Bhaktapur - The City of Devotees

To count the temples would be like counting stars. Outside of of the big squares with the ornate structures, there are shrines on every corner. Every stone has a deity carved into it. Every door front has an offering. Every person has the red mark on their forehead - a painted bindi - showing their single point of awareness. Everything here is sacred, except maybe the dogs.

We had a full day of wandering the maze of narrow streets. At times we thought we may just be on an obscure, no name ally, only to find we were standing in front of a famous wooden window with a carved peacock that would be on postcards and walking tour maps. It really kills me that I cannot get pictures off my camera. The thousand words they would describe might save me from trying here.

At he top of the tallest temple in all of Nepal, Nyatapola, Asiana spotted an owl perched in a window across the ally standing it's ground among the crows and pigeons. I could feel the wisdom seeping into me. Okay, never mind it's Asiana's owl. She is the wise one now. You think she would share. She did suggest my totem was closer to the mangiest, bloody, flee infested, swollen, smelly dog I have ever seen waiting to die at the top of the temple. He must have had some really bad bark-all-night karma. Other dogs take note!

Location:Bhaktapur Nepal