Sights in Nepal
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Three Goddesses Temples
Next to the modern Sanchaya Kosh Bhawan Shopping Centre in Thamel are the generally ignored Three Goddesses Temples. The street on which the temples are located is named Tridevi Marg - tri means 'three' and devi means 'goddesses'. The goddesses are Dakshinkali, Manakamana and Jawalamai, and the roof struts have some creative erotic carvings.
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Gaddhi Baithak
The eastern side of Durbar Sq is closed off by this white neoclassical building. The Gaddhi Baithak, with its imported European style, was built as part of the palace in 1908 during the Rana period and it makes a strange contrast to the traditional Nepali architecture that dominates the square. It is said to have been modelled on London's National Gallery.
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Phusre Khola Gorge
In the same area, you can get a dramatic view of the much larger Phusre Khola Gorge from the Phewa Power House - the track to the power station leaves the Butwal Hwy just south of Pardi Birauta Chowk, near the small road bridge. Locals come here in the afternoons to watch planes performing giddying turns as they come in to land at Pokhara's tiny airport.
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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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Bhaktapur's Royal Palace
Bhaktapur's Royal Palace was founded by Yaksha Malla (1428-82) and was added to by successive kings, particularly Bhupatindra Malla. As with the old palaces of Kathmandu and Patan, visitors are restricted to certain areas. The palace suffered great damage in the terrible 1934 earthquake and only half a dozen of the original 99 courtyards survived.
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Kotilingeshwar Mahadev Temple
This early Malla temple dates from the reign of Mahendra Malla in the 16th century. The three-stage plinth is topped by a temple in the gumbhaj style, which basically means a square structure topped by a bell-shaped dome. The bull facing the temple on the west side indicates that it is a Shiva temple. Next door is the Mahavishnu Temple.
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Wildlife Display & Information Centre
The new Wildlife Display & Information Centre in Sauraha has educational displays on wildlife, including a rather macabre collection of animal foetuses in jars, skulls, plaster-cast footprints and a collection of animal poo, while the various animal reproductive organs preserved in formaldehyde make for a novel exhibit.
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Ichangu Narayan
About 3km northwest of Swayambhunath, Ichangu Narayan is one of several important temples dedicated to Vishnu in his incarnation as Narayan, the ‘eternal man’. Built in the two-tiered pagoda style, the temple was founded in around 1200 and its courtyard is dotted with ancient Garuda statues and other Vaishnavite symbols.
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Basantapur Tower
The nine-storey Basantapur Tower, which was extensively restored prior to King Birendra's coronation is inside the Tribhuvan Museum. There are superb views over the palace and the city from the top. The struts along the facade of the Basantapur Tower, particularly those facing out to Basantapur Sq, are decorated with erotic carvings.
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Tana Deval Temple
Across from the Taleju Temple, in a walled courtyard, just past the long row of stalls, is the Tana Deval Temple, with three carved doorways and multiple struts, the latter of which show the multi-armed Ashta Matrikas (Mother Goddesses). It's possible to enter the temple. Nearby shops sell brightly-coloured Tibetan thangkas.
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Patan Museum
Formerly the residence of the Malla kings, the section of the palace surrounding Keshav Narayan Chowk now houses one of the finest collections of religious art in Asia. Partly funded by the Austrian government, the Patan Museum is a national treasure, and a visit should form part of any trip to Patan’s Durbar Sq.
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Bhimsen Temple
The two-storey Bhimsen Temple, variously dated to 1605, 1645, 1655 or 1657, is squat, rectangular and open on the ground floor. It's fronted by a platform with a small double-roofed Vishnu/Narayan Temple and a pillar topped by a brass lion with his right paw raised. Steps lead down behind it to the deeply sunken Bhimsen Pokhari.
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Mahakala Temple
On the eastern side of Kantipath, just north of New Rd, the Mahakala Temple was very badly damaged in the 1934 earthquake and is now of little architectural merit. If you can see inside the darkened shrine you may be able to make out the 1.5m-high figure of Mahakala, the 'Great Black One', a particularly ferocious form of Shiva.
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Maya Devi Temple
The Maya Devi Temple sits on the exact site of the birth of the Buddha, according to Buddhist scholars. It’s reputed that it was here where the heavily pregnant Maya Devi came upon a pond of extraordinary beauty amid the thick jungle, and gave birth to Siddhartha Gautama under the auspicious Bodhi tree.
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Royal Chitwan National Park
Royal Chitwan National Park provides one of the finest wildlife experiences in Asia. While you'd have to be lucky to see one of the tigers or leopards, an elephant safari is an unforgettable experience and you are almost certain to see rhinos, deer, monkeys and numerous bird species, as well as the jumbo underneath you!
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Royal Botanic Gardens
The verdant Royal Botanic Gardens is a quiet and peaceful spot for a walk or picnic, except on Friday and Saturday when the place is overrun with schoolkids. The visitor centre has some good exhibits on Nepal’s flora and in the middle is the decorative Coronation Pond with its 7m commemorative pillar.
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Lohan Chowk
King Prithvi Narayan Shah was involved in the construction of the four red-coloured towers around the Lohan Chowk. The towers represent the four ancient cities of the valley, the towers include the Kathmandu or Basantapur Tower; the Kirtipur Tower; the Bhaktapur Tower or Lakshmi Bilas; and the Patan or Lalitpur Tower.
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Great Drigung Kagyud Lotus Stupa
One of the Mahayana monasteries, set around an L-shaped pond. The truly extravagant Great Drigung Kagyud Lotus Stupa is one of the most beautiful temples here and was constructed by the German Tara Foundation. The domed ceiling of the main prayer room is covered in some inspired Buddhist murals.
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Mahendra Park
You will have to use your imagination to envision the former glory of the 18th-century gardens at Balaju, now known as Mahendra Park. Although the gardens are faded and untidy, many local Hindus swing by to pay their respects at the cluster of shrines in the northeast corner of the park.
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Ram Sita Bibaha Mandir
Almost next door to the Janaki Mandir, this rather bizarre temple marks the spot where Rama and Sita were married. The temple is topped by a modernist interpretation of a tiered pagoda roof and the walls are glass so you can peer in at the kitsch life-sized models of Sita and Rama.
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Tsamchen Gompa
Tsamchen Gompa is the only gompa that opens directly onto the stupa on the western side. There are some fine paintings and a magnificent Maitreya (Jampa in Tibetan), the Future Buddha, covered in beautiful embroideries. Don't miss the massive enclosed prayer wheel on the left of the entrance.
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Jeth Ganesh Temple
This is one of two small temples in Potters' Sq - the other being the solid-brick central Vishnu Temple - and is an indicator of how long the activity around the square has been going on. A wealthy potter donated the temple in 1646 and to this day its priest is chosen from the potter caste.
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Lun Bahal
The Lun Bahal was originally a 16th-century Buddhist monastery that was converted into a Hindu shrine with the addition of a stone statue of Bhimsen. If you look into the sanctum, in the inner courtyard, you can see the statue, dating from 1592, complete with a ferocious-looking brass mask.
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Mountain Botanical Gardens
The Mountain Botanical Gardens spans over 193 acres of forest full of interesting plant species. February to March is the best time to visit, when the rhododendrons (the national flower of Nepal) are in full bloom, providing a stunning scenery with the Himalaya backdrop.
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Great Bell
On your left as you leave the main square along Makhan Tole is the Great Bell, elevated atop a white building erected by Rana Bahadur Shah (son of Prithvi Narayan Shah) in 1797. The bell's ring drives off evil spirits, but it is only rung during puja (worship) at the Degutaleju Temple.
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