Fun Morning and Yummy Afternoon

 

Day 3 ... Birdwatching in the Morning 

and Cooking with (a wonderful) Nepali Family in the Afternoon

For the second day in a row Sunesh, my guide, was flummoxed by what I had requested to do.  🤣  Yesterday's "art day" was not their usual request from tourists, and now birdwatching in the Ranibari Community Forest is equally not on the tourists' lists.  Of course I enjoy the major tourist attractions but I especially enjoy the more local things. 

It was awesome!

We left the hotel at 8AM and took the short drive to get there.  As he had predicted, lots of the locals were there taking their morning stroll or jog along the trail through the woods.  I could tell it's not big becuase the same joggers and walkers kept going past. LOL.

From the moment we stepped inside I knew it was a perfect thing to do - a peaceful refuge in the middle of a city.  

There is the city through the trees along the edge ... 

I enjoyed spotting little critters (except for mosquitoes because as right now Nepal is experiencing a bit of a problem with Dengue Fever.  But don't worry, Mom, I was covered in bug spray and long pants and sleeves. But a special shout out to the Nepali man said, Watch our for mosquitoes," when we walked in. 😝)

Suresh and I both kept pointing out different plants to each other.  He knew a lot about the plant species and which were native or invasive. I just know if something is pretty or not 😆.  (Truth be told I was able to recognize quite a bit from home because Kathmandu and Sarasota both have subtropical climates so lots of the same plants and trees.

I am sure my Sarasota friends recognize this.  

And this ... 

Suresh was definitely the bird spotter, and I just piggy-backed and got to enjoy what he discovered for us.  He really went out of his way to find me birds and it was most appreciated!

So what did we see?

House Crow

Oriental Turtle Dove

White-throated Kingfisher 

Blue-throated Barbet

Black Kite

Black Jungo???

Common Buzzard???

What do you think of my bird photography?  Pretty great pictures, huh???

Stole them from the internet 😇 

ebird.org

*** Perfect place to pause and give you a little info about my daily guide, Suresh ... He is in his early 70s but you would never guess ... He knows a lot about a lot ... He is Buddhist ... He has been to the USA and said we are too fat, eat too much cheese 🤣 and we waste too much food (sad but true) but he wasn't that direct about it out of nowhere so please don't think him rude.  I am sure I had made him feel comfortable enough to speak the truth and I am sure we were talking about something akin to the topic so I was not insulted...  He is an avid birdwatcher and nature enthusiast ... He has written a book about birds ... He was an economist by vocation ... He is from Nepal ... He could be made to laugh rather easily ... He really has been the perfect guide for me ... I know a little about a lot and my interests over the years have varied, and I enjoy learning about most things;  and Suresh has a very deep knowledge about a lot so that made us good companions... 

Plus if he didn't know something, he just said he didn't know...***

So back to our morning ...

Just when I was really noting the lack of temples/shrines or whatever the appropriate names are (I am sorry but I just can't keep the vocabulary straight) we came upon a Buddhist one next to a Hindu one.  Sunesh said that is a perfect illustration of the religious tolerance exercised by practitioners of both.

And then we came upon worship sites at trees.  These trees were considered special/holy (again, I can't recall the word).

And then we came upon one on a step, and I noticed a runner tapped on it as he was running up the stairs.  A great example of how infused their faith is into their everyday lives.

I don't regret one minute having selected this non-tourist site!

Next up on the agenda is Taudaha Lake. (No wonder I am exhausted at the end of every day.  I am normally good for one thing a day at home LOL)

On the way I had quite the awakening as to the level of pollution in Kathmandu.  This is said with no judgement or criticism.  It is not meant to shame. It is just a fact.  

And trust me, these were not just isolated spots.  If they had been I would not have bothered taking pics.  THIS is how it looks all up and down the river for miles.

It made me so sad.  

I did speak with Suresh about it. He brought it up first. He said when he was a young boy he could swim and fish in the rivers, but no more.  I asked him if it made him sad, and he said yes, of course.  I also asked what he thought contributed to it.  He said, increase in population and introduction of plastic.  In my mind I added, "and it's only a developing country with very limited infrastructure.  

It's easy to think, "Why don't they just clean it up?"  Again, please trust me, there is so much trash everywhere that I assure you there is no easy solution.  This is where I have to remind myself, "I don't live here. I don't know the whole story.  It doesn't matter what I think." It just is what it is.

Let's move away from this topic and continue our drive to Taudaha ... 

We arrive ... 

There is a Buddhist mythology about a character who created the lake and something about half-human/half-serpent creatures ... it's a revered place, too, and of course there is a place to worship.

We walked around the lake and then through fields and through some woods.  

Very pleasant. 

This scene was stunning.  Picture does not do it justice.

We saw more birds, but at this moment I can no longer keep track of which birds we saw where that day 😆

Back on the road and then just like that, we arrive in Bhaktapur where I will spend the afternoon learning to make the National Dish - Dal Bhat, and a DELICIOUS soup!  (and eating yogurt made from buffalo milk but more about that later.)

Bhaktapur is considered the best preserved of all the former Newar kingdoms.  (The Newar are an indigenous people who are the largest ethnic group of the Kathmandu Valley.)

No cars are allowed in the main area and it's most definitely a tourist attraction but for all the right reasons - spectacular, detailed architecture.

And then this is where we stop in a paper-making shop.

