a maha-blog for dasain 2066

it was a special dasain this year because for the first time after their wedding, chhora buhari were home for the festival! we all missed kripa not being here (she was here for the last dasain) but then the german janke couple added extra spice to our celebrations.

dasain's still not over yet.. but here's a flavour of how we spent it... a lot of focus on the couple's first dasain at home!

...the homecoming... and relaxing around muwa's bed

..priya entices the doggies with tidbits

that evening we had a small get together

irene now has stories to tell with the monkeybite she received at swayambhu and the whole slew of shots she had to take a a result of that bandartokai!

dessert time!

... and a little bit of hawa to air away johannes' chilly flush...

my sel ko tel induced blister

... and cholu's expertise with bandaging munu's paws being put to the test!!!

means a contented me!

there were two kanya pujas on nawami... one was a gunyu cholo to suniti rijal (basu's daughter)

and the other.. to 9-month old srijana bhushal (amar's daughter)
.. srijana, of course seemed more interested in the wrapping of booties than in the teddy amongst the goodies she received in the puja!!!

the jankes explore baba's other kali.. the massagewaali!

jonnanes tries eating with his fingers

baba busy making phone calls in preparation for the trip to muktinath

dasain, of course, means changas

... it was a weird weather.. the south was totally open, the northern half of the valley shrouded in dark clouds, and this little window in the north of the valley peeping into nuwakot and rasuwa

the wind in the 'wrong' direction... southwest.... and baba's changa is phasoed in a bad way

ahhhh..... chaaaaaaeeeet!

chhora gives bau a good back rub

toothless annochh's tongue hangs out as he waits by the stairs and wonders what the whole commotion is about during dasain!

there are tons of things to do before tika.. dishes to wash and wipe

food needs to be prepared and served for all

and we dare not forget alu ko achaar!

tika day arrives, and the jamaras finally see sunlight

muwa gets everybody on a dasain mood with a bit of sandalwood perfume that her father had gifted her ages ago, probably more than half a century ago!

cholu and 'bhangera' matching in orange outfits
four generations of sasu buharis
om shanti.. shanti... shantihi
rajan starts the tika from muwa

and then mami

the jankes get the full dasain treatment

muwa with her panati

complete with the dhog

.

.. panatini buhari's turn with muwa

cholu then adds to the line-up

the jankes follow

dulaha dulhai ko paalo

sirimati ko dhog payera makkha sirimanji

the sister's turn next

cholu gets a rare dhog from her daju

ganga's all decked and glittery for tika

amar's family's line up in front of muwa

then the janke's turn to do the rituals

johannes applies tika on irene

and after a dhog, irene demands dakshina.. and johannes fishes out a 5 and then a 20 rupees note from his pocket to give to her!

nanda bhauju... nearly twins

trying desperately to look like twins maybe!

...finally all smiles

after a trip to dhotatole guruma, we then headed for my mamaghar. aside from the tika it was the group photo of thulomama's batchmates at the banaras hindu university (bhu) that caught our eye

notice sano mama (mami's brother) and buwa in the upper row, mami in the middle row and bp koirala in the lower row

mama and maiju doing us the honours. mam's ashish which he bestows with so much sincerity seems to go straight into the heart.. amazing experience everytime he does so! loved it when he lovingly called me 'boksi' once again after so many years!

at madhudidi's we met with dineshmama too

then it was off to patan dhoka.. first to dada deviji

daji and milan's turn for the tika

and then sandaji and shanta's turn

priya wanted to feel like the older (and taller) sister as she put tika on eelum

... with a little help, of course!!!

deviji is assited back to her room

after tika's at babi's we went to buludidis.

tete a tete with bhawana

met dipudaju and jyoti there too

then off to kanchhu didi's

.. and then the other phupu.. bonadidi

daji being bullied by this 'grand-pups' at bonadidi's place

then it was a pit-stop to rehna's maiti. samdhi and samdhini with their first tika to their chhori jwaain after marriage

the turn of the aadhi gharwaali

samdhis engrossed in guff gaff

the final stop of tika day was to mahesh mama's (kiran's maheshmama, not mine!)

caught up with hemudaju and family there

baba even had time for his first round of cards of the season

the following days was lukamaari with people that came to put tika .. here is hari bajey

popi and family getting tika from muwa

anu came by on crutches for tika with her phupu

the most important guest of the tika season... balkumari from the pashupati briddhashram!!
with januka bajai

mami and krishna jwaainsaab

muwa with guruma

rehna serves to keshari raj buwa, indu phupu and family

jyoti phupu was a surprise visitor

chandra and daughter

annocch wispers sweet nothings into bindadi's ears

muwa and bindadi...

... and thuldidi

there were many many (hundreds) who came for the tika to our house.. some like sri ranga dai came alone...

and others like hajuridai's santati (sabitri and her sister's families) who came as a group
the sudden shower puts a chaet changa in jeopardy

quarter to six says ghantaghar.. time for the sun to set

the hotel in nagarkot reflects the lights of the setting surya

dubdo ghaam

p.s. my blister's subsided, by the way!