Dragons

We saw the Komodo dragons! They have terrible skin: needs exfoliation, which you can see on this lovely lady below.

Here is a better perspective of how close we were.

Luckily, they mostly chill during the day, rather than maim you with these claws. 

And baby kimodos are adorable little creatures that you want to cuddle! But cuteness does NOT stop them from being eaten by their older relatives. They have to use agility and tree climbing for that.

The Komodo lands and sea are also very beautiful.

We climbed to the peak of Padar island to get a picture where we tried to not look sweaty.

After climbing to the peak, we earned a rehydrating pina colada.

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Nostril Snakes

In Sri Lanka, I got really interested in nostril snakes. They are common in Sri Lankan masks, which are used for fun, skits, and to ward off demons and bring good fortune. Apparently the snakes are for protection and power, so don't be snake judgy.

I think this one is Naga rakshna, which is for power, fertility and protection, which I wouldn't always group together.  (In real life, there can be nostril worms, but not snakes)

I love the snakeliness very much. I wanted to buy one to ward off the evil spirits who keep breaking our air conditioner, but Barry made ridiculous protestations like they were "ugly" and "creepy", including the smaller ones.

Anyway, the glorious masterpiece below is the Sanni rakshna which embodies all of the 18 diseases. The fun friends include being possessed by demons, fire fever, snakebite and leprosy. They allow you to confront the disease and scare it away, from how I understood it. Seems worth a try alongside the recommendations of a medical professional.

You can see that going down here, I guess, although the masks are kinda missing. I should have asked more questions.

The less fancy masks are used for storytelling and performances.

Which still seem like they could be scary as fark for children.

Sweet dreams!

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Palaces and Temples of Rajasthan

We went to the majestic old palaces of Rajasthan.

There were real and non-real elephants.

There was glitzy glam and also local mustache art in the bar.

This is the prettiest building, however many people agreed and got in the way of our picture.

Artsy palace shots, obviously:

We also went to Ranakpur, an ancient Jain temple, which looks like this.

We got audioguides that failed to teach us about the Jain religion beyond the following facts.

1) You should wear a facemask to avoid inhaling bugs.

2) You can't eat root vegetables because it might harm micro critters.

3) Each of the columns in Ranakpur is unique

4) The carved corner animals have strange numbers of appendages.

We stayed on the (man made) lake in Udaipur, and gazed upon the island palace like this, rather than going to the local rooftops.

Barry took a good picture for the cover of his next album.

And also found his new favourite frindly gas company.

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Nepaloddities

Behold, the best picture of a Nepalese Buffalo I've ever taken. The wet look is flattering. It's a water buffalo after all.

Speaking of farm animals, Kathmandu has some fantastic shopping, including these woollen delights.

Despite its name, this store was not Sold Out.

Butchers offer convenient signs for those with or without reading skills.

Some of the clothing, however, required more advanced linguistics.

This RetroLovement Spankle Chaetosionc shirt includes Cyrillic characters in the fine print.

This one evokes easier times.

Some motivation from American University. Can stop you now.

Beyond shopping, there are other leisures, like this human bartering.

Our hotel had a crystal room and a salt room where you could do fictitious things like "absorb the energy" and "detox your aura". I wondered how they cleaned the salt rocks without melting them.

Lotsa rocks.

Anyway, back to food. Gazzabko Snacks: Fresh Snacks where you Rely!

K-town Stick Food: Delicious - Jumping into the mouth!

Oh, gotta go, the toast is done!

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