Lokta paper is a handmade artisan paper indigenous to Nepal.

Then we saw women in the square doing something with rice.  

I am such a city girl I don't know what it's called 

but I know they were working their bottoms off.

After exploring the square a bit we are met by the gentleman who owns with his wife the Pradhan HomeStay where I will learn to prepare, and enjoy eating, the Nepali food.

Hideous picture. I must learn to take a better selfie 😂

The home has a gorgeous garden (of which I did not take a picture because I am an idiot) and we were greeted so warmly by him and his wife.  

They welcome us by offering a dish of specialities that bring luck (I think - LOL).  It felt special and time-honored.  

Before

After

So the pile of the food by my drink is not my being messy - the tradition involves taking a bit of each item and breaking it off and then dropping it on the table before you eat.  (I wish I could remember why.)

The drink was a homemade alcohol - Suresh referred to it as a schnapps.  It didn't smell too terribly strong and had a nice aroma.  Suresh made me giggle when he said he wished he could finish his but he had to drive later that day, and since there is zero tolerance for any alcohol consumption prior to driving he couldn't finish his.  He said, "We don't get 2 'free' drinks like you do in USA.  We can't have any alcohol in our system if we are driving."

Yes, I ate the head first as Suresh suggested.  The hard-boiled egg was actually yummy.  If you can see in the top picture the egg is briefly fried after being boiled so it has a bit of a crispy skin.  And then I don't remember what the other 2 items are. I am glad I tasted all of it but 1 bite was enough.  😜

Then the cooking begins ... 

I cannot stress enough how pleasant this entire afternoon turns out to be.  Never mind the absolutely DELICIOUS feast we prepare.  

First, they only eat seasonal foods.  

 

Second, I LOVE the flavors of the spices they use (cumin, especially) but also turmeric, garlic, salt, ginger, chili powder, coriander)

 

Dal Bhat  - Dal is the lentil soup (a very basic but delicious one) and Bhat is the rice.

 

But Dal Bhat is MUCH more than that.  It is served with a wide accompaniment of vegetables and “pickles” (not what we think of as pickles – more of a condiment to me) and sometimes meat.

 

What did we have with our “lentil soup and rice”?

Well here’s the bulk of the prep station so you can see we had a lot.

 

But first let’s watch the process …

I think this was the start of a soup I am now craving constantly.  

More to come on that … 

 

Mustard greens

 

Cauliflower – but I think you knew that 😉

She cooks with a combination of gas and induction.  

Mrs. does most of the cooking but Mr. helps sometimes, too.  

 

 

Their older daughter joins us. She was an absolute delight.  

(Plus, she also helped me and Mrs. navigate the language barrier) 

 

This is how the “pickles” were made.  Ginger, garlic, salt, small pan fried cherry tomatoes, a chili, and I can’t remember what else …

 

And more food and more food and more food. 

There were too many steps for me to take pictures of each … 

 

So here I will finally show you what we enjoyed.

 

My new FAVORITE soup.

Potato, Bamboo Shoots and Black-eye Pea soup

You may look at it and ask, “How good can that be?”  You may even hear that and think, Meh, because I would have.  Let me tell you – beyond good!

I have already found a recipe I want to try at home.

That could have been the meal because it was so satisfying but it was just the starter.

 

Then the Dal Bhat … remember, Dal Bhat is just the rice and lentil portion but Dal Bhat is so much more – always served with multiple sides of vegetables and sometimes meat. We had chicken.  

Chicken was pan fried.  Then cooked with tomatoes and all the yummy spices.

Small eggplant battered and fried – batter was seasoned with the spices – OMG!

Pan fried Cauliflower or “Cauli” as they call it – 

also seasoned with the same spices -OMG!

Pan-fried Mustard Greens - also seasoned with the same spices -OMG!

 

On the left, small plate is the "pickles."  

That is what I was making.  You add it to your plate.

Then the sliced carrots and cucumbers.  They were a perfect crisp, raw accompaniment to all of the cooked veggies.

Papadum

We took the papad - a lentil product- and flash fried it.

If you aren't familiar with this flavor profile of cumin, etc. and you hear that the same seasonings are used in almost all of the dishes for the same meal, you might think, "Is that too much flavor?"

The answer to that is a Big Fat NO.  It all works and it is the most sensational taste.

I LOVE it!!!

Then, dessert ... here is the Buffalo Milk Yogurt.  You guessed it; also, delicious!  

What a great time! 

The 3 girls really bonded while Mr. and Suresh chatted.  

it felt like home.

I have been messaging with the daughter, Reja, and already we have plans for what they will teach me to cook - Momos (am amazingly delicious Nepali dumpling) 

- the next time I come to Nepal.

Now - just think - most Nepalis eat Dal Bhat TWICE a day.  

Can you imagine all that cooking???

(Honey, if you're reading this - can you imaging me doing this twice a day???)

😂😂😂

Then after we ate and said our Goodbyes, Suresh and I walked through a different section of Bhaktapura.

A police band was performing in the square.  

Fun to see the everyday lives of the Nepali.

Kids are the same the world over. 

Walking home from school and chatting and laughing.

The kids all wear uniforms.  Those that go to school, that is.  

Education is still optional but more and more children are attending school.

Yes, this was a full day.

A fabulous, fun, filing day.

And yes, I took a super long nap when I got back to the hotel.