October 4, 2014

If you head a little outside the Kathmandu Valley’s dense urban areas during the Dashain Festival, you’ll find one of the holiday’s most joyful traditions: giant bamboo swings called “pings”. Surrounded by laughing Nepali boys and girls, the ping in this photo sits atop a hill just outside the district of Bhaktapur. Pings are constructed by fastening four bamboo trunks together, and remain in use throughout Nepal’s biggest holiday season (which begins with the start of Dashain and ends with the holiday Tihar a couple weeks later).

Hop on a ping and you will instantly feel like a kid again (and giggle like one too). And if you’re feeling particularly brave (as many of the local kids were), try standing up on it as it hurls you back and forth!

From the construction by the adults to the enjoyment by the kids, this Dashain tradition definitely brings the whole community together.