Kitten Heels in Kathmandu: Adventures of a Female Vagabond
Mary Bartnikowski
Language: English
Pages: 322
ISBN: B005MR4X1I
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
About Mary’s writing:
"Wise, warm, witty, it ripples with rude, righteous fun and at the same time offers profound insights into the nature of creative expression. It resonates from top to bottom with deep and abiding humanity. Here is an irresistible book jam-packed with practicality and spirituality alike. It is essential reading for all true souls of light who love literature."
- Prof. Richard Walter, Screenwriting Chairman, UCLA Film School
“A blast of fresh air, a more in-your-face Erma Bombeck”
- San Francisco Chronicle
“Candid and edgy”
- San Jose Mercury News
“Along the lines of Virginia Woolf but in an irreverent voice akin to Annie Lamott.”
- Palo Alto Weekly
“She talks about things that I wouldn’t tell my best friend.”
- Mary’s Mom
A sassy, heart-pounding, true tale of wanderlust, and the exhilaration of flying by the seat of your pants.
What happens when a high-spirited, solo mom and photographer finds her life fitting too tightly and decides to cut loose and be free?
Newly minted as a lone warrior, she strikes out on her own after raising her teen son and takes us on a water slide ride from mystical Machu Picchu to the rooftop of the world in Nepal discovering the thrill and transformation of travel and global humanitarian work.
Around the world by bus, boat, train, and plane with no big bank account and very little electricity she communes with llamas in Peru, rides elephants bareback in Nepal, meditates in the Himalayas, surfs in Ecuador, salsa dances with babies in Colombia, and cracks up kids teaching English in India.
Like a martini mixed with metaphysics, this gutsy adventure book explores the good, the bad, and the provocative and peopled mosaic of crossing international borders on foot, rattling Bolivian busses, being besieged by beef in Buenos Aries, shooting photographs for orphanages, schools, and ashrams, and hitchhiking in the Himalayas.
And you don’t even have to leave your house.
Drop shipped into third world countries with little more than a language dictionary and her own playful spirit she leaves behind the baggage of her life; her bed, belongings, and break-up after two decades of marriage and discovers her new status as a free and unfettered woman.
With an unusual combination of spiritual panache and deadpan hilarity Kitten Heels captivates with sheer delight and a big dose of courage.
Full Color Photo Edition, jam-packed with stunning images from Asia, South America and Central America.
About Mary's Writing:
“Along the lines of Virginia Woolf but in an irreverent voice akin to Annie Lamott.”
- Palo Alto Weekly
“Raw emotion, a good read.”
- Library Journal
See Everyday Naked, her first book here on Amazon.
www.amazon.ca/Everyday-Naked-Mary-Bartnikowski/dp/0890878765
Discover Mary TV
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSbSvTMZ4NXg7WuL1MkIXow
The Shelters of Stone (Earth's Children, Book 5)
The Spirit Banner (Rogue Angel, Book 22)
South with the Sun: Roald Amundsen, His Polar Explorations, and the Quest for Discovery
Callsign: Queen - Book I (A Zelda Baker - Chess Team Novella)
horses and make me egg sandwiches. But better to put those thoughts to rest if I can. I am practicing living in the now moment. I hear noise out in the dark hallway. I thought I was the only human here in the gompa. There are kids yelling but they have to get up and pray in the morning so they will probably settle down soon. I like living here more than in California. I feel rich. I can afford this country buying $3 per night rooms. And since I only spent $3 on a room I can eat out all the time
on an actual beverage. They tried to get me to buy the Sunday brunch buffet that I am sure cost two legs and both arms. The hotel staff attempted to rope me in with a cocktail. I was smitten when they mentioned it was free even though I don’t drink so I followed the attendant in to the swank bar area and saw everyone else drinking a scarlet-red liquid that looked pretty in a fancy glass. But it was just a teaser; the cocktail was “included” in the brunch buffet so drinking it meant I had to buy
of it worked out the way I thought it would. But I am happy. I feel an absence of having to strive all the time. I read somewhere that happiness is the absence of suffering. That makes sense to me. It doesn’t have to be gay twirling cartwheels around the living room in ecstasy – it’s just the absence of pain. Time for a nap and some water. Only two more hours to go – then I get to be on a train sleeping. Oh happy day to be horizontal on a berth swaying, like being in the womb. Yoga in
house.” Kali misses him and gets angry. Some elephants are more tender than humans. So each coochie is hand wrapped with long grass and love around a big lump of rice or oats with packets of juicy fruit looking vitamins in it. The reeds are cut from the jungle. My friends Manish and Govinda taught me how to do it. They also watch out so the elephants don’t trample me. Elephants obey them, I’m just a foreigner come to visit. I drank a coke today with three elephants as company on the main road
speeding up. It felt wrong and detrimental to my health and just plain mental. No one there agreed with me. As I paid the bill after my 15 minutes of fake sun terror I saw a steady stream of perfectly baked humans marching towards the cancer beds. Their tans were unnaturally smooth; gilt-gold in color and their smiles looked plastic. I felt robbed of my money and maybe some brain cells. Chasing after things and people. In the end my reward was unsavory. The thing was not a victory. The person
