UNESCO World Heritage Sites Adventures

Today was a very fulfilling day! It was the first meeting for us to go attend the National Health Cluster. It was a chance for all of the INGO/NGOs to present a little bit about themselves and what exactly they have done and in what areas. It was due to this meeting, I had the chance to meet all of the other INGO/NGOs working in the same IDP camps as ours. So this is a great thing, because no longer would there would be problems with repeated work. 

Dr. Nirdesh presented TIMA Nepal to the Health Cluster! He did a wonderful job! All the other organizations were quite impressed at what Tzu Chi has done in Nepal! They were all very interested in our multi-purpose beds. 

Oh Bakery Cafe.....my dear friend!

This is the traditional brass dining ware that the Newari population use to eat with. This is a traditional Khana (Food/Meal) Set! It was so good.....so yummy.....and so BIG! So happy that I got to have this experience! A giant thanks to vroom vroom team!

Me with my brand new helmet!!! 

Don't I totally look like Robo Cop here???

The Kumbeshwar Temple Complex

This is the oldest temple in Patan. It dates all the way back to 1392. It is a Hindu temple especially dedicated to Lord Shiva. One of the very rare buildings is the main central five story pagoda located in the middle of the open space. This is the only other one in the whole Bhaktapur area. You will also see several other smaller temples surrounding the main pagoda, including a fire sacrifice temple and two hitis. The story goes that this is where Patan got its name "Lalitpur" from. Many years ago, a man named Leper, who accidentally found a water spring in a field. This said water spring apparently had medicinal purposes and had cured Leper from Leprosy. The king at the time had named this man, Lalit, which means beautiful. 

Patan Durbar Square

Patan is one of the oldest known Buddhist cities. It is a place of both Hinduism and Buddhism with 136 bahals (courtyards) and 55 major temples. Most of these structures are in the vicinity of the Durbar Square. The Patan Durbar Square is situated at the center of Lalitpur City. It is one of the three Durbar Sqaures in the Kathmandu Valley, all of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. In the square, there resides the Ancient Royal Palace where the Malla Kings of Lalipur resided. The Durbar Square is filled with Newar architecture, which we can clearly see in the square flooring that is tiled with red bricks. 

Krishna Mandir Temple

This is the most important temple in Patan Durbar Square. It was built in the Shikhara style that was imported from India. The stone carvings along the bean above the first and second floor pillar is most notable. The first floor pillar carvings narrate the events of the Mahabharata, while on the second floor there are visual carvings from Ramayana. The temple was built in 1637 by King Siddhinarasimh Malla. The story was that one night the King saw the Lord Krishna and his consort Srimati Radha standing in front of the royal palace, so he immediately ordered a temple to be built on that exact same spot where he saw the event unfold. There are a total of 21 golden pinnacles in the temple. Below the pinnacles are three stories. The first floor holds the main shrine of Lord Krishna with shrines of Radha and Rukamini at each side. The second floor is dedicated to Lord Shiva and the third floor to Lokeshwori (Lord Buddha). The square is always crowded with thousands of Hindu Pilgrims and devotees during Krishnastami. 

Vishwanath Temple

Vishwanath temple is dedicated to God Shiva. It was built in 1627 during the reign of Siddhinarasimha Malla. The roof supports are decorated with erotic carvings similar to imagery widespread in Shiva temples in India. The temple is guarded by two stone elephants in the front entrance. On the other side of the temple is the sculpture of a bull, Shiva's vehicle. There is also a stone linga enshrined inside the temple itself. 

This bell is situated in the alignment just right besides the main temples. 

There were many art students sketching all the different patterns from the many windows laying around the courtyard of the museum. Every single pattern has a story of its own. It is just so fascinating just how rich the history and culture is contained in every intricate detail of every corner. 

Golden Temple (Hiranya Varna Mahavihar)

It is a Buddhist temple that is located in Patan, Lalipur. There is a tree stories golden pagoda of Lokeshwor (Lord Buddha) and was built in the twelfth century by King Bhaskar Verma. Inside the upper story of the pagoda, there are golden images of the Lord Buddha and a large prayer wheel. 

Even the temple pet turtle is sparkling with gold!

A Prayer Wheel or Mani Wheel is a cylindrical wheel on a spindle made from metal, wood, stone, leather or coarse cotton. Traditionally, the mantra Om Mani Padme Hum is written in Sanskrit on the outside of the wheels. According to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition based on the lineage texts regarding prayer wheels, spinning such a wheel will have much the same meritorious effect as orally reciting the prayers. 

