Kathmandu - Kathmandu

Kathmandu is the capital of Nepal.

background

The town Kathmandu is the largest city in the country, it gave the surrounding valley basin its name. The former royal city is with its southern neighbor Lalitpur, also under the name Patan known, almost grown together, only the river Bagmati separates the two former rivals. Both cities are surrounded by a road ring, which is hopelessly congested in rush hour. The city has expanded over this ring in several places, such as the suburb Boudhanath with its huge stupa in the northeast of the city near the airport.

getting there

By plane

The only international airport in Nepal is located on the eastern edge of the city. The 27.69722222222285.357777777778Tribhuvan International Airport(IATA: KTM) is mainly made up of smaller machines e.g. Abu Dhabi, Doha or Dubai approached. There is currently no direct connection from Europe.

By bus

Tourist bus

From larger Nepalese cities (e.g. Pokhara) drive comparatively large and comfortable coaches ("Tourist Bus"), which also take a meal break (meal partially included) on longer distances en route. The booking is usually made in advance via travel agencies or the hostel / hotel and the bus either picks you up in the morning or you get a taxi transfer to the next entry point. The buses usually stop near Thamel, where there are a lot of travel agencies to book a trip out of town.

Microbus / minibus

To some trek starting points such as Besi Sahar (Annapurna Circuit) you can (if you want to avoid large expenses or changes) also travel continuously with the minibus. The price and the occupancy is a matter of negotiation. Often you can get along at a very affordable price, but share a minibus (designed for about a dozen people by European standards) with more than 20 people and luggage.

The microbuses stop very early in the morning (around 6 a.m.) on the northern ring road (Ring Road) and leave as soon as the bus is reasonably full. If possible, people are also loaded on the road and every cubic meter of space is used - it is not uncommon to have luggage or small children on your lap.

The microbus is a little faster than the tourist bus, if you start around 7 in Kathmandu you will arrive in Besisahar in the late morning. The return trip from Besisahar to Kathmandu around noon.

Local bus

The local bus has similarly cramped conditions as the microbus, but it is much slower and not significantly cheaper. Therefore, you should only choose this if the two options mentioned above are not available.

Due to some accidents in the past, tourists are not allowed to ride on the roof.

In the street

Due to the bad road conditions and the sometimes very unfamiliar driving style of other road users, it is not advisable to drive your own car in Nepal, but you can rent a taxi or car with a driver for relatively cheap even for longer distances (a normal vehicle including driver should be around 50 Euros per day, four-wheel drive a bit more expensive).

mobility

Tourist Attractions

World Heritage

Some of the city's most significant attractions have been part of the city since 1979 UNESCO world cultural heritage. Nepal's most important pilgrimage site is the Hindu temple complex Pashupatinath is in an eastern suburb. The great stupa of Boudhanath, a major Buddhist sanctuary, is discussed in the article Boudhanath treated.

Durbar Square

Actually it is called correctly Hanuman-dhoka Durbar Square, there is a statue of the Hindu god next to the main entrance to the old royal palace Hanuman stands. What is meant is the square around this palace, including the adjoining temple district with its both Hindu and Buddhist shrines. There is an entrance fee of 200 rupees to visit the square, which is a little over € 2, and it is well worth the expense.

• The Royal palace

The oldest part of the palace dates from the 16th century and has been expanded several times. The youngest part is a white classical building. However, the last Nepalese kings lived in a palace in the northeast of the city center. The old palace is only partially accessible, inside there are several museums with exhibits on the history of the former Nepalese kings.

• The Basantapur Square

There is a brisk trade in souvenirs on the square opposite the Basantapur Tower at the old royal palace. Action is a duty. In one of the buildings a sign indicates a Sanskrit university, below is a smaller reference to a post office.

• The House of the Kumari

At the western end of Basantapur Square it says Kumari Ghat or House of the Kumari. The Sanskrit word Kumari means girl. The Kumari is a living incarnation of the Hindu goddess Talejuwho is also called the incarnation of the goddess Durga is seen. A Kumari is chosen, the horoscope must be favorable for this task, the girl must meet 32 ​​different conditions, e.g. she must be fearless and have no visible scars. Once the girl has finally met all the conditions, she is allowed to live in this house, she has only limited contact with her family and is only allowed to leave the building on certain public holidays. After a profuse bleeding injury or at the latest after the first menstruation, the girl loses this status. Hardly any Nepalese would marry a former Kumari, it is believed that he would die soon after the wedding.
The externally rather modest building has a magnificent inner courtyard, Chowk. Only Hindus are allowed to cross the courtyard, everyone else should stay on the edge if possible. A few times a day the Kumari shows up at the open window, it is a pretty girl dressed in red, but she is not allowed to be photographed. Doesn't matter, the dealers outside are selling the pictures in packs of five at a bargain price.

Swayambhunath

Swayambhunath stupa, in front of it a vajra

Swayambhunath and Shikara Pratappur

Swayambhunath, also briefly Swayambhu, is also called Monkey temple well-known, the reason for this is the agile roommates, who are sometimes too annoying to approach visitors. The temple complex is located on a hill and offers a good view of the when the air is clear Kathmandu Valley. According to ancient tradition, it was a lake from which only a few islands protruded. When the waters flowed away through the Bodhisattva Manjushri, a lotus flower remained on this hill. This is where the stupa was finally erected.
The main entrance to the facility leads from the east via a high staircase with over 300 steps. It is more comfortable via the side entrances from the west, but this path is by no means as impressive.

• The Swayambhunath stupa

It has a similar structure to its big brother in Boudhanath. The base is lower, the figure smaller, and the upwardly tapering 13 gold-plated plates at the top are round.

• more details

Seen from the east entrance in front of the stupa is a large one Vajra or thunderbolt, left and right of it stand like two oversized white beehives Shikara-Temple Antanapur and Pratappur. North of the stupa is the small monastery Shree Karma Raj Mahavihar. There is a freely accessible small museum on the south side of the site, and another monastery to the west.
It is quite an old building Shantipur-Temple in the north of the plant. According to legend, a holy man walled himself in here around 1500 years ago. It will only come to light again when the people of the valley really need it. The truth of this legend cannot be pondered far from it over a cup of coffee.

activities

shop

Factory sale:

Zara, H&M, Primark, Woolworth, Bershka, Pull & Bear, Louis Vouitton, D&G, Adidas, Puma, Nike, Puma, New Balance, Air Jordans.

kitchen

accommodation

Cheap

• Hotel Vajra, Bijeswari, Swayambhu Kathmandu, Nepal. Tel.: 977-1-4271545, Fax: 977-1-4271695, Email: [email protected], [email protected]. The very family-run house is located below Swayambhu and you can walk to Thamel in 15 minutes. It has a beautiful garden, many small details are not only pleasing to the eye.Price: Single from US $ 14, double from US $ 16.last change: not specified
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medium

Upscale

security

health

Practical advice

trips

• Rainer Krack: Kathmandu valley. Reise Know-How Verlag Rum, Jan. 2011 (2nd edition), ISBN 3831720886 (ISBN-10), ISBN 978-3831720880 (ISBN-13) (German).

Web links