Kathmandu... it grows on you

I had such an unrealistic, romantic idea of this city- I imagined close streets, dark, unfamiliar, foreign with an asian influence, mysterious and appealing- the Orient- the unknown. What an awesome image, the "Big Trouble in Little China" type with old men and their wispy beards selling sketchy artifacts in dark alleys... not so much? It was just another sprawling, dirty, Indian-type city- complete with beggars and touts, trash and filth, bad air and run-down parks. There were a few back streets that had the asian mystery I had conjured up in my mind with random temples and a few dragon statues- but at first, I was sorely disappointed. At first...
The more I walked around, re-calibrated and shifted to a completely different culture, the more I enjoyed every bit of it. Probably because my expectation wore off and I enjoyed it for what it is. You have to find those aspects in these places or else it's too easy to dislike the entire package. Similar to India but with its own vibe, Kathmandu started piecing itself together into quite an unexpected and foreign form... exactly what I was hoping for.
It is known as the city of many temples, and it couldn't be more true. Everywhere you walk, there is some type of structure that thousands of people worship. Big asian pagodas with gold-gilded dragons, small clay ovens with Hindu gods, random stupas and innumerable inlaid carvings into every alley wall and corner. This country is fascinating- being mainly a Hindu Kingdom, it did not open its borders to Westerners until around 1950. The plains and big cities are mostly Hindu and the mountains, dominated by the Sherpas, pray to the gods of Buddhism. It's a contrast that cannot be understood easily, as both religious histories blend and weave to form some of the most intricate, beautiful and confusing patterns of spiritual thought I've ever encountered.
Ironically, with all of its emphasis on religious piety and a life led for the divine, Kathmandu has one of the most brutal and violent pasts of the asian continent. In 2001, the "Royal Massacre" took place where the prince, denied a marriage to a rival family by his own blood, went on a killing rampage and slaughtered his entire royal line. Then he tried to kill himself. His corrupt uncle took the crown and their has been revolt and bloodshed ever since. The democratic system has tried for years to establish itself, while Communist parties and other power-hungry political groups fight and kill for any government position. The maoists here are incredibly violent, and interestingly, both feared and supported in large numbers here. While spending time in this beautiful country, the papers repeatedly covered daily killings and attacks leading up to the "democratic" election. In 2004, Nepal had the highest rate of "disappeared persons" in the world.
It has been quite a trip through this land of plains and mountains- peaceful to these eyes, but with such a difficult past for those who call it home. Such a difference between flats and hills, the Terai and the Himalayas, the Hindus and the Buddhists, the rich and the poor- contrasts and contradictions, such heights and such lows.