Kathmandu (I've given up competing with this spell check which abhors my use of the form Katmandu) is my favorite city in the whole world (after Berkeley, of course).

I returned this year with no intention other than to be in the shadow of the Himalayas. I chose to stay in Patan, one of the three traditional cities in the Kathmandu Valley (along with Kathmandu and Bhaktapur). Patan is a few miles south of Kathmandu and has its own ancient royal Durbar Square and many other places of interest.

After a few days in Patan and a lot of temple touring I transited to a hotel in Kathmandu's Thamel area which is the spiritual/religious/tourist center of the city.

Walking from my hotel in either city to a cafe or to an ATM or to one or the other Durbar Square is a journey of discovery. The variety of photos in the nepal 2017 gallery is a reflection of the heterogeneity of place. This and the omnipresence and intensity of colors are the two things most noticeable in Kathmandu and in the gallery.

Some of my memorable moments were sent back as photos in more or less real time emails to a few friends. I've reproduced the photo journal for Nepal here.