Da Ugly Devil's Heaven

Once one of my friend, Amit, was throwing a small party and we had the discussion about whose house to make the center point and gathering. Then we made if final the place is going to be no one’s house but Basantapur, the place we usually hang out every Saturday after our basketball game. I still remember my friend, Samundra, saying, “Yeah man! Basantapur is the perfect place. I feel I am at home when I am there. In fact, it is our home!” It was so funny and at the same time it was the reality too. We now have a habit of going there at least once a week. The place is just so awesome. It is the main place for hanging out for all groups of people in Kathmandu these days, from kids playing around to teenagers to adults, and old people.

Besides the local people hanging around, some drinking tea, some couples having fun making out secretly, and friends gathering around, we also have tourist roaming here and there buying souvenir from the sellers who comes early in the morning and install their little stalls and deploy all their marvels. Most of the souvenirs are specially made for the tourists. A lot of artisans and little factories are situated in Patan and Bhaktapur. The Newars who are the original population of the valley are famous for their skills and make very nice souvenirs. Quiet a few people had to pay a lot for overweight when they flew back home. So these days the place is crowded with people, especially in the evenings.

We have lots of stalls there on the street floor where people buy and sell street food or you may say as fast food. We have different varieties of food there. And we have this woman we call “Didi,” meaning sister in Nepali language, who sells tea where we hang out. It is in one of the temples situated in Basantapur. Kathmandu is known for the pagoda-style temples. It is also known as city of temple. Our hangout place is also in one of the temples. The highest temple called The Maju Deval Temple. It just looks like a pyramid. And the temple has God Shiva inside, well Linga of Shiva to be precise. So that’s about the our hangout place, what my friend named it as “Basantapur, Our Home!!!”