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| The square is the traditional heart of the old town of Kathmandu and contains the most spectacular traditional architecture. You can spend many hours admiring the history and splendour seeped in the various temples, shrines, images of gods and magnificently carved wooden balconies. There are plenty of places, raised platforms and steps where you can sit and watch, sketch or photograph the life of Kathmandu eddying through. |
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| Just off Durbar Square is the Kumari Bahal – the house of the Kumari - the living goddess. She is chosen from the Newari community, represents the Hindu goddess Taleju and is venerated by Hindus and Buddhists alike. You can enter the three storey courtyard enclosed by intricately carved wooden balconies in beautiful traditional style. Photographing the goddess is forbidden but you are welcome to photograph the courtyard when she is not present. |
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| Pashupatinath is considered to be Nepal’s holiest Hindu pilgrimage site. Non-Hindus are not allowed in the main temple but there is plenty to see and marvel at from the other side of the Bagmati river. Considering it is a popular place for cremation it’s surprisingly uplifting, a lot of life and ritual all mingled together, young children and monkeys running around – a great place for contemplation, sketching and (with respect) taking photos. |
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| The village is the religious centre for Nepal’s considerable population of Tibetan exiles and home to one of the world’s largest stupas. This is one of the few places in the world where Tibetan culture can thrive and you can walk amongst it and enjoy its richness, its colour, its ritual. A wonderful time to come is with the sunset as the community turns out en masse to make a continual tour of the stupa in a clockwise direction - a ritual that combines religious observance with social event – it’s very mesmeric and grounding. |
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| From the hustling bustling streets near Thamel, you feel like you’ve stepped into a whole new world – calm and dignified. This is a place where you can relax and enjoy the loving labour that’s been put into restoring this beautiful and exotic garden. With refreshments available from a lovely cafe inside it’s possible to settle in and spend some time sketching, painting and drinking in the cool composition of a landscaped garden from another time. |
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| Often referred to as the Monkey Temple, this very well known Buddhist shrine sits on top of a hill, offering an elevated place for contemplation and striking views of the city and Kathmandu Valley. You have a choice of ascent – either a fairly steep pathway or a very very steep stairway - and look out for the monkeys! |
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| Patan Durbar Square is a wonderful display of the unique architecture here. There is so much to see, photograph, sketch and admire. There are plenty of places to sit and rest on the terraced platforms, watching life go by and roof top cafes offer welcome refreshments as well as great views of the square. There is also an informative and nicely put together museum. |
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| Bhaktapur has been called one of the most picturesque towns of the east – the houses are all built of brick and wood giving it the feel of a medieval village. The traffic free cobblestone streets are a pleasure to wander around coming across temples, shrines, water tanks, courtyards at every turn. With traditional craftsmanship going back generations this is the best place to see the passed down skills of potters, woodcarvers and weavers. |
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| There are lots of places within easy reach of Kathmandu that will give you spectacular views of the rich green paddy fields, the Himalaya, the valley and the city. |
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