Kathmandu Travel Information

This is one of the most popular areas with travellers and it's where you'll find plenty of restaurants, cafes, market stalls and rooftop bars with great views across the city. Thamel also has a number of German bakeries serving up the most delicious freshly baked bread rolls, apple fritters and croissants. The supermarkets have a good variety of western products like cheese, peanut butter, Nutella, sweets and all kinds of toiletries including across the counter medication.  The area also has a high concentration of restaurants so you'll be spoilt for choice when picking a place to eat. Dinner will cost you around £3 - £5 per person depending on the current exchange rate.

Thamel is a great starting point from which to explore sights of the city, another reason why many travellers choose to stay here. The Lonely Planet has a nice walk from Thamel to Durbar Square, you can head over to the fascinating Pashupatinath cremation site and the Swayambunath temple complex.

Durbar Square

The name Kathmandu is derived from Kasthamandap, the Nepalese word for 'wooden house'. Kasthamandap is also the name of a temple in the central square of Kathmandu, Durbar Square. Story has it that the temple was built from the wood of one single tree. Durbar is also a Nepalese word, meaning 'palace'. Clustered around the square are several historic temples, the ancient royal palace Hanuman Dhoka and a beautifully carved wooden building known as the Kumari Bahal, home of the Kumari or the living goddess. These days there is a small admission fee for Durbar Square.

Take an auto-rickshaw from your hotel to the Pashupatinath temple on the eastern outskirts of Kathmandu. You'll be dropped off at the entrance where you'll need to a modest admission fee. Here, you can stroll past the string of souvenir stalls until you reach the Bagmati River. Just like the Ganges in India, this is a sacred Hindu river. Devotees believe that a ritual bathing or even cremation in this river will break the cycle of samsara (or rebirth) and take them to the afterlife. The river is heavily polluted though that doesn't seem to stop the devotees from taking a dip or even drink from it. Monkeys roam freely in this area and can be aggressive, particularly at the sight of food so be warned and stow away your lunch in your rucksack.

Due to its location on the holy Bagmati Pashupatinath is the most important and holiest Hindu temple in Nepal. Devotees come here to worship Shiva in his incarnation as Pashupati, the lord of all beasts. Pashupati is the official patron of Nepal and is consequently mentioned in royal speeches, peace treaties and vows. On special occasions the king will visit the temple to seek the blessing of Pashupati. Non-Hindus are not allowed in the temple complex but from the hill across from the temple you will have a good view of the ghats, where the ritual bathing and cremations take place.

Crossing the Bagmati river take a seat on one of the steps across from the burning ghats for the poor to observe the rituals. The burning ghats on the other side of the bridge, directly in front of the temple are reserved for the richer Nepali and the royal family.  Seated on the steps you have a good view of the cremation spots. Ceremonial music is played just as newly laid log fire is lit, creating a lot of smoke most of which may drift your way. Further up the steps you can get a view of the burning ghats for the wealthy locals. If you're lucky, for lack of a better word, you will be able to witness a cremation ceremony taking place. The ceremony is performed by the male family members of the deceased, all dressed in white (white is the colour of mourning). The body, wrapped in orange cloths is laid on a bamboo stretcher and carried to a slope on the river bank so that the feet just touch the water. The stretcher is then carried back to the steps where the sons and other family members light candles, lay orange cloths over the body and scatter flower petals and coins. The women, all wearing their hair down, pay their last respects to the deceased, scatter flowers and lay cloths over the body which is then discreetly undressed beneath the layers of cloth.

At the top of the steps is where many sadhus, or holy men sit. Several of them have renounced their worldy goods and live a simple existence here and also smoke copious amounts of ganja (marihuana). Sadhus are Hindus who have renounced the caste system and their normal lives, choosing instead to roam the country on a spiritual quest and survive on begging or donations and tourists paying for photos can help them survive. They're often a sight to behold; dressed in orange robes or sometimes completely naked and covered in the ashes from the cremation ghats and often complemented by body painting, dreadlocked hair and other adornments.
 

From the roof terrace of some of the hotels you can see Swayambunath on a hilltop to the west of the city. The temple, which is beautifully lit at night, is the oldest Buddhist temple in the Kathmandu Valley. It's also known as the Monkey Temple because of the many monkeys that roam around here. It's a 45 minute walk from the hotel to the temple, though it's a lot quicker to hail a taxi for a short drive there. 

