Bhaktapur, Nepal & Overnight in Nagarkot

We arrived in Bhaktapur in the dark...I mean really in the dark: there was a power outage.

Christian and I were used to these little power outages which occur up to 8 hours a day in Nepal...even in Kathmandu! Usually the power is out in the morning for a few hours then in the evening.

Walking through the streets means motorbike lights are the best light you can get. The houses and street stalls are illuminated with one candle in the middle of the room or one lightbulb hanging from the wall running on a backup generator. It's actually pretty neat to witness.

We had an extra treat upon arrival in Bhaktapur, too. Once we found our way to Dattatreya Square, to find our guesthouse, the main temple in the middle of the square (Dattatreya Temple), and right at our guesthouse' doorstep, had a ceremony going on. The entire perimeter of the shrine was illuminated with candles and a group of Nepalese men sat on its' covered stoop beating drums and humming along. We dropped our bags pretty quickly and went right back outside to enjoy the spectacle.

Then we witnessed a Nepali wedding...just like that! A bride and groom being led by dancing and singing men holding swinging lanterns and incense...also in the dark of night.

We kind of got lost in Bhaktapur...after 2 weeks of traveling in this magical country, we felt like we really got to know the culture and soaked it up. And, we were itching for a bit of relaxing on the beach as we were just days away from leaving Nepal for Indonesia.

We escaped for a quick overnight to the hilltop town of Nagarkot and had a panoramic view of the sunset that night. 

Once back in Bhaktapur, we had yet another treat of meeting a fellow American/photographer/SE backpacker named Eric. We joined him for some beers at one of Bhaktapur's only rooftop bars...really one of their only bars in the entire town! Nepalis are not known to be drinkers...atleast not at bars. And with the entire village of Bhaktapur being a Unesco World Heritage Site, you can imagine that there probably wasn't too much room to add drinking establishments in a beautiful, rustic place like this :).

What a great night though...sipping on our last Nepalese beer, getting some tips from a fellow Californian on his last stop on a 5-month backpacking trip (and our first stop! Go figure...) and seeing the dark outline of the temples of Bhaktapur just right in front of us...yet again, during a power outage ;)...

WHERE TO STAY IN BHAKTAPUR

*For a little splurge (and some delicious Oreo muffins) and a cool stay in an old wooden Nepali house, book a room at the Peacock Guesthouse...we spent about $30 a night but we had our own room and a big breakfast (including that delicious Oreo muffin as a breakfast-dessert) served to us right on our own balcony.

*For a cheaper option, try the Nayatapola Guesthouse. Located right around the corner from Pottery Square, $15 per room, HOT (shared) shower, a sneaky teeny tiny balcony which overlooks the street below and the best wifi we had in Nepal ;).

{Warning: Peacock Guesthouse has low ceilings...may not be ideal for extremely tall folk and Dutch people ;)...but Christian liked it...and adjusted as you can see}

{Coolest guesthouse we stayed at in Nepal: Peacock Guesthouse}

{Quick overnight trip in Nagarkot}

{Back to Bhaktapur and now staying by Pottery Square!}