*I was very excited that today I finally got the chance to do a round of spinning these prayer wheels!*

One of the moving temples during the Monsoon Season! People stop in the middle of the street to pray for more rain for their crops! Motorcycle back up!!! We are LITERALLY not moving!

Motocycle jam due to moving temple prayer service! Pani Pani (water water)! 

Dharahara (Bhimsen Tower) 

A nine-stories, 61.88 meters tall (203 feet) tower at the center of Sundhara in Kathmandu. It was built in 1832 by Mukhtiyar (equivalent to Prime Minister) Bhimsen Thapa under the commission of Queen Lalit Tripura Sundari and was a part of the architecture of Kathmandu recognized by UNESCO. The tower had a spiral staircase containing 213 steps. The 8th floor held a circular balcony for observers that provided a panoramic view of the Kathmandu Valley. It also had a 5.2 meter (17ft) bronze mast on the roof. The first version of the tower was built eight years earlier in 1824 and was actually 11 stories high at that time, but there was an earthquake in 1834 and it suffered severe damages. Dharahara was constructed originally for military use as a watch tower. When incidents of national importance occurred, bugles were blown from the top floor of the tower. This was the signal for soldiers to assemble. This tradition of bugle trumpeting continued until the collapse of the tower in the April 25, 2015 earthquake. Most of the tower has collapsed, leaving mostly just the base that is remaining. About 180 bodies were found in the rubble. 

Kathmandu Durbar Square (Basantapur Darbar Kshetra)

This square is one of the old royal palace of the former Kathmandu Kindom. There used to be three Durbar (royal palace) Squares in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal, and this is one of the three. All three are part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. 

Many of the buildings in the Kathmandu Durbar Square collapsed during the April 25, 2015 earthquake. Before the earthquake, Durbar Square was filled with very intricate architecture and showcased the various skills of the Newar artists and craftsmen over several centuries. The Kathmandu Durbar Square was home to the palaces of the Malla and Shah kings who ruled over the city. Along with these palaces, the square surrounds quadrangles, revealing courtyards and temples. It is also known as Hanuman Dhoka Durbar Square, which is the name that came from the statue of Hanuman, the Monkey God. Back in 1672, during Pratapa Malla's reign, an image of Hanuman was placed in front of the portal to keep away evil spirits and diseases. The figure still serves the same purpose today! The palace is decorated with very intricately carved wooden windows and panels and houses the king Tribhuwan Memorial Museum and the Mahendra Museum. The Royal Palace was originally at the Dattaraya Square, but was later moved to the Durbar Square. 

Shrawan is considered to be the holy month, or the fourth month, in the Bikram Sambat (Nepali) Calendar. It usually falls in teh second half of July and the first half of August. The first day of Shrawan is known as Shrawan Sankranti and Mondays (Somvar) is considered to be the very special day to worship Lord Shiva, where many people take to fasting. Women usually pray in temples like Pashupatinath and Makhan Hanumandhoka in Kathmandu for the longer and healthier life of their husbands and boyfriends. The married women wear red and green attire (sari and kurta suruwal) and red, green, and yellow bangles (chura). This Hindu month of Shrawan, it is all about getting henna tattoos (Mehendi) for the women. It is done normally on the palms of women's hands, but various designs and places have been widely adapted over the centuries. Many young girls do this in order to wish for a good boyfriend or husband. Often times, they will put the initials of their crush/boyfriend/fiancee/boyfriend into the Mehendi designs! How cute!

Traditional methods of helping the Henna absorb better into the skin is using a mixture of sugar and lemon water. This also makes a protective layer over the Henna skin!

One hand is getting fresh Henna designs, while the other hand is getting the layer of lemon and sugar water! Thanks so much to the wives of our drivers, Ravi and Gambir, for making all of this beautiful art work and experience possible! You guys are amazing!

I have been blessed with a red tikka now!!! 

ALL DONE! ISN'T THE DESIGNS BEAUTIFUL!!??!!!?? TALENTED!

Getting the whole Shrawan month treatment! Apparently, everyone says I look exactly like a local here, so it is very hard for them to see me as a foreigner sometimes! Blending in! Now, just got to learn the language!!!

Thank you Shrijana for going through this experience with me! It was awesome!!!!

After 7 hours of tedious work and waiting......TA DA! All freshly washed! So ready for the first day of Shrawan month tomorrow! It may look light right now, but as I sleep, the Henna ink will start to show up more and more! Supposedly, It will be super dark by the time I wake up tomorrow morning! We shall see the final results tomorrow! Can't wait!