Is this the way to Gorkha?

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After I finished the Annapurna Circuit I had one day of rest in the very western city of Pokhara. I could have used two or three days, but it wasn't going to happen if I wanted to witness the celebration of the Dashain Festival with Deepak's (my trekking guide's) family.

The trip to Gorkha started at the Pokhara bus park. Deepak had already returned to Kathmandu to meet up with his wife and kids so I was on my own. I asked which bus went to Gorkha. The response was another question "do you have a ticket?" "No." (The fare can also be paid on the bus) I was directed onto a bus and wondered why it mattered if I had a ticket. Possibly I was not on the most direct bus, but at this point I was along for the ride. Right before the bus left I was told that the bus wasn't actually going to Gorkha, but to Dumbre. Fortunately the young guy sitting next to me was also going to Gorkha and told me it wasn't too hard to get there from Dumbre. Sure enough, we got to Dumbre and my seatmate got me on a microbus to Gorkha. He took another way, I figure he walked. When I got in I thought the vehicle was already at capacity. I was wrong at least four more people "fit" in after me.

my guide-Deepak
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Once at Gorkha I called Deepak's mobile, he wasn't picking up, so I called his brother's number and was picked up in about a half hour. (Later Deepak asked me  how his brother knew I was the guy to pick up, I said it must have been clear since I was the only white person in the entire area).

We walked about 20 minutes to Deepak's parents. Mostly just hung out until Deepak arrived with his family, but I did get a chance to swing on the big bamboo swings erected for the kids during the festival. It must have looked pretty interesting, because people walking by on the road that overlooked the swing stopped to look.

Sunrise, view from Poon Hill
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The real highlights (besides observing the daily rituals of the family) came with the ceremonies associated with the festival.

In the evening Deepak took me to the palace which was about 450 years old. This is where the animal sacrifices took place. When we entered the first small courtyard a piglet was about to be sacrificed, we moved onto the larger courtyard before it happened.

In the larger courtyard there was a pretty dense group of people packed around a cow that weighed probably about 250. No huge, but fairly sized. The cow was being forced down with ropes, and there was a red sheet covering its back. There was a group of people playing horns and drums, then it went quiet. A man with a large sword (reminded me of an Arabic sword) was waiting to begin the sacrifice. The monks were reading a blessing and the cow was resisting with all it's might. It took several attempts for it to be secured down. Then the guy with the sword took the first swing, a monk followed bringing his sword aross the cow's neck and the job was finished by a second monk, the third swing. (I was told really big cows take seven swings of the sword). The atmosphere was electric. People crowded forward with big dry leaves or small empty chip bags to collect the blood which was used for medicinal purposes. The experience was mesmerizing.

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The other highlight was recieving the tika from Deepak's family. His grandmother, father, mother, and he placed rice that was dyed red, and soaked in sugar and yogurt on my forehead as a blessing.

After two days we headed back to Kathmandu in what began as an extremely brutal bus ride. I'm sure buses are more crowded in India, but this one was pretty tight. It was hot, the bus stopped every five minutes to pick more people up, it just felt like there was going to be no end to the amount of people allowed in or on top of the bus. It also felt like we were never going to make any headway because of the constant stops, but after an hour and a half we reached the village many of the people were travelling to, and the next five hours weren't so bad.

Sunset from Poon Hill
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Now I'm in Kathmandu enjoying the easy life. I will be bungy jumping and canyoneering in a few days and will figure things out from there. I'm going to add a few more pictures, most are from the trek, it's easiest for me to go from cd to the computer rather than my camera, and it will be a while before I burn another cd with the most recent photos.