{"id":8258,"date":"2014-10-06T17:56:22","date_gmt":"2014-10-06T10:56:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/?p=8258"},"modified":"2014-10-06T17:56:22","modified_gmt":"2014-10-06T10:56:22","slug":"dashain-on-the-brain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/2014\/10\/06\/dashain-on-the-brain\/","title":{"rendered":"Dashain On The Brain"},"content":{"rendered":"<p align=\"justify\">Return to Kathmandu, and suddenly I\u2019m addicted to Cauliflower. Okay, no worries. Because if this clip doesn\u2019t make you want to drop everything and come here to join me, then you may need to see a specialist. (And by \u201cmay\u201d, I mean \u201cprobably\u201d; and by \u201cprobably\u201d, I mean \u201cindubitably\u201d.)<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-8258-1\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/youtube\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=NBPgdCZNNEY&#038;_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=NBPgdCZNNEY\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=NBPgdCZNNEY<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">Travelers who\u2019ve been to both countries say that Nepal is like the training-wheels version of India. Be that as it may, arriving here from Thailand\/Malaysia is somehow even more culture-shocking than was arriving here from the USA. Kathmandu is wild, unhinged, dirty, smelly, dusty, crazy, chaotic, and completely deranged \u2013 also, of course, completely exhilarating.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">To give an example of the difference, right now Nepal is in the middle of its most important festival. In Malaysian festivals, they light huge bonfires and blow off firecrackers like no tomorrow. In Thailand, they walk up and down endless rows of food and toys and DVDs, then maybe watch some Thai superstars performing in the evening. In Nepal, they\u2026<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8276\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-104458-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-03 - 104458\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-104458-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-104458-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-104458.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">And this is right in the middle of Durbar Square &#8212; the birthplace of Kathmandu, and a World Heritage site. They call it a \u201csacrifice\u201d, but considering the animals had no say in the matter, seems to\u00a0 me \u201cslaughter\u201d would be the more appropriate terminology. However you call it, they were going on all over the square \u2013 and gathering huge crowds of gawkers. I couldn\u2019t bring myself to watch.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8275\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-095934-580x326.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-03 - 095934\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-095934-580x326.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-095934-940x529.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-095934.jpg 1392w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">When not massacring goats, the Good People were standing on line to get in to the holiest temples, which are open to the public only on this one day.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8279\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-174302-580x326.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-03 - 174302\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-174302-580x326.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-174302-940x529.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-174302.jpg 1392w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">It was a bit like Disneyland, in that one could walk around to the various temples and judge roughly how long it would take to get to the front of each line. I dutifully queued up for the massive Teleju temple\u2026<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8278\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-155320-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-03 - 155320\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-155320-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-155320-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-155320.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/>\u2026but a guy told me not to bother, as they\u2019d never let me in. That\u2019s what really pisses me off about the Hindus, the bastards: They\u2019ll charge you a good sum of cash-money to get onto the <em>grounds<\/em> of the holiest sites, but not let you step foot into the sites themselves.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">Nutjob faux-holy-men were all over the place, aggressively asking for money to get one\u2019s picture taken with.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8281\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-123621-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 123621\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-123621-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-123621-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-123621.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">For the kids, there was kite-flying aplenty, as well as feeding of the pigeons.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-8258-2\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/youtube\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=REZVDHmnbdw&#038;_=2\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=REZVDHmnbdw\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=REZVDHmnbdw<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">Everybody had smushed grains of red-dyed rice into their foreheads, and placed flower stems behind their ears; and the temples and shrines were seeing plenty of business. Also, there\u2019s this badass temporary shrine with plastic orange Coconut trees out the front.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8277\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-122645-580x326.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-03 - 122645\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-122645-580x326.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-122645-940x529.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-122645.jpg 1392w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8280\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-181421-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-03 - 181421\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-181421-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-181421-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-03-181421.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">At night, the light show here was quite impressive. Eat your heart out, The Pink Floyd.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-8258-3\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/youtube\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=nCv38NKUxhk&#038;_=3\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=nCv38NKUxhk\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=nCv38NKUxhk<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">But the favourite activity has been processions. Big ones, small ones, short ones, tall ones. All over everywhere. In this one, from the second day, the band were a mix of Nepali and Dixieland stylings.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-8258-4\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/youtube\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=QIW4c9slnF8&#038;_=4\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=QIW4c9slnF8\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=QIW4c9slnF8<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">They hoed down for a while at this one market square area, then marched across town and played some more in a residential courtyard; then picked up this, like, goddess-child\u2026<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8264\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-135541-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 135541\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-135541-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-135541-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-135541.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">\u2026over whom everybody was going so apeshit ga-ga that it was almost impossible to get a photo in edgewise, and marched right back over to the market square and paraded around with some cardboard sabres for a while.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8265\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-141513-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 141513\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-141513-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-141513-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-141513.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">On the third day, there was <em>this<\/em> procession, a mixture of truck-borne and pedestrian revelers.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-8258-5\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/youtube\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=KzFKNGbSSvU&#038;_=5\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=KzFKNGbSSvU\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=KzFKNGbSSvU<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">Wow, when was the last time you had as much fun as they\u2019re having? Why is Nepal fucking awesome? <em>This<\/em> is why Nepal is fucking awesome:<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8268\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-130735-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-05 - 130735\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-130735-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-130735-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-130735.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">After this procession had finished, I barely had enough time to grab some Avocadoes (!!) and greens from this one out-of-the-way market that I discovered by chance, when, down the road here come <em>another <\/em>one. Why are they drinking orange soda straight from the two-litre and rice beer out of teakettles? Well\u2026you tell me.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8271\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-145723-580x435.