As we were departing Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on our flight to Kathmandu, I thought about all of the amazing times we had in Vietnam and Malaysia. We have traversed across many towns, cities, even countries, experiencing their unique cuisine, culture, language, and landscapes, among so many other things. But now it is time for something different. New. We are going to be in a new country for over half a year, and it is very different from other places that we have been. People live differently here, the crops, animals, language, religion, and weather are all different, and it will take some time to get used to. I don’t think that we have gone this long in months without changing scenes! In a way, I like it, the slow-going, quiet way of living in our neighborhood.
Just yesterday, we visited a predominantly Buddhist stupa, with some signs of Hinduism here and there, such as small statues with red tikka (blessing) on their foreheads, or holy men offering to give you tikka. The stupa grounds were crawling with monkeys of all shapes and sizes, from month olds to ancient elders. They were lounging around getting groomed, playing, wrestling with dogs, raiding small temples for offerings, or stealing ice cream from little boys. We watched them while circling the stupa clockwise, the traditional way to be respectful. When it started raining, they got a drink of water and then headed for tree cover. We, as onlookers, watched as they left, especially loving one particular baby that played peek-a-boo with me and Will behind a tree (Will loved that).
As we started to leave, I happened to walk past a monkey shoveling rice left by an old woman, and it chittered at me and grabbed my dress, and, to be truthful, I ran and hid behind mom. You might be thinking, oh, ha ha ha, a monkey grabbed her, no big deal, but it was actually quite scary in the moment. I don’t know what they like about me, but this happened in Kuala Lumpur as well with kiwi juice. After I calmed down, we walked to get lunch at the Safe Café (fried chicken momos, a delicious Nepali dumpling). After that we headed home to complete our unique day.
Ada, thank you for including the videos of all the monkeys. What an overwhelming experience — they somewhat attacked the “unfortunate” fellow with food. WoW!! After being dress-grabbed by a monkey, I too would have hid behind your mom! The picture of the monkey and dog wrestling was priceless. I can’t wait to hear about more of your experiences in Nepal.
Hi Ada! I love reading your travel stories. The monkeys are so mischievous! Even stealing ice cream. I wonder if it would be possible to hold one, a baby perhaps. Your new neighborhood will offer its own magical experiences, and learning how to speak Nepali will open doors. Keep writing! I’m quite interested in the different religious practices. Love to you!
Hi Bappa! I don’t think that it would be possible to hold a baby monkey without the mom attacking you, but I like the idea. Guess what? That same monkey stole the kid’s ice cream twice! I just finished my Nepali lesson 😁
Oh my the monkeys seem very mischievous. Glad Mom was there to save you. Your pictures again are just amazing. You look so lovely. Thanks for sharing the videos. The dog wrestling with the monkey is funny. Enjoy yourself and keep sending your memories. I love you ❤️