Waking up to the sound of drums and cymbals, I jumped out of bed to take a look at the raucous. It was 8am, but a parade of sorts was passing by the square outside, with groups of people banging on large drums and cymbals, with no particular organization or purpose except to have a good time. Most people were dressed in beautiful traditional dress, and dancing to the beats. There were others playing the flute and even violins, but the sounds were comfortably drowned by the loud beats of the drums. About a dozen groups passed by, each playing similar tunes before it finally ended.
Originally, we planned to head to Nagarkot, a mountain-top village with spectacular views of the mountains. When we told our graceful hotel owner’s wife of our intentions, she quickly changed our minds as the festival was still going on and there would be a lot of festivities going on all day long in Bhaktapur. Being a predominately Newari town, she said they still preserve most of the heritage so we should, and definitely did, stick around for another day. Continue reading
Join us as we set sail around South America 