(Remember, you can click on any photos in the post to take
you to the flicker pics, or click here to view the entire set from Nepal Day3.)
Well, I made it to Mike’s Breakfast. My first walk out in
the city brought me to a familiar place. This outdoor café features mainly
American style breakfasts. I think it was originally owned by an American
expat, and has been around for many years.
I ordered the vegetarian burrito which came with Nepali tea
and cookies. I don’t know what the original cost was, but after I hung around,
talked with the staff and took a bunch of photos, they gave me the “friend
price” of approximately $4. Didn’t sound like a bad deal to me!
I sat and read the paper about the “bandh”, or strike
yesterday, and the governmental changes taking place in Nepal, and caught up on
some emails via my Ipod and the café wifi.
I was there between the breakfast and lunch rushes, and had
some time to take photos of the place after finishing breakfast. The staff was
very interested in what I was doing, so I taught them a little about the photos
I was taking. They were especially interested in the infrared filter I was
playing with. This was the first time I took the filter out in Nepal, and I
didn’t screw it on tight enough. Some light leaked into the exposures, so I’ll
probably go back and take more pics on a later date.
I also experimented a little with HDR photos. There was a
great variety in shadows, flattening out some of my “regular” photos. I
wondered how the colors would play out in the photos. The pics were bright, but
actually reflect the warmth I felt at Mike’s.
I’ll be back, guys! Soon enough.
Just around the corner is a big open dust field, and a pile
of garbage with a crew of garbage pickers making their way through the waste. I
don’t remember this much waste at this spot last year, and it looks as if
they’ve built up their little place a bit. With those observations made, a big
gust of wind picked up a ton of debris and started blowing it my way. THEN the
wind turned into a nice little tornado, headed straight for me! I was so
interested in taking photos that I hadn’t even noticed the twister was headed right
for my camera, until a guy on a motorcycle stopped in front of me and hunkered
down. I quickly covered my camera until the biggest of the wind passed. The guy
on the motorcycle said, “Good, huh?” My reply, “Yes, good!” He wanted to see
the photos. As if crossing the streets in Kathmandu weren’t death defying
enough, might as well throw in a mini-tornado to make things even more
interesting.
On with my walk. So, just a thought… If you build your house
with bricks hand made from dirt/clay/other materials (factories east of the
city), then said house eventually falls apart and the bricks break up back into
dust, does this make the house a recyclable, “green” facility?
Free range chicken!
More people spotting on my walk…
Not much further and I reached Nag Pokhari, a rectangular
pond/lake with a tall snake god figure standing in the middle of it. There was
some sort of religious ceremony taking place. I have to claim ignorance,
because I have no idea what the people were doing, but I took plenty of photos
and video.
The lollipops packed in my bag were well appreciated by the
local kiddos. The kids even came back and asked for seconds. I kind of signed
to them that they’d get more only if I could take more photos of them (with
their mother’s approval). A man in an orange vest jokingly asked for candy,
too. I looked at him with a face that read, “Really?” in any language, then
joked back, took him photo and gave him a lollipop. He was laughing hard when I
left. J
I finally made it to the bank to exchange money. After
changing over the cash, I kept a close eye on who might have followed me out of
the bank. Then I crossed the street and visited my favorite oasis in Kathmandu,
the Garden of Dreams. A big bottle of water there is only NPR 50, or about USD
$.65, quite a bargain. I sat and relaxed for a while in the peaceful
surroundings, then took my tripod out again, and played around a little more
with my IR filter. I haven’t used it much at all yet, so am learning as I
go. Also need to work out
post-processing for the IR photos. Here are some of the results…
Serenity…
And some lovely kids who were all dressed up for their last
day of college (our high school).
It was a good day, walking down toward Thamel. I was tired,
though, and hung around the house with my friend on Day 4. Today is Day 5, and
I plan on either walking or taxiing to Swayambunath today. We still don’t have
power at the house, so I’m typing my posts in Word, then will post them when I
am able. It’s still a strange thought, that I’m sitting here on a Sunday
morning, typing out my post, while back home Saturday Night Live is about to
begin. The night is probably quiet at home on post, while here I’m listening to
horns honking, dogs barking, birds chirping and bells being rung. Well, the
camera is cleaned and ready. On with my day! J
Karin...great again. I may have told you that my nephew is from Nepal and Barry's brother and wife adopted him when he was 2. He is now a teenager.
ReplyDeleteI sent them a link to your blog so if you get a new follower with the last name Willey it's our family.
We miss you.
Excellent photos (as usual) and a great post!
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