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Karya Binayak Temple
Halfway between Bungamati and Khokana, this historic Ganesh temple survived the earthquake with minor damage. Local pilgrims flock here on Saturdays for a bhoj (feast) and some bhajan (devotional music) – the Newari version of a barbecue and sing along. To reach the temple, turn le
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Tharu Cultural Museum
There’s a tiny Tharu Cultural Museum in Harnari, one of the best villages to get a taste of Tharu culture. It has displays of ornaments and a rakshi distillery pot. If it’s closed, ask around and someone will open it up.
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Sakya Tharig Gompa
This is an enormous and brightly painted chörten – step inside to see hundreds of miniature chörten and statues of Guru Rinpoche set into alcoves in the walls. If youre lucky dozens of monks will be chanting inside; at such times a visit is utterly magical.
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Ashokan Pillar
The Indian emperor Ashoka visited Lumbini in 249 BC, leaving behind an inscribed sandstone pillar to commemorate the occasion. After being lost for centuries, Ashoka’s pillar was rediscovered by the governor of Palpa, Khadga Shumsher Rana, in 1896. The 6m-high pink sandstone pillar
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Lohan Chowk
King Prithvi Narayan Shah was involved in the construction of the four red-coloured towers around Lohan Chowk. The towers represent the four ancient cities of the valley: the Basantapur (Kathmandu) Tower, the Kirtipur Tower, the Bhaktapur Tower (Lakshmi Bilas) and the Patan (Lalitp
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Living Traditions Museum
This well-curated museum, housed in a restored building south of Changu Narayan Temple, features over 400 exhibits covering artefacts and displays on ethnic groups from the Kathmandu Valley, the Terai, Middle Hills and Himalayan Highlands. However, the site was badly damaged in the
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Bat Cave
You won’t find Adam West or Christian Bale lurking in the dark and spooky Bat Cave , but instead thousands of live horseshoe bats, clinging to the ceiling of a damp and slippery chamber and occasionally chirruping into the darkness – claustrophobics beware. Daredevils can continue
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Chilanchu Vihara
Built in 1515, this stately stupa crowns the hilltop and the harmika above the dome is painted a rich blue. Another earthquake survivor, the main stupa is surrounded by a garden of chaitya and fronted by a giant dorje symbol. To get here, go behind the Lohan Dehar temple, take a le
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Himalayan Brewery
While no official tours are run here, with prior arrangements you should be able to organise someone to show you around the second oldest brewery in Nepal – established in 1983. It’s a fascinating look behind the scenes, taking you through the production process that sees 30,000 bo
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Myanmar Golden Temple
The Myanmar Golden Temple is one of the oldest structures in the compound. There are three prayer halls – the most impressive is topped by a corncob-shaped shikhara (tower), styled after the temples of Bagan. Within the temple grounds is the nearby is the Lokamani Pula Pagoda , a h
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Yita Chapal
On the south side of Asan Tole is the Yita Chapal (Southern Pavilion), which was once used for festival dances (the dance platform out front is just visible underneath several stalls). Cat Stevens wrote his hippie-era song Kathmandu in a smoky teahouse in Asan Tole, penning the lin
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Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park
The northern part of the Kathmandu Valley rises to the sprawling forests of Shivapuri National Park , upgraded to national park status in 2002 to protect the valley’s main water source, as well 177 species of birds and numerous rare orchids. This is one of the last areas of woodlan
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Mahendreshwar Temple
At the extreme northern end of Durbar Sq, this popular temple dates from 1561, during the reign of Mahendra Malla, and is always bustling with pilgrims. The temple was clumsily restored with marble in 1963 and is dedicated to Shiva. At the northeastern corner there is an image of K
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Brass & Bronze Museum
Directly across from the Woodcarving Museum, in another old math with similar lighting problems and similar damage from the 2015 earthquake, this museum has some excellent examples of traditional metalwork, including ceremonial lamps and ritual vessels from around the valley. Hold
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Manakamana Temple
From the tiny hamlet of Cheres (6km before Mugling), an Austrian-engineered cable car soars up an almost impossibly steep hillside to the ancient Manakamana Temple , one of the most important temples in the Middle Hills. Hindus believe that the goddess Bhagwati, an incarnation of P
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Bagh Bhairab Temple
In a courtyard off the north side of the main square, the imposing Bhairab Temple features an incredible armoury of tulwars (swords) and shields belonging to the soldiers defeated by Prithvi Narayan Shah. Despite some earthquake damage this is still a striking temple and befitting
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Tusha Hiti
The highlight of Sundari Chowk is the superbly carved sunken water tