Another cold, clear pre-dawn breakfast at our "home away from home." Funny how final goodbyes become more poignant. An hour in the bus got us to the airport at Lhasa, where we joined line after line of Chinese bureaucracy. A fond farewell to Jigme, our local guide/fixer, and a final flight over the Himalayas. The first half of the flight was great, but the second half had the mountain gods throw everything they had at our little airbus .... it was a rough flight. But we made it and the heat was instant and much appreciated. A walking tour of the royal town of Bhaktapur took us to many winding, noisy streets, several old squares filled with beautiful pagoda style temples and shrines and throngs of celebrating people, in the middle of their festival of light. A wonderful farewell dinner completed the night.
And a good omen, perhaps. Earlier, we saw a tiny black puppy fall over a wall top on which he was playing with his lighter coloured brother. The drop was probably twenty feet, and we gasped at the sight of him going over the side. I looked over the wall, but saw no sign of movement. Alas, I thought, the pup was so young it couldn't possibly have survived. But in the gathering darkness, as we walked back to the hotel, I was happy to see the black pup, alive and well, cavorting with his brother. Hey, today was a Hindu festival called "Brothers' Day." A good omen indeed !
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| Streets of Bhaktapur |
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| More streets of Bhaktapur |
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| Bhaktapur temple |
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