Freak Street – Kathmandu

Being on the go is important to me.  So, traveling to remote places fits me perfectly.  This painting is the result of traveling to remote locales in Asia.  In this case, the locale is the country of Nepal which is bordered by China on the north and India on the South.  I had traveled there with my wife and traveling partners following a long tour of Rajasthan (Northwest India).  The setting for the painting is the section of Kathmandu (Capital City of Nepal) known as Freak Street.  The streets there are narrow and heavily populated with bicycles, motorcycles, Rickshaws and  people.  I love capturing daily life and this painting does just that.  The painting has seen success when competing with others and it is a fixture in my travel exhibit, called Places because it is a landmark location, a place.

You might ask why is it called Freak Street – Kathmandu.  The painting is the essence of Freak Street in the capital city.  Freak Street is the question mark.  The street and section is a carryover from early days when the Beatles traveled to India, seeking enlightenment.  Word got out that Nepalese ceremonies used hashish as part of their rituals.  Hashish was legal in Nepal at that time so it was like a magnet to the followers of the Beatles in India.  Those followers were and are referred to as Freaks because of use of psychedelic drugs and other such substances including marijuana and hashish.  Hashish is no longer legal in Nepal but the name of Freak Street has stuck to this day.