of brings new meaning to the mother’s claim that she has eyes in the back of her head.

This prayer wheel stood from floor to ceiling. It was massive. And there was a bell on it that rang every time it made a complete rotation. It was humbling to stand before it. Really, what kind of prayer calls for a wheel this big? I cannot imagine how heavy a heart must be with angst to call upon this wheel.

Then we went to the Swayambhunath Temple. It is also known as the monkey temple. There are monkeys everywhere! Both Buddhists and Hindus worship here.

This is the world peace pond that greets you when you enter the site.

When you come from a country that is just over 200 years old, it is amazing to see structures that have
lasted through so many generations. This temple is believed to have been created in the 5th century.

There are prayer flags strewn all throughout the temples in Kathmandu. They are magnificent.

The Tibetan name for this temple means Sublime Trees because it sits on the mountain side and is surrounding by a great number of different trees. The tree below is my favorite – it is a broken tree in the middle of such splendor and still it stands out with its own beauty. Maybe there is hope for me yet.

This temple is believed to be the most sacred of Buddhist pilgrimage sites. There is a stupa on the site and various shrines and temples. A Tibetan monastery, museum, and a library are more recent additions to the compound. Much of the symbolism at the site comes from the Vajrayana tradition of Newar Buddhism, but Buddhists of all schools find the site important. Many Hindus also revere the complex as well and come here to worship.

Swayambhunath, is among the oldest religious sites in Nepal. According to the Gopālarājavaṃśāvalī Swayambhunath was founded by the great-grandfather of King Mānadeva (464-505 CE), King Vṛsadeva, about the beginning of the 5th century CE. This seems to be confirmed by a damaged stone inscription found at the site, which indicates that King Mānadeva ordered work done in 640 CE.

The dome at the base represents the entire world. When a person awakes (represented by eyes of wisdom and compassion) from the bonds of the world, the person reaches the state a bit higher. The thirteen pinacles on the top of it symbolises that sensient beings have to go through the thirteen stages of enlightenment to reach Buddhahood.

On each of the four sides of the main stupa there are a pair of big eyes which represent Wisdom and Compassion. Above each pair of eyes is another eye, the third eye. Saying goes that when Buddha preaches, cosmic rays emanate from the third eye which acts as message to heavenly beings, so that those interested can come down to earth to listen to the Buddha. The hellish beings and beings below the human realm cannot come to earth to listen to the Buddha’s teaching, however, the cosmic ray relieves their suffering when Buddha preaches. (Thanks again Wikipedia)

Okay, this one is getting l.o.n.g. too. So, I’ll check out for now. I will just leave you with this view of Kathmandu from the temple.

The Temples of Kathmandu, Nepal………….

Kathmandu is truly the most spiritual place I have ever been. There is a tremendous mix of Hindu and Buddhist influences and we were told if you look hard enough you can even find one or two Christians and/or Muslims. There is an almost overwhelming focus on prayer and reverence and finding a connection with God. (Please don’t take this to mean it is an “in your face” experience – it is really a peaceful and calming experience. No one comes out of the wood work and actually talks to you about God. You are really left to feel what you feel. No questions asked – no pressure.) Really, I guess I should more accurately say a connection with the gods – the Hindu faith has over 1 million gods. But of course we take our own experiences wherever we go and end up translating more than just the language and the currency into our own terms – so, for me personally, God it is.

There were prayer wheels and prayer flags everywhere. I guess I have never really experienced a physical manifestation of prayer. I am not Catholic so I have never used a rosary. But there is certainly something extremely comforting and connected about doing something while you pray. Spinning the prayer wheel makes praying feel more active. Seeing the flags makes it appear permanent. Prayer becomes more than just a whisper that often seems to disappear into thin air, remaining most alive in our hearts. Faith tells us our prayers are heard, but where do they go? The flags let them dance forever as active hopes and dreams. It’s more than just going through the motions.

The town is filled with temples of all sizes and shapes. I have mostly seen churches, mosques, and temples that are defined in a finite space. The temples in Kathmandu cover a wide birth of land and seem to go on forever – up stairs, then down  stairs, and then around corners. They are not contained within walls or confined under roofs. They are open air arenas where you can literally feel the connection to the surrounding natural and spiritual worlds.

