Walking to Durbar Square. A shrine.

Closer-up.

Closer-up.

And much closer-up.

Wall hangings sold along the way up the hill to Durbar Square.

I bought this one, but in India, so I don't know if it is Indian or Nepalese.

More wall hangings.

Masks for sale.

A shrine at the top of the hill.

Close-up.

The entrance to Durbar Sqaure. Dubar means "palace," so Durbar Sqaure is the plaza in front of the old royal palace, but there are really three interlocking squares here.

Walking through the gate.

The square is full of temples and shrines. Most of the buildings date back to the 12th, 17th and 18th centuries.

The palace complex was the royal Nepalese residence until the 19th century. Here, a pillar.

With an old man sitting under it and who is waving at me.

More of the temples with palace buildings on the left.

Palace buildings.

Lions in front of a building which is now a school.

Close-up.

A temple.

The top of the temple.

Close-up.

Close-up.

Elephants along the steps of the temple.

More of the temples.

A Durbar Square building.

Close-up.

A lion statue.

Many vendors here. This one selling turquoise jewelry. The vendors in Nepal are as harassing as those in India. No break given for shoppers.

The Hard Yak Cafe.

Yak, yak, yak, yak, yak. We didn't see any yaks while in Nepal-disappointing.

A man embroidering a cloth.

Another temple.

Elephants, lions, and gods on its steps.

Another view.

Another temple. You can see a wedding band in the photo. See movie of the band in the Day 2 album and also one of Durbar Square Dancers.

Nepalese hats for sale.

Puppets.

Little girls dressed in traditional costumes.

Buildings in Dubar Square. We ate lunch here.

More vendors on our walk out of the square.

Shawls made from yak fur.

Pants.

Use as wall hangings or cloths.

A shrine.

Narrow street and more vendors.

Pots for sale.

All kinds of tea: Nepali, pure Tibetan, cinnamon, elam (ilam), and many more.

Elephant mobiles.

More walking and more vendors.

Our next stop was at the Pashupatinath Temple, a Hindu temple where it is believed that Lord Shiva worshipped in the form of Lingam (phallus) and where he was incarnated as Lord Pashupati. Lord Shiva is both the Destroyer and Creator--the end of old things and the beginning of new ones.

Closer-up. The temple is across the Bagmati River. Non-Hindus are not allowed inside the temple.

The ghats on the other side of the river are cremation sites.

The deceased is wrapped in a shroud and carried to the cremation site.

The body is laid on the cremation pyre. The ashes will be scattered in the Bagmati River, which is considered holy as it flows into the sacred Ganges. See Nepal cremation movie in the Day 2 album.

Some people on the ledge above the funeral pyre are watching the cremation; two others are watching the monkeys.

More monkeys.

A body awaiting cremation.

Another body awaiting cremation.

A cow on our side of the river. There is a feeding trough for the cows here. It hasn't opened up yet but the cow knows it will be soon. In fact, it was mooing to let its feeder know it had arrived.

A view of the temple.

Another view.

Another monkey.

And one more.

These are holy men followers of Lord Shiva called "sadhus" (singular form is sadhu). However, we were told by our local guide to give them money if we wanted to take photos of them. I did, but my guide book says that real sadhus don't ask for money.

Another photo of sadhus or men dressed up as sadhus.

A shrine on our side of the river.

Close-up.

More shrines.

Our last stop, at Boudhanath, an important Buddhist pilgrimage center. This giant stupa is one of the largest in the world and the holiest Tibetan stupa outside of Tibet. Its all-seeing eyes are of Buddhas and represent the five elements: earth, water, fire, air, and space/ether. The stupa was probably built in the 4th century after the Mughal invasion.

Top of the stupa. Relics and remains of Buddha are contained in the stupa.

Another view. Boudhanath has the largest community of Tibetans (16,000) who have made Nepal their home. The Tibetans came to Nepal for religious freedom starting in 1959. There are 29 Tibetan gompas (monasteries and nunneries) around Boudhahanath.

Buddhist monks and child disciplies walking around the stupa.

Tibetan or Nepalese women here.

A woman.

The area around the stupa was built by the Tibetans and is very nice.

The buildings are very pretty and house stores, restaurants, apartments, and shrines. Here is the Golden Eyes Restaurant Cafe.

The Cafe dew drops.

Top of a building.

The stupa doubly reflected in its windows.

A carved door.

Images of Enlightenment store.

Yoga and the Boudha Kitchen.

Walking around the stupa.

Entering a temple.

Inside the temple.

Inside the temple. A picture of the Dalai Lama

Inside the temple.

A drum.

Inside the temple.

I think our local guide said this was a painting of King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah, who was the king killed in the royal massacre.

If so, this would be of his wife, Queen Aishwarya.

Inside the temple.

A very pretty building.

More buildings.

And another pretty one.

Probably burning joss sticks.

Pigeons.

La Casita? Yes, it is a Spanish restaurant serving tapas and more.

How sand is transported--see movie in Day 2 album.

Leaving Boudhanath.