I'm back in Kathmandu once again after a very quick first week back in the village. Me and Rebecca arrived on Monday afternoon following a very cramped taxi ride with Sophie and Laura along with all our bags. After settling in back at home we headed to school the next day, which consisted of one VERY long meeting about new school timetables for all the teachers alongside other school things. We still have the same timetables as before but now we both have new class members as everyone has moved up a year following annual exams. Attendance was sporadic this week (I only taught 5 kids on Wednesday!) but we're optimistic that numbers will pick up next week. Still, had some great fun with the new classes and we're looking forward to carrying on. Zoe also spent Thursday and Friday in the village with us to get out of Kathmandu and take a look at the "real" Nepal.
Bit cramped? The girls "enjoying" the taxi ride back to our villages
Rebecca and Zoe join class 5 for my creative writing class :)
Me taking that lesson
The first week back flew by and we were all soon reunited in Kathmandu (minus Ollie, who is spending is first weekend in his village). Today we had a huge day out to the nearby town of Patan, a former seperate city state to Kathmandu during the reign of the Malla Kings, on the outskirts of Kathmandu. Our first stop was Nepal's only Zoo! We spent a few hours wondering around and soaking it all in. The leopards and Bengal tigers were a particular highlight but the huge variety of birds were also pretty amazing. Strangely for Nepal though there was a Hippo in one exhibit....
Our next stop was Patan's infamous Durbar Square, an amazing place to see original Newari architecture. After lunch we headed to the incredible Patan Museum. Housed in a former Malla Palace the museum came about as a result of a joint restoration project between the Nepali and Austrian Governements. It opened in 1997 following the restoration housing an amazing array of sculptures and other artworks depicting Bhudist and Hindu deities. The displays also help visitors understand the meaning behind the sculptures and their relevance in each religion. I'm not an "arty" person put the displays were very interesting. One particular display explained the incredible "lost wax" sculpture casting technique (unique to Patan!). The process allows for incredibly detailed sculptures to be designed from the inside out without the risk of using molten metal. The clock tower at the end of the museum offered a nice breeze (it's getting hot here now!) and view of Durbar square.
View of Patan's Durbar square, the museum is on the right
A stone sculpture of Vishnu (a Hindu god), in the museum. This one was retrieved from an art gallery in Austria after being sold by a Nepali art dealer in the mid-late 1900's.
Tonight we've had great fun together. We ordered takeaway pizza from Roadhouse Cafe and relaxed on the roof of the guesthouse. We're all going our seperate way for the morning tomorrow; Sophie, Laura and Zoe are going to a yoga class, Rebecca is going to an Easter Sunday church service and I'm going on the hunt for some souvenir inspiration. But we're all meeting up for an Easter lunch before we head our seperate ways for the week.
That's it for this entry guys, next weekend we're planning a visit to beutiful Bhaktapur so stand by for some amazing photos! Happy Easter everyone (eat lots of chocolate!).
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