Swayambhunath occupies a wooded hill that rises abruptly from the floor of the Kathmandu valley, and the climb is part of the experience: a long stone stairway lined with carved images and patrolled by the monkeys that gave the site its popular nickname. At the summit stands the stupa, its whitewashed dome surmounted by a gilded tower and the painted eyes that face the four directions, surrounded by shrines, statues, votive plaques and a dense forest of prayer flags. The site is shared: Buddhist and Hindu devotion coexist here, and the film records both, along with the ritual gestures of visitors — circumambulation, prayer wheels, lamps, offerings of vermilion and rice. From the terrace, the whole valley and its expanding city spread below, an unmatched vantage point on Nepal's capital. Part of the Kathmandu Valley World Heritage property, and filmed in 4K from dawn through evening lamp-lighting.
