Katmandu Nepal

The army took complete control of this embattled capital and several major suburbs Saturday to enforce an unprecedented 24-hour curfew and stall a popular uprising for democracy that is threatening Asia's oldest monarchy. Dozens of Chinese-made armored personnel carriers, bristling with weapons, patrolled Katmandu's deserted streets throughout the day.

"Ah, Miss Barbara," the old tour guide said, as Barbara Adams drove away from the Hotel Yak and Yeti, her long hair billowing like a silver flame out of her ancient white convertible. "Ah, Miss Barbara," the guide repeated, pointing toward the disappearing image and shaking his head. "She was once a queen."

India's new rich and the old poor are flocking to Katmandu, the capital of the world's only Hindu kingdom, for a different kind of pilgrimage. The attraction is not the Katmandu Valley, the abode of Hindu gods, but Casino Nepal, the shrine of roulette and blackjack tables and one-arm bandits. Tourism officials and casino owners as well as prospering hoteliers agree that the casino has encouraged tourism from one poor country to another.