Other sights in Nepal
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Freak Street
Kathmandu's most famous street from the hippy overland days of the 1960s and '70s runs south from Basantapur Square. Its real name is Jochne but since the early '70s it has been better known as Freak Street. In its prime, the street's squalor and beauty was irresistible.
The smell of sweet incense, children fluttering prayer wheels, cheap hotels, ad hoc restaurants and shops selling enlightenment, were standard sights on Freak Street. Not surprisingly, it made an instant rapport with the dusty-haired 'freaks' who gave the street its name. Love-ins are a thing of the past, but Freak Street's history and plum position in the heart of old Kathmandu still make it a popular de…
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Kopan Monastery
On a hilltop north of Bodhnath, Kopan Monastery was founded by Lama Thubten Yeshe, who died in 1984, leading to a worldwide search for his reincarnation. A young Spanish boy, Osel Torres, was declared to be the reincarnated lama, providing the inspiration for Bernardo Bertolucci’s film Little Buddha. Lama Tenzin Osel Rinpoche no longer resides at Kopan, but visitors are welcome to explore the monastery and many people come here to study Buddhist psychology and philosophy.
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Swayambhunath Temple
There are two ways to approach Swayambhunath temple, but by far the most atmospheric is the stone pilgrim stairway that climbs the eastern end of the hill. Constructed by King Pratap Malla in the 17th century, this steep stone staircase is mobbed by troops of rhesus macaques, who have made an artform of sliding down the steep handrails. A word of advice: keep foodstuffs out of sight of these simian hoodlums!
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Janakpur Women’s Development Centre
One of the best-known social projects is the Janakpur Women’s Development Centre, just outside Janakpur in the village of Kuwa. Around 40 Mithila women are employed at the centre, producing paper paintings, papier-mâché boxes and mirrors, screen-printed fabrics and hand-thrown ceramics. The bright colours and animated imagery are both unique and delightful, and the money raised goes directly towards improving the lives of rural women. You can meet the artisans and buy directly from the centre. It’s also worth picking up a copy of the Master Artists of Janakpur, which provides an excellent insight into the lives of several of the artists and how they’ve benefited fro…
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Seto Bhairab
Seto (White) Bhairab's horrible face is hidden away behind a grille opposite King Pratap Malla's column. The huge mask dates from 1794, during the reign of Rana Bahadur Shah, the third Shah dynasty king. Each September during the Indra Jatra festival the gates open to reveal the mask for a few days. At that time the face is covered in flowers and rice and at the start of the festivities beer is poured through the horrific mouth, as crowds of men fight to get a drink of the blessed brew.
At other times of the year you can peek through the lattice to see the mask, which is used as the symbol of Royal Nepal Airlines.
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Chabahil Stupa
Right on the Ring Rd is the imposing Chabahil Stupa, the fourth largest stupa in the Kathmandu area after Bodhnath, Swayambhunath and the Kathesimbhu Stupa near Thahiti Chowk. According to legend, the stupa was constructed by Charumati, the daughter of Ashoka, but it has been rebuilt numerous times, most recently in 2002, when the tower cracked because of vibrations from passing traffic. The spire is covered by brass plates and the surrounding courtyard has some graceful chaityas from the Licchavi period.
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Sukla Phanta Wildlife Reserve
Tucked against the Indian border, Sukla Phanta Wildlife Reserve covers 305 sq km of sal forest and phanta (grassland) along the banks of the Bahini River. The terrain is similar to Bardia National Park and the reserve has tigers, rhinos, crocodiles, wild elephants and Nepal’s largest population of swamp deer (currently numbering around 2000) as well as large numbers of migratory birds. Like other national parks in Nepal, Sukla Phanta has been badly affected by poaching and human encroachment.
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Shechen Tennyi Dargyeling Gompa
To the west and down the alley leading to the Dragon Guest House, the huge Shechen Tennyi Dargyeling Gompa was established by the famous Nyingmapa lama Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche to replace the destroyed Shechen Gompa in eastern Tibet. Today, the monastery has a thriving community of over 300 monks and novices and the main prayer hall features fabulous murals by artists from Bhutan. The attached Tsering Art School produces Buddhist crafts that are sold in the monastery shop.
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Elephant Breeding Centre
About 3km west of Sauraha on the far side of the small Bhude Rapti River, the elephant breeding centre is a must-see sight in Chitwan. Providing most of the elephants for elephant safaris at Chitwan, it’s fascinating watching the interaction between mother and baby elephants, as well as the multi-task use of their trunk (which has a staggering 40,000 muscles), such as covering themselves in dust to ward off mosquitoes or scratching their backside with a bamboo stick.
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Changu Narayan Temple
Perched atop a narrow ridge due north of Bhaktapur, the beautiful and historic temple of Changu Narayan is a living museum of carvings from the Licchavi period (4th to 9th centuries). The temple is a Unesco World Heritage site and rightly so, because the statues, and the temple itself, are genuine works of art. Despite being only 6km from Bhaktapur and 22km from Kathmandu, the temple attracts relatively few visitors, which is part of its appeal.
