September 25- Durbar Square
First excursion in Kathmandu
As the hotel is in the center, one can walk to « Durbar Square » which is an area where one can find temples from the 16th and 17th centuries and the old royal palace.
I saw it 25 years ago and a lot of changes have occurred, notably in 2015 a very big earthquake which completely destroyed several buildings. UNESCO and China are funding several reconstructions, a minimum of 2 years of work.
One of the temples houses the kumari. It#039;s a « tradition » that can actually make you shudder a lot: it#039;s about a child chosen at random who, until she becomes a teenager, will be worshiped like a living goddess. She is now 5 years old, is richly adorned, she sometimes appears in the windows of the temple, photos are prohibited but I have given you a photo of a postcard to give you an idea!
The temples are really beautiful, with red bricks and woodwork. Most temples are of Hindu tradition (80% of Nepalese) with a few Buddhist temples or stupas (20%)
We can note that here these 2 religions coexist very well, even going so far as to share the same buildings or temples. A Nepalese man even told us that he adhered to both traditions, here that poses no problem for anyone!
j’ai déjà lu ou entendu l’histoire de cette petite fille, cela me dit quelquechose …peut-être toi qui me l’aurais racontée …
j’aime ces photos c’est magnifique !
bisous
Merci pour les photos et les explications. On a envie d’en apprendre davantage, notamment sur cette petite fille au regard si grave.