Pieces of Kathmandu

I have always been attracted by Nepal. Since my teenage and the first images i've see of its landscapes, its people and their beautiful culture. As i was in India, and had enough free-time, it was obvious that I would plan to go there ... Back in New Delhi, a few days before heading north to go to Nepal, I learned the terrible news: The country had just been hit by a violent earthquake. With a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter scale, the earthquake of 25 April 2015 has diversely affected the country: some areas of the country were hardly worried, others like the Kathmandu Valley has been very severely affected. Originally, the valley had three distinct realms: Kathmandu, Lalitpur and that of Bhaktapur. they were organized around their "Durbar Square" (Palace Square), where around the royal palaces, the main temples and places of worship takes place. Leaving the bus, I was approached by numerous taxi drivers. They offer me their prices, to which I answered laughing and offering them the price I had set myself, much more reasonable and close to the normal price. We negotiate, some lower their prices, others give up, I increase my prices a bit, and finally, a driver accepts. Going through Kathmandu to join its heart, the taxi sneaks in the city, in the narrow streets. Between different kind of vehicles, motorcycles and carts, avoiding, of course, the sacred cows installed, chewing, among the roads and intersections. sometimes, the traffic is complicated by piles of rubble from collapsed buildings, temples and houses. Arrived at Basantapur, the taxi drops me. I continued walking through the alleys to reach Jhochhen Tole, the famous "Freaks Street". In the 70s, the street was the meeting point of all travelers and hippies of the world. Since most tourists now prefer Thamel, the influx has somewhat subsided. But even if the street is a little quieter than in the past, it remains a mythical place for travelers.

Once settled in a small hotel of the street, I went for a walk towards Durbar Square (Durbar = Palace), just near. Once there, the gray clouds and rain that began to fall just gave the final touches to the sad scene that unfolds to my eyes. The white neo-colonial facade of the palace, and its columns lean dangerously to the outside, and are held in place, somehow by rows of support beams. Under the effect of the rains, which start in this season, mosses grow on the white paint, which turned green and give a sense of several-decades-old ruins. The other buildings around the square don't look much better.

The main temples on the central area are no more. Only remains the stairs-like platforms that supported them. To ensure the safety of people, passersby and visitors, in the area, paths running between the buildings still standing, the piles of rubble and the not-yet-secured areas have been created. Sad fact, the heart of Kathmandu is in pieces. Centuries of history and part of the identity of the people collapsed in an few seconds.

Kathmandu, Durbar Square as it was before the earthquake

Kathmandu, Durbar Square, 3 month after the earthquake.

The next day I went through the city, to go to the holi site of Pashupatinath. The Golden Temple, dedicated to Shiva (forbidden for non-Hindus) have not suffered from the earthquake, and the ballet of pilgrims takes place there as everyday. On the Ghats along the holy river "Bagmati", cremations and offerings takes place, under the impassive eyes of Sadhus and other Babas. If only a few small temples have suffered here, the homes of the nearby neighborhoods, were more fragile. They have strongly suffered. the plight of people there is deep. In general, people are still shocked. All have seen death falling indiscriminately here and there, more or less close. For the unlucky whose houses collapse, it's loosing everything, except the clothes you wear.

Pashupatinath, temples

Gate of the Golden Temple

Ghats on the Bagmati river

There, I met Nitesh. Like many students, Nitesh lagging in tourist areas when he has free time to try to talk, to discuss with them. It is a practical way for young people to improve their English, and so can hope to get a more interesting job later. As we sympathize, he accompanied me to Bodanath. On the way, as we pass close to it, Nitesh show me what remains of his house. If the small ground-floor shop is almost intact, which allows the family to continue its business and earn enough to survive, the rest of the house is in ruins and now squatted by monkeys. Until they have enough money to be able to start reconstruction, they rent a small apartment not far away, where the whole family moved ... Although Jovial, smiling and a happy nature, Nitesh is at times crossed by deep depression waves, he contains as much as he can. In those moments, I am completely helpless in front of his distress. So I took him with me, to go drink glasses, eat, and try to change a bit his mood....

Nitesh 's smile.