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Pashupatinath Temple
Only Hindus are allowed to enter the compound of this famous temple, but you can catch tantalising glimpses of what is going on inside from several points around the perimeter wall. From the main gate on the west side of the compound, you can view the mighty golden behind of an enormous brass statue of Nandi, Shiva’s bull. Inside the shrine, hidden from view, is a black, four-headed image of Pashupati, Lord of the Beasts.
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Nagarjun Forest Reserve
If you continue uphill from Balaju on the road towards Trisuli Bazaar, you’ll reach the Nagarjun Forest Reserve, also known as the Rani Ban (Queen’s Forest). This protected forest is one of the last undamaged areas of woodland in the valley, providing a home for pheasants, deer and monkeys. It’s a popular picnic spot, but female visitors are banned from walking here alone after two foreign tourists were murdered in the reserve in 2005.
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Bird Education Society
Run by local volunteers, the friendly Bird Education Society should be the first port of call for twitchers. In a new location on the road to the elephant breeding centre, the society has a library of bird books and a binocular rental service (Rs 50/100 per hour/day) and also has guided birdwatching excursions every Saturday from 7am to 11am. There’s no charge but donations help fund the activities.
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Erotic Elephants Temple
Just before you enter the square, pause for a little bit of Newari humour. On your right, perhaps 70m before the main Durbar Sq entrance gate, is a tiny double-roofed Shiva Parvati temple ( M045E) with some erotic carvings on its temple struts. Among the series of copulating animals are elephants in the missionary position with their trunks entwined in pleasure! It's a hathi (elephant) Kamasutra.
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Changu Museum
The single brick-lined street in Changu village climbs from the car park and bus stand past the Changu Museum, which offers a quirky introduction to traditional village life. The displays are scattered around a 169-year-old house and the owner will give you a whistlestop tour of such oddities as a rhino-skin shield, leather coins from the 2nd century and some 225-year-old rice!
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Sakya Tharig Gompa
Take the alley running northeast from the Bodhnath (Boudha) stupa, past the small Gelugpa Samtenling Gompa, and turn right to reach the Sakya Tharig Gompa. This sprawling complex includes a large Buddhist school and the prayer hall at the back contains a huge statue of Sakyamuni inlaid with turquoise, red coral, dzi beads and other precious materials.
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Shivapuri National Park
The northern part of the Kathmandu Valley rises to the sprawling forests of Shivapuri National Park, upgraded to national park status in 2002 to protect the valley’s main water source, as well 177 species of birds and numerous rare orchids. This is one of the last areas of woodland left in the valley, and the forest is alive with monkeys, and maybe even leopards and bears.
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Durbar Square
The ancient Royal Palace of Patan faces on to a magnificent Durbar Square. This concentrated mass of temples is perhaps the most visually stunning display of Newari architecture to be seen in Nepal. Temple construction in the square went into overdrive during the Malla period (14th to 18th centuries), particularly during the reign of King Siddhinarsingh Malla (1619–60).
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Manakamana Temple
From the tiny hamlet of Cheres (6km before Mugling), an Austrian-engineered cable car soars up an almost impossibly steep hillside to the ancient Manakamana Temple, one of the most important temples in the Middle Hills. Hindus believe that the goddess Bhagwati, an incarnation of Parvati, has the power to grant wishes, and newlyweds flock here to pray for male children.
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The Bodhnath Stupa
The first stupa at Bodhnath was built sometime after AD 600, when the Tibetan king, Songtsen Gampo, converted to Buddhism. According to legend, the king constructed the stupa as an act of penance after unwittingly killing his father. Unfortunately, the first stupa was wrecked by Mughal invaders in the 14th century, so the current stupa is a more recent construction.
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Golden Temple (Kwa Bahal)
Also known as the Hiranya Varna Mahavihara, this unique Buddhist monastery is just north of Durbar Sq. The monastery was allegedly founded in the 12th century, and it has existed in its current location since 1409. Entry is via a narrow stone doorway to the east or a wooden doorway to the west, inside one of the interlinked bahal on the north side of Nakabhil.
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Bat Cave
You won’t find Adam West or Christian Bale lurking in the dark and spooky Bat Cave, but instead thousands of live horseshoe bats, clinging to the ceiling of a damp and slippery chamber and occasionally chirruping into the darkness – claustrophobics beware. Daredevils can continue to the back of the vault and wriggle out through a tiny chute to the surface.
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Natural History Museum
Below Swayambhunath, on the road to the tourist bus park, the Natural History Museum offers a faded but quirky collection of exhibits, including varnished crocodiles, model dinosaurs and mounted animal heads that look suspiciously like hunting trophies. The museum provides a valuable service to local school children and it could use more support.
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Manjushree Park
The newly created Manjushree Park is seeking to repair the damage, done by the now-defunct cement factory, which has scarred the landscape of beauty spot, Chobar Gorge, located 1km southeast of Chobar village. It will take a few years for the ornamental gardens to bed down. Note the boulder shaped like Ganesh on the roadside uphill from the park.
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Gorkha Durbar
Regarded by many as the crowning glory of Newari architecture, Gorkha Durbar is a fort, a palace and a temple all in one. This magnificent architectural confection is perched high above Gorkha on a knife-edge ridge, with superb views over the Trisuli Valley and glimpses north to the soaring peaks of the Annapurna and Ganesh Himalaya.
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