Of course, the fact that Kathmandu sits at the base of the Himalayan Mountains automatically makes the spiritual areas feel more majestic and more a part of nature. The structures are certainly man-made but they are God-inspired. And I did not feel smothered by Hinduism or Buddhism, but rather just a part of the beauty of trying to reach out to whatever god you know. Trying to find peace on earth in the human realm.

Here is a little bit about one of the temples we visited:

Pashupati

Pashupatinath Temple is the oldest Hindu temple in Kathmandu – it is the largest Hindu temple in honor of Lord Shiva. Pashupati was established in the 5th century and the priests who perform ceremonies here are largely Brahmins from South India. It is not known for certain when Pashupatinath Temple was founded. But according to Nepal Mahatmaya and Himvatkhanda, one day Lord Shiva grew tired of his palace atop Mt. Kailash and so went in search of a place where he could escape to. He discovered Kathmandu Valley and, without telling anyone, he ran away from his palace and came to live in the Valley. He gained great fame there as Pashupati, Lord of the Animals, before the other gods discovered his hiding place and came to fetch him. He disguised himself as a majestic deer and would not help the other gods when they asked for his help. When Shiva did not yield to their pleas, they planned to use force. God Vishnu grabbed him by his horns and they shattered into pieces. Vishnu established a temple and used the broken horns to form a linga on the bank of the Bagmati River. As time went by, the temple was buried and forgotten. Then a cow was known to have secretly sprinkled her milk over the mound. Apparently, when the cow herders dug around the spot, they found the lost lingas and again built a temple in reverence. (Thanks Wikipedia)

I am one of those people that changes the nature channel when the lion is about to eat the rabbit. I completely understand that it is the way nature works. I don’t take up arms against the lion. I just don’t want to see it. So, I am really glad that I did not understand that this temple has a crematorium along the banks of the Bagmati River. I would have avoided it at all costs. I would have not wanted to explain it to my children. I know that death is a part of life. I get it. But our kids have been largely unaffected by death so far in their lives and I want them to enjoy that for as long as they can. It will come full force in their lives soon enough. And it will surely hit them hard when it comes. So I have been an ostrich with my head in the sand – patiently delaying the inevitable. Basking in the glory of life.

But it was amazing. Really amazing. There were bodies being cremated. There was no wailing. No fanfare really. It was just a process. Part of life. Hindus, of course, believe in reincarnation. So ultimately there is no reason to be sad about the discarded body – the empty vessel. The soul has moved on to a new being. And, practically speaking, cremation has tremendous benefits in a world where there won’t always be room to bury the dead. I want to be cremated mostly because I don’t want to get eaten by bugs. So it was fascinating to see the whole process in action. It was remarkably calming.

When a someone in a family dies, the family members of the deceased must spend 11 days in the temple mourning. The temple is right next to the river. They wear white and stay together without touching anyone else, even each other – there is no physical contact – and, I believe, talking only to each other. This exemplifies the importance of family in Asian cultures. Can you imagine completely stopping your world for 11 days? I mean leaving your house – not driving your car – not going to the grocery store  – not answering the phone – doing nothing but mourning. I am not saying that Westerners are unaffected by the loss of a family member or loved one – of course we are very affected – but we certainly do not give ourselves permission let life screech to a complete standstill. It’s fascinating.

My children were remarkably aware and accepting of what was happening. They were not overwhelmed by it. They were not scared by it. They just watched the burning mounds with respect and distant curiosity.

On the other side of the river, life was continuing on in full force. Tourists snapped pictures, children played in the river, Holy men gave blessings, and women washed laundry. It was a beautiful example of the full circle of things. Life imitating life.

There were literally hundreds of monuments beyond the river. Wear comfortable shoes if you come here. There is a lot of walking. But it is really a tremendous place. As I mentioned before, the Hindus have over a 1 million gods and this park is a tribute to many of them.You could see monument after monument after monument in a never ending testament to the devotion of the Hindu believers. The mini temples were often guarded by cement dog or lion statues and there was an sense of tranquility in the air.

You are not allowed to enter the main temple if you are not Hindu. In fact most foreigners are shown this site from only one side of the river. However, we were taken around to the entrance of the main temple. We were not invited in of course, but it was lovely to see it closer up.

This is another view of remarkable architecture that you can see from the park.

This is getting to be m.u.c.h longer than I thought it would be, so I will continue tomorrow. “See” you then..

Souvenirs……………..

