The next day, the van took us to Namo monastery where we hung out prayer flags to send our blessings put to the world on the Himalayan wind. It was funny watching the boy monks all drink Fanta at lunch. We picked up ML and then went to the orphanage where Anil is a board member. The children entertained us with local songs and dance, pulling us up to dance with them. After the interactive show, we ate the delicious vegetarian dinner they had prepared for us. It was wonderful to see the children happy and educated, all of them being trained in English.
On Saturday, we went to Anil's newly built house and partook in their annual ceremony of sisters blessing their brothers. We then went to Thamel, backpacker central, in Kathmandu. The ladies went shopping and the guys sat on a corner drinking beer. We eventually all gathered at an artsy cafe, sitting in the floor like hipsters. After the simple dinner, we were dropped off at the Hyatt where we played cards in the oasis of first world luxury.
Sunday was the day of their wedding reception. We transferred to the Hyatt and then walked to the nearby Boudha stupa. After circling it once, we sat for lunch before returning to the hotel to prepare for the wedding. Just before we left the hotel, the brief rain left us an auspicious rainbow over the stupa.
We fought the the traffic and fumes in our trusty van to the reception where Cindy and Anil sat like royalty on the stage festooned with Christmas lights. We drank, ate vegetarian, and danced to both local and global dance music until late evening before our van whisked us back to the Hyatt.
Another great trip. We feel very fortunate to have experienced the Nepalese culture, with a local taking care of us. It's amazing we experienced 2 of the foremost Buddhist and Hindu religious centers in the world within a week.