Walking through the narrow streets of Chhetrapati you head towards the Vishnu-mati river. It's an interesting walk through the backstreets and less touristy side of Kathmandu. Children run around the streets lined with the tiniest shops, tucked inside a narrow doorway or under some steps, selling all kinds of products but where you'll rarely see a single customer. As you cross the bridge you'll notice the river is almost completely dried up and the aroma tells you that most of Kathmandu's sewers empty out into this river. A happy pig rummages around in the dirt while a few yards further on children play in the little remaining water. Two men slowly push a brimming rubbish cart which is then neatly dumped into the river above the sewage pipe. The road soon turns into a dusty track as it heads uphill to the entrance of the Monkey Temple.

At the bottom of the long flight of steps temples with brightly coloured statues and paintings mark the entrance to the complex. All around you monkeys run around the statues and buildings, watching your every move in the hope of stealing your bag and catching a bite to eat. Apparently you shouldn't look the monkeys in the eye as they can see this as a threat, and it's wise to keep a safe distance. Once you've explore the temple buildings and shaken off the numerous touts, beggars and guides you start the climb up the worn-out 365 steps...

It's a pretty steep climb and as you make your way up puffing and panting stop for a short rest to enjoy the view and the amusing capers of the ever-present monkeys. At the top of the steps is where you pay your admission fee, the eyes of Buddha already watching you from the walls of the stupa inside the complex. There's usually a lot of commotion around the stupa with praying devotees and again lots of monkeys.  There's an amazing view across Kathmandu, the valley and the snow-capped Himalayas in the distance. It's well worth the climb!

The surrounding area of Kathmandu has several interesting places to visit, three of which we've highlighted here: Dhulikel, Bhaktapur and Bodnath. Bakthapur is famous for its historic temple squares and the small, bustling streets where you can still savour the atmosphere of centuries past. 

Dhulikel

Dhulikel (30 km east of Kathmandu) is an interesting pre-taste of the Himalayan heights. From your hotel high above Dhulikel you can set off on a beautiful hike through the green valley and past a hilltop Kali temple, reaching the Noma monastery a couple of hours later. Looking out across the mountains you can catch your breath in the courtyard of this peaceful Tibetan monastery, the chants of the midday prayer echoing in the background.

Bodnath Stupa (7 km east of Kathmandu), is over 500 years old and continues to draw a large number of pilgrims and refugees from Tibet. It's also one of the most important religious sites in Nepal as well as being one of the largest buddhist stupas in the world. 

The stupa stands in the middle of a large square enclosed by a circular village, which is home to many Tibetan refugees (most of them priests) and aptly named "Little Tibet". Most of the Tibetans make a living selling souvenirs to tourists, though they also sell tsampa, butter, tea and prayer beads.

The enormous white dome of the stupa rises up 36m and is over 100m in diameter. The dome is regularly repainted and then covered in bucket loads of saffron-coloured paint, making the dome resemble a lotus flower. The dome is topped by a square towers from which the eyes of Buddha gazes out in all four directions. The stupa is adorned with hundreds of colourful prayer flags and the walls around the stupa are line with small prayer wheels. Tibetans always circle the stupa in clockwise direction, spinning the prayer wheels and chanting prayers as they walk round. To the left of the square is a Tibetan monastery. Next to the entrance you'll find a room with a huge prayer wheel of several metres high. 

You'll need to pay a small admission fee for the square. You can climb the stupa and walk round the square, following the pilgrims in their clockwise circles. The rooftop cafes around the square are great vantage point from which to observe the ongoing procession. 

Pokhara, about 200km to the west of Kathmandu is the second most important city in Nepal. It wasn't until 1970 when Pokhara became connected to the outside world with the completion of a tarmac road, but the local authentic atmosphere has remained intact. It's a 5-6 hour bus or taxi ride from Kathmandu to Pokhara and it's a great place to relax before or after heading further up into the mountains.

Most people who visit Pokhara are there to start a trek into the Annapurna Range or to go rafting on one of the many raging rivers. In the centre of the town there's a lake with a small island in the middle. You can take a boat out onto the lake and even go sailing. The many lakeside terraces are a good spot to have some lunch or a drink.