Shopping in Kathmandu was fun too. There are all sorts of fun trinkets to bring home. Here are some of the options:

These puppets had four faces. Two of the faces were Lord Ganesha on one side and Lord Shiva on another side – I cannot remember who the other two faces were. Very, very cool.

More puppets. Fun, Fun.

These lions are posed out side many of the temples. They have dragonish heads and protect the temples. I bought a small brass set of these to bring home with us. It can’t hurt to have these babies watchin’ out for us.

What do you want to be for Halloween? Have not decided yet. Pick one – these masks were amazing.

I cannot remember what this is called – someone help me out please – but it a Buddhist symbol and it represents peace. (thank you readers – it is a varja or a dorje)

This was funny – I have a few of these motorcycle statues in our home in the U.S. because, at one point, number one Hubby owned a motorcycle. I prefer this smaller, unrideable version to the real thing. It made me laugh that it was on sale at a temple.  If I had brought a larger suitcase this baby would have come back to India with us for sure. Beneath the motorcycle in the picture, you can see singing bowls and prayer wheels. They are remarkable.

This is the full life version of a prayer wheel, but many mini versions were on sale too.

On top of the world…………..

The whole reason we went to Kathmandu was to, of course, see the top of the world – Mt. Everest.

I am not a big fan of flying, so you can imagine my excitement at seeing this little bitty plane that was going to take
us high up into the sky over sharp, jagged and snow-capped mountains.
Plus I just read “Crazy for the Storm”, which just happens to begin with a small plane crashing on the side of a
sharp, jagged and snow-capped mountain. Yeah, good choice.

But I managed to get on the plane, take a deep breath, and very much enjoy the ride.

On the ride to see Mt. Everest, we saw the lovely skyline of the magnificent Himalayan Mountains.
Truly breath taking.
And the thought of someone scaling one of these – well it just sounds,
insane. Really, really insane.
But you can imagine what an accomplishment it must really be.
Just getting to base camp to even begin an expedition is a 6 or 7 day trek. Then the real climbing begins.
Holy mountain, Batman!

And here she is – Mt. Everest in all her glory.

And then we were safely back on terra firma. Yahoo!
On the way back to the car, my family decided that a base camp trek is just what we need to do.
Oh goody.

The People of Kathmandu, Nepal…………

This guy looked amazing. He is a holy man. The Holy Men in Kathmandu will gladly pose for you and happily give you a blessing.
Then they will happily accept expect a donation.
Sure it diminishes the blessing a little, but it makes for a great memory!

This guy will sell you fish. Eat it at your own risk.

The market stalls in Kathmandu are a little different than those in Delhi. The are contained behind
these fabulous old style doors. It does make more room for the customers on the sidewalk.

These women were selling fruits and vegetables outside Buddha park.

Washing laundry in a very dirty river seems slightly counterproductive – but I cast no stones.

She is washing her hair.

This looks like hard work. Note to self: “I am thankful for my life, I am thankful for my life.”

Hello to you too!

Fascinating!

This one of my favorite pictures from the entire trip.

Isn’t it great that childhood is universal – boys will be boys. These guys were having a great time!

What can I say except that he is just beautiful!

This little boy was laying on the sidewalk. His parents were sitting next to him with an empty box.
They were hoping for donations. The sign in front of them said that he cannot move his body on his own at all.
The doctors have determined that something is wrong with his brain.
They need help for his medical care. It was heartbreaking.

Amazing.

There are flowers everywhere. They are colorful and fragrant. Fabuloso!
I would love to visit the village where all of these were grown. That would be an amazing thing to see.

Peace Out!

On a wing and a prayer……………

If you ever get the chance to visit Katmandu in Nepal, please do it. Don’t hesitate for even one second – just say yes and go. It is an amazing, amazing place and over the next few days, I will share our experiences with you. Katmandu is set in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains, so the scenery is stunning – it is beyond compare.

We took a mountain flight near Mt. Everest and literally saw the top of the world. Right before we left my son said, “it’s just another mountain, why do we have to go?” Be sure that he is not saying that any more. Mt. Everest is certainly more than just another big mountain. It is spectacular. We were all blown away.

Katmandu is also the most spiritual place I have ever been.

We also visited several temples. Hinduism has over 1 million gods, so there is a lot to celebrate and pay tribute to. The Buddhists also have a very strong presence in Katmandu. And there is no shortage of holy men.

So come back tomorrow for more details  – you won’t want to miss it, I promise. Pinky swear.