Kathmandu Valley The Boudhanath Stupa, Tibetan Buddhism's most holy shrine in Nepal Mom and daughter visiting the Boudha Stupa This little one has a great perch from which to view her surroundings A couple of girls in Ratna Park, the Central Park of Kathmandu, quite happy to be on camera A group of Hindu holy men passing the day near Ratna Park Another holy man The gatekeeper of the Ratna Park pay restrooms , here giving her son a bath . . . 1 rupee or 2, depending on how you have to use the bathroom Men getting their heads shaved in the park . . . custom dictates that Hindu males shave their heads after a relative dies This lady sold peeps (not the Easter kind) near the entrance to Ratna Park Another holy man passing the day away in the park Apparently today was some sort of holiday or festival, as the girls' foreheads have been smudged with puja poweder The peep herder of Ratna Park Snake charmer! I found these girls walking home from school outside the city, in the northern part of the Kathmandu Valley Losar celebrations at the Boudha Stupa Tibetan Buddhist monks at the Boudha Stupa to celebrate Losar Tibetan carpets drying at a monastery near the Boudha Stupa These girls' families make their living as illegal vendors in Ratna Park Selling Indian treats through a hole in the fence at Ratna Park Ladies of the night, out during the day at Ratna Park Hindu priests performing cremation rituals at Pashupatinath, Hinduism's most holy site in Nepal Jerry with his wife, Mary Ellen, amongst the prayer flags at Nagi Gompa The nuns of Nagi Gompa Washing carrots in the filthy Bagmati River More faces of those who make their living off Ratna Park At Ratna Park Tika powder for sale The monks of Kopan Monastery practicing their debate skills in the monastery courtyard These shopkeepers create intricate art on the sidewalk for Laxmi puja . . . Laxmi is the goddess of wealth, so they're showing her the way to their shops with the adorned mud path Jerry with a ganja-smoking sadhu (Indian ascetic), at Pashupatinath cremation ghats Two young monks playing a game in the beautiful grass of Kopan Monastery Good cop . . . . . . bad cop A mountain of prayer flags blowing in the wind at Boudha Stupa Whitewashing the dome of Boudha Stupa More prayer flags Boudha Stupa Boudha Stupa There's lots of actions in the neighborhoods around Boudha Bright-eyed and positive street kids of Kathmandu This girl was north of Kathmandu knitting while letting henna (dye) do its work on her hair Jokesters near Kopan Monastery Mat weavers north of Kathmandu I happened upon this girl/woman with her one-day old baby while I was mountain biking in the Valley . . . she's holding her hand up to shield the baby's eyes from the sun The Hare Krishna Bike Clinic is one of a number of newer shops that cater to mountain bikers Toilet bowl cleaner bottle put to use in this air horn Pashupatinath Highly adorned temple struts at Changu Narayan A broken foot doesn't keep this colorful lady from getting out . . . and conveniently, her high perch gives her a better view of the parade at Ratna Park! Nagarkot is a hill town on the rim of the Kathmandu Valley with a view of 150 miles of the Himalayan chain . . . from the Annapurna range in the west, to the Everest area in the east
