stupa

While drinking coffee one morning I watched a team

raise new flags, & paint the stupa.

They could run down the steep ladders facing forward,

while carrying stuff. First they flung buckets of the

yellow paint, then later a smaller but still graceful

throw of white paint left a large scalloped design.

I think this occurs at every full moon.

Imagine how thick the paint must be !

space images

Boudha

While staying at Boudhanath, I'd walk to the

large stupa via the Shechen Gompa & it's wonderful

decorations. There are many prayer flags, & people. 

& one day 2 cows did a brisk two rounds before

heading off via a side lane. Tons of shops, too, &

a cafe on almost every roof. 

superbug

The stupa is very old, & has a strong presence.
People from everywhere pay their respects.
& there's always a lot of pigeons. Sometimes it looks
as if  they are watching from the rooves, but
it's probably just on the lookout for more corn.

lakeside

There's a large lake at Pokhara, the town comes to its

northern edge, & there are villages on hilly headlands

into the hazy distance

Many colourful boats which you can row yourself

or you can hire a boatman with it. 

Its somehow different each day

I hung out at the lakeside cafe of Hotel Fewa quite often,

great view. When I extended my stay at the Sacred Valley Inn, 

there was a couple of days when it was full, so also stayed at the

 Fewa, I liked the old place, it had a surprisingly

good view of the mountains, & friendly staff.

makes me want to get closer!

pokhara

Kept wanting to see the mountains really clear, in Pokhara,

but actually love this early dawn haze best, they

appear like a mystical vision. I think I'd never tire of this view.

In the new blogger format I can't tell how big they will appear,

but should enlarge when clicked.

lost treasure at Queensland museum ~ imagine the stories!

thangkas

Everywhere I went, there were thangka painting schools

& shops that sold them. The quality varied a lot.

Having seen some masterpieces, long ago,

I wasn't really tempted.

Though I like to think of mandalas, guardian deities, bodhisattvas
& buddhas flying all over the world to their new homes.

Also that people are making a living painting them.

I just looked for a link in case you are not familiar with

thangka painting, &, wow, found Kalsang Dawa, who studied

with a master I knew in Dalhousie.

Somehow I didn't think to search before. He & his cousin

gave me a thangka for my 30th birthday, I treasure it.

the other side

This time I organised to have a guide one day, who would

take me to the other side of the river, where there are

several wats noted for their wall paintings. Without Thai,

it would have been difficult. With Niwat, it was fun, I learnt

a lot, & luckily all were open, though quite dark.

We went by ferries, tuk tuk & foot, I'll surely go again.

The paintings were great, despite the depredations of the

climate. I was still learning my new camera ~ many shots only

good enough as reminders; using a tripod might have helped.

The Nikon has a panorama option, it's only for fun.

The zoom is very noisy past a certain point.

(But I did get some good ones in those 8000+ !)

bangkok

As I was flying Thai this time, had to stop in Bangkok,

which I really love: even when I go to the same place

there is always something new to see, or to see anew.

Often stay at a budget guesthouse near Pra Athit, am

familiar with how to get places, plus that's the part of the city

I like best. There's a market at weekends which always seems to

have some displays that evoke whole histories.

The drastic floods last year have left their mark near the river,

but it all works anyway. Cheerfully.