The Bodanath

The next day, after a visit to Swayambhunath (who lost one of his temple and a stupa), I took another taxi to Patan, Also known as Lalitpur. Walking in the streets, I had the feeling that here, there were a little less destroyed-buildings. After passing through a magnificent Temple (Hiranya Varna the Mahabihar), I headed to the Durbar Square. There, some temples have collapsed, others are supported by beams. The Royal Palace has not suffered too much, it has lost one of its peaks, which damaged a part of the building in its fall. Later, on returning, I met Iosh, one of the friends I've made here. We sit for a little chat and I then, i ask him to tell me his story of the earthquake. The day before, Iosh had spent the evening with friends, partying. He was still in bed, late in the morning, when the earth began to shake. At first, he did not really understood, he woke-up abruptly, shaken in all directions. He got up and headed out, towards the street, from where he could hear an abnormal noise and agitation . Once in the street, Iosh was immediately overwhelmed by the dust in the air, and smoke from fires that had declared themselves here and there. Everywhere, people running, crying, screaming, covered in dust, some bloodied, wounded. In the crowd, a neighbor grabbed his arm, and pulls him behind him. a building just next to his has collapsed, trapping people under its ruins, and all the valids are already busy, trying to save them. It will first be a man, to be found, hurt. Then the men arrive to localize and partially clear the body of a teenager, stuck under the rubble. unfortunately, they lacked the help to be able to extract him from his trap, and with the condition of the streets, blocked by the many collapsed buildings, firefighters, ambulances and all other help are struggling to move in the city, so to intervene. The young man of 16 years died in front of them, unable to do anything. The latest victim was an old grandmother, who was sleeping on her bed, and is probably dead instantly when the four floors collapsed on her. A little later, bringing the wounded to the hospital by foot, Iosh suddenly realized, horrified, the extent of the damages: in front of the hospital, more than 800 dead bodies were aligned on the floor. The final count brings up to 8200 the number of victims dead of the 25th of April 2015 's earthquake.

The Swayambunath

The Hiranya Varna Mahabihar Temple

An other Shiva Temple

Patan / Durbar Square

One of the Durbar's gate.

The king's courtyard in the durbar

The last day of my stay in the Kathmandu Valley, I went to see the last-one of the three kingdoms: Bhaktapur. Arriving in the city, I noticed on a tent-camp, with tents provided by various humanitarian organizations to accommodate people in emergency. Three months later, they are still used: the old brick-houses of the city have paid a heavy price to the earthquake ... After climbing the stairs leading to Durbar Square, I noticed right away the rubble pile, signaling to me that a temple was there before. Later, facing the Palace, another temple has collapsed. While walking through the alleys of the city, I noticed other buildings in ruins. But mostly, I am struck by the many people who come up to me and ask me some help. their plight is real, profound. I take the time to talk a little with them. I know I will not make any miracle, but the simple fact of spending some time with them is already somewhat comforting. Ignoring them would just be heartless. They all have small things to sell, because they are proud people, who even in the worst misery prefer to earn enough to survive by working rather than begging. It's a matter of honor for them. Also, I buy them things, bracelets, necklaces etc ... that will make perfect small gifts for my family and make a little smile to these good people. To my great joy, Nyatapola Pagoda still stands. from a height of 5 floors, it still dominates the valley, and people, especially young people, are always ending up on its steps to discuss, to coo, flirt, and watch the hustle and bustle of the square.

Bhaktapur, the Durbar Square

Bhaktapur, the Durbar Square

The gate of the Durbar

La Nyatapola Pagoda (left) & Bhairavnath Temple (right)

The Bhairavnath Temple seen from the stairs of the Nyatapola Pagoda.

The last image, unfortunately I can not show it to you, chance would have it, my battery loose and it was not recorded on the memory card of my camera... (due to powercuts, it was impossible to recharge fully my items...)  So, I'll describe: Deeply shocked since the disaster, people initially cleared in order to re-allow circulation. But healing will take longer, and its first signs ahead when the reconstruction starts: Once the people are ready, they rise anew and build again. Leaving Durbar Square, in a corner of the square, I finally found something I have been looking for several days:

People have started to rebuild a small temple.

Since always, I had always wanted to go to Nepal.

Maybe it was not the best time ... Perhaps, on the contrary, it was precisely the moment. The only thing I know for sure is that I will return.