Events
Bato ko cinema, six movies, six screenings, six awesome chances to watch amazing documentaries in the streets of Patan. 6 to 21 December, Thursdays and Fridays, 6pm onwards, Patan, 9813485716, (01)5523486
Green solutions fair, learn new ideas for a clean, green living; cycle rally to Godawari will start from the Nepal Tourism Board at 8.40am. Free entrance, 8 December, 10 am to 4 pm, ICIMOD Knowledge Park, Godawari, half-hourly bus available at Jawalakhel, 9841876696, 9841275806, 9851058768
Katha-kuro, opportunity for young aspiring writers to learn the art of narrative storytelling at this feature-writing workshop with journalist, blogger, and aspiring filmmaker Pranaya Rana. Rs 1,000, 15, 16, 22 and 23 December, 10am to 2pm, Ting's Tea Lounge, Lazimpat, editor@ventzine.com, apply at http://goo.gl/o7Sed
Photo circle forty four, featuring a talk by US-based photographers Annu Palakunnathu Matthew and David H. Wells, and a presentation by participants of Photo Circle's Memory and Identity workshop. 7 December, 5.30pm, Metro Park (second floor), Uttar Dhoka
Adolescent girls in Nepal between tradition and modernity, an exhibition of Thomas Kelly's works which reveal the risks and challenges faced as well as the opportunities available to young women in Nepal. 7 to 16 December, 8am to 6pm, Indigo Gallery, Naxal, (01)4413580
Rode microphone seminar, learn with Greg Simmons how to correctly and effectively use microphones for your recording sessions. Rs 1,500, 15 December, 10am to 5pm, Kathmandu Jazz Conservatory, (01)5013554, info@katjazz.com
Piano lessons, a month-long tutelage under Thomas Duvigneau who shall be teaching rhythm, sight reading, scales, simple and advance harmonisation, piano solo, and comping. 9 December to 9 January, 5 classes a week, (01)5013554, info@katjazz.com
Music
Shastriya Sangeet, dabble in the magic of Hindustani classical music every new moon night. 13 December, Ram Mandir, Battisputali
Live at Café 32, live music, and delicious food every Friday. 7 December, 6pm onwards, Café 32, Battisputali, (01)4244231
KCM inter-college music competition, rock the living daylights out of your competitors, and win up to Rs 145,000 in cash and kind. Rs 5000 registration fee, 15 December, 10am to 7pm, Fun Park, Bhrikuti Mandap, (01)5201997
Dining
New Tushita Restaurant, relaxing ambience and good food. Don't miss out on its penne with creamy bacon and mushroom sauce. Lazimpat, (01)44432957
Falcha, give yourself away to the twin pleasures of lemon jeera chicken and mutton handi kabab. Jhamsikhel, Lalitpur
Chilly Bar and Restaurant, quality food and wide selection of drinks with great views of Phewa Lake. Lakeside, Hallanchok, Pokhara, (061)463614/463163
Magic Beans, coffee, cakes and sandwiches with a magical touch and taste. Sherpa Mall, Durbar Marg, (01)4230914
Sarangkot Fordays Restaurant, have a Sarangkot special breakfast while enjoying spectacular views of the mountain ranges. Sarangkot, Pokhara, (061)696920, 9817136896
Café Du Temple, famous for its delicious food, warm ambience and a beautiful roof top view. Patan Darbar Square, (01)5527127
Mike's Breakfast, huge breakfasts and an endless supply of coffee amidst a lush garden setting characterise this café, popular among tourists and locals alike. Naxal, (01)4424303
Little Italy, go vegetarian at this new Italian food chain and don't forget to end your meal with the chef's special, chocolate bomb. Darbar Marg
Boudha Stupa Restaurant and Cafe, bide your time in our free wi-fi zone as you enjoy our wood-fired pizzas, home-made pastas, and the Tibetan gyakok. Boudha, (01)4485585
Rox Restaurant, enjoy Sunday Pranzo at Rox Restaurant. 12pm to 3.30pm, Hyattt Regency, (01)4491234
Cinnamon Grill and Lounge, mouth watering delicacies with live music. Try the grilled tenderloin steak and quiche lorraine with fresh fruit salad. Jhamsikhel, (01)5521339
Lhasa Bar, enjoy a beer or a splash of cocktail at this springboard for excellent young musicians starting out on the Thamel circuit. Thamel, 985101043
Saigon Pho, spacious interior with authentic Vietnamese dishes. Lazimpat
Shangri-La Kitchen, cook your own Gyakok at this newly opened restaurant. Hotel Tibet International,
Boudha
Irish Pub, for the simple reason that the place actually feels like a bar. Don't miss out on their Irish coffee. Lazimpat, Ananda Bhawan, (01)4416027
Getaways
Winter camp at Borderlands, send your kids packing into the jungle to develop their leadership, communication, and basic life skills while taking part in outdoor and extracurricular activities such as tent crafting, rock climbing, canyoning, abseiling, cookery classes and art, music and dance lessons. 5 to 12 January, Borderlands Resort, Bhotekoshi, (01)4381214, 9802025666, www.borderlandsresorts.com
Hotel Landmark, made entirely from traditional Nepali brick and woodcraft, this hotel is rich not only in heritage, but also in services and boasts an award winning restaurant, the Hungry Eye. Pokhara, (061)462908/463096/464897,
www.landmarkpokhara.com
Dhulikhel Lodge Resort, located on a hilltop the resort offers a magnificent vista of valleys, foothills, and moutains to the north. Dhulikhel, (011) 490114/494, www.dhulikhellodgeresort.com
Mindfulness Meditation, join Jharna Bajracharya for a deeply enriching journey into your mind. Rs 1,400, 16 December, 10am to 4pm, Pranamaya Yoga Studio Boudha, Pipal Bot, register via info@pranamaya-yoga.com, 9851002920
Where am I?
Confusion greets the unsuspecting visitor at the Patan Museum. A 100 human feet radiate outwards from the centre of the courtyard, where the Keshav Narayan temple stands firm. These are not stray footsteps of all the visitors that might throng to a place of worship, but are the echoes of the same person's feet. Perhaps the devotee in this art-installation stumbled here by chance, and had so many places to go to that she couldn't decide to go anywhere at all.
Nearby, was the Peak of Communism: tin pails turned upside down, their bases melted and risen like mountains, an image of transformation into a majestic piece of rock which was, ironically, entirely hollow in the inside.
Deep inside the museum's courtyard, onto Kathmandu Contemporary Arts Centre's premises, were excavations of the present day Valley: pillars and columns made not of cement and sand, but embedded with the undecaying plastic of polythene bags and junk food sachets.
The sense of decay in Neelkanth was so powerful that it assaulted every sensory organ. In an adjoining installation, a mechanical tree grew, never mind its poor qualities as a substitute, in a room of glass and concrete.
Another depiction of environmental loss: metal sparrows found themselves in garbage dumps, sand banks, and construction sites. The clean and the green are so rare in today's urban spaces that only a real wooden log can truly serve to congregate real-life pigeon. Contrast this natural happening with another wooden log, but this one with glass mushrooming on its surface: no birds gathered here.
The imagination boggles at the Kathmandu International Art Festival, what are you waiting for?
www.artmandu.org, runs till 21 December
