When I got the confirmation that I would go to Nepal and study I immediately booked my flights to Nepal, Kathmandu. I was so excited to go that I started to read in different books and webpages to understand what I should do in both Kathmandu and in Pokhara. And I noticed that there was so much to do in both cities and decided to take one week in Kathmandu before going to Pokhara.
I am so HAPPY that I had one week in Kathmandu!
Before I came to Kathmandu, I read that Kathmandu is the city of Temples and that you could walk around in one area and suddenly come across temples. Temples in different sizes, temples in different styles, temples in the middle of the road or temples in the centre of a market. And yes, there are so much to see and do in and around Kathmandu. I hade one week there and that was not enough! So, what did I do and what will I do in Kathmandu after the term here in Pokhara?
The Boudhanath Stupa – One of the best places and my favourite on my short visit in Kathmandu!:
A Stupa is a place for worship for Buddhist and the Boudhanath Stupa in one of the biggest ones in Asia. It is a huge beautiful building and you get the feeling of joy when you join the thousands of pilgrims and tourists walking around the Stupa. The entrance when I was there was 200 rupees and around the Stupa you can find loads of nice restaurants and cafes with a view over the stupa.
The Pashupatinath Temple:
Another must do in Kathmandu is the Pashupatinath temple. The Pashupatinath temple is one of the most important temples for Hindus located in Nepal. It is located by the river Bagmati that is a river connected to Ganges and there for it is a special place for cremation and other Hindu rituals. The temples area is huge and really beautiful and you can see monkeys and good view over the city from there as well! To enter it cost 1000 rupees.
Nagakot:
When I was in Kathmandu I also went to Nagakot which is a village in the mountain area of Kathmandu. From there you can do some trekking but also one day treks. We stayed there for one night and went up at 4 am to see the sun rise from a viewpoint. From there you can see all the big mountains, but we did not see much but it was beautiful anyways!
Bhaktapur:
Bhaktapur is one of the oldest cities in Nepal and it is truly a city with lots of history and temples and palaces where the kings lived for a long period of time. To get there we took a local bus from Kathmandu that costed 50 rupees and then it was 1000 rupees to get inside the ancient town. It was really beautiful, and we had a guide that showed us around for two hours! I recommend that! Bhaktapur is also UNESCO marked.
Food:
You can find local food for 250 rupees everywhere! And it is super good! If you get tired of the local food there are two famous pizza restaurant that are great!!! One is called Roadhouse café and the other ones is called Fire & Ice both located in Thamel.
Where I stayed:
We stayed in the area Thamel were most tourist stay and we liked it a lot but I am sure that there are as nice areas in Kathmandu to stay in! But in Thamel you can find lots of restaurants, shopping, guides and taxis and other stuff like that easy.
Things I missed and want to do:
- Swayambhunath also called The Monkey Temple
- The Durbar square – A historical square and the place where “the living goddess” lives also called the Kumari. You should search about the Kumari and read about it before going there.
- Patan is another city in the Khatmandu area that I have heard worth visiting.
- Bagmati – Is a temple where you take the cable cart to the top and from there you can see mountains and a good view over Kathmandu.
-Julia-