AROUND THE KATHMANDU VALLEY - Bodhnath (Boudha)

After Kathmandu craziness, Bodhnath felt like a little oasis of peace and quietness. This is the place of Asia's largest stupa, beneath the watchful eyes of the Buddha. 

I sat for a few hours simply enjoying the serenity of the place. Tibetans monks with maroon robes waking by, what it seemed like billions of pigeons taking off and flying back, pilgrims spinning prayer wheels around the stupa, all chaos free.

Historically, the stupa was an important staging post on the trade route between Lhasa and Kathmandu, and Tibetan traders would pray here for a safe journey before driving their yaks on to the high passes of the Himalaya. Today's inhabitants of the village of Boudha are mainly refugees from China after 1959. If interested in learning Boudhisme, this is a great place for Western dharma students.