Sights, sounds - and smells

Sights, sounds - and smells of Kathmandu - the sight of vehicles zooming around each other, swerving around people and animals, the sight of fruit, vegetable and meat stalls lining the cobbled streets, of people with masks to cover their noses from the permeating pollution, and children doggedly pursuing you for a few rupees; the sounds of worship at 7:00 a.m., and bells tinkling to awaken dead spirits, of constant honking of horns as you walk the streets, of children playing in the courtyard in the dark at 7:00 in the evening when the electricity has gone off, of roosters crowing in the morning, street dogs barking and goats bleeting; and the smells in the evening of people burning their garbage. The last time we saw a garbage can, except for one single one at Bahrain airport, was in Canada - not one in London (for fear of bombs), nor in Kathmandu. So garbage is collected into little piles on the street for burning. Car fumes and burning garbage - the smells of Kathmandu.