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-05 - 145723\" width=\"580\" height=\"435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-145723-580x435.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-145723-940x705.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-145723.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8269\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-135611-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-05 - 135611\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-135611-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-135611-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-135611.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-8258-6\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/youtube\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=MUEZXeZ48Pg&#038;_=6\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=MUEZXeZ48Pg\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=MUEZXeZ48Pg<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">\u2018round and \u2018round and \u2018round the town they danced and drummed and twirled the massive umbrella, stopping at various shrines to get <em>really<\/em> groovy for a while before taking it to the streets again.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8267\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-124550-580x326.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-05 - 124550\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-124550-580x326.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-124550-940x529.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-124550.jpg 1392w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><a><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8270\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-141732-580x326.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-05 - 141732\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-141732-580x326.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-141732-940x529.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-141732.jpg 1392w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/a>I followed them around for a good three hours \u2013 at first they were afeared of me because of my bare feet, but then warmed up and became quite friendly \u2013 before finally peeling off to head back toward the hostel. But, walking through the market area, there were a bunch of plastic chairs arranged (and re-arranged and re-arranged and re-arranged) about the courtyard, so I guessed perhaps there was to be some sort of performance.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">I sat down to, finally, eat my Avos, and it caused this big spectacle. The man had said that they were of Nepali vintage \u2013 and they were cheap enough that I thought that I believed him. But, none of the Nepalis had ever heard tell \u2013 kept asking me, \u201cWhat is it?\u201d I shared out as much as I could, but very few were brave enough to try. One little boy who did try seemed elated at its taste, but the other few who did liked it not.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">At about nightfall, the same group I\u2019d been following around all day showed up, jammed for a while, then sat down to join in a big group dinner. It was an assembly-line service \u2013 the servers walking around with buckets, and plopping or scooping the course onto each plate. One of the drummers noticed me, and said he\u2019d seen me walking with them, and invited me to eat up. I had to decline, of course: not only was the food cooked, but I think they were serving up the goats they\u2019d been decimating all over town.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-8258-7\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/youtube\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=QBeT62rj3iA&#038;_=7\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=QBeT62rj3iA\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=QBeT62rj3iA<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">After a while, all of the bands from the procession (there must have been four or five of them) took up the charge again, each parading off in a different direction. The one I followed wound around and through several narrow alleys before finally landing at this cool little shrine here\u2026<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><a><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8274\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-183917-580x435.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-05 - 183917\" width=\"580\" height=\"435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-183917-580x435.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-183917-940x705.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-183917.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">\u2026and having one big, final, swingin\u2019 dance-off, before finally beginning to disperse. A friendly guy forced some orange soda down my throat \u2013 wouldn\u2019t take no for an answer \u2013 helpfully explaining, \u201cIt\u2019s not alcohol, it\u2019s Fanta.\u201d<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 640px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-8258-8\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/youtube\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WePrAC3t_Iw&#038;_=8\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WePrAC3t_Iw\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WePrAC3t_Iw<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p align=\"justify\">Dashain verdict: Nepalis fucking know how to party!<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">Apart from festival activities, digging back in to the incredible temples here\u2026<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8273\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-153755-580x386.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-05 - 153755\" width=\"580\" height=\"386\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-153755-580x386.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-153755-940x625.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-153755.jpg 1328w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8261\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-124216-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 124216\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-124216-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-124216-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-124216.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8259\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-114728-580x386.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 114728\" width=\"580\" height=\"386\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-114728-580x386.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-114728-940x625.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-114728.jpg 1328w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8260\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-124200-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 124200\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-124200-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-124200-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-124200.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8263\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-131011-580x773.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 131011\" width=\"580\" height=\"773\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-131011-580x773.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-131011-940x1253.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-131011.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">\u00a0\u2026doing a bit of people-watching\u2026<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8262\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-130035-580x326.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 130035\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-130035-580x326.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-130035-940x529.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-130035.jpg 1392w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8266\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-141919-580x326.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-04 - 141919\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-141919-580x326.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-141919-940x529.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-04-141919.jpg 1392w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">\u2026and discovering some more awesome street art\u2026<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-8272\" src=\"http:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-151440-580x435.jpg\" alt=\"2014-10-05 - 151440\" width=\"580\" height=\"435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-151440-580x435.jpg 580w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-151440-940x705.jpg 940w, https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/2014-10-05-151440.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 580px) 100vw, 580px\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">\u2026has sent me reeling here one more time \u2013 and I still I feel I\u2019ve only scratched the surface of this wild and wonderful place.<\/p>\n<p align=\"justify\">Now, however, it\u2019s off for a spot of barefoot trekking. Hopefully, this time there\u2019ll be some fruit available. If not, then, it may end as inauspiciously as the last time. Here\u2019s to finding out. Blog at you in a few weeks, I will&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Return to Kathmandu, and suddenly I\u2019m addicted to Cauliflower. Okay, no worries. Because if this clip doesn\u2019t make you want to drop everything and come here to join me, then you may need to see a specialist. (And by \u201cmay\u201d, &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/2014\/10\/06\/dashain-on-the-brain\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8258","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-culture"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8258","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8258"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8258\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durianapocalypse.net\/travel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}