Photography helps me process the details, the little beauties, the little peculiarities, the little strange things that make me smile. Although it’s a few days late, I wanted to post a few of my favorite shots from the first half of my time in Patan.

1. Tika Buddha – Every small or large carved buddha on any chaitya (stone, pyramidal, buddhist monument with four sides), large or small, is delicately blessed with tika smeared across its forehead
2. The Boys – On my first day in Patan, I got amazingly lost and met these little jokesters. We played some soccer (I’m absolutely horrible), danced a little, sang some JB and laughed at my inability to speak Nepali.
3. Speed
4. A Portrait of Patan Night – The crazy combination of 16th century Newari pagodas, honking horns, motorcycles whizzing by and the lights of typical urban life. All just on my short walk home.
5. Starry Water Tank- Just the water tank on my roof backlit by some lovely stars. These are on every roof but the red of the rust in the dark night struck me.
6. Central Ashok Stupa – These ancient stupas, or Buddhist monuments embodying the five elements (earth, water, fire, air, ether), point to the five directions: north, east, south, west and to the skies. They date back to the empire of Ashoka Maurya c. 360 B.C.E