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Sadhu, or wandering ascetic, sitting outside Boudnath stupa.

There are many extravagantly dressed fake holy men in this area, who pretend to be sadhus and aggressively charge tourists for photo opportunities. Two of them are in the photo at the right. Our guide told us that these men eat meat, drink alcohol, and sleep with women (all things real sadhus never do), and for them being a sadhu is just a way to make a living.

The man above, on the other hand, ignored me while I took his picture from close range. For him, this is a spiritual quest, for the men on the right, it's a financial quest.

Look around at photos of Hindu sadhus in Nepal, and you'll find a lot of pictures of men like the ones on the right, dressed in fancy clean clothes with bright colors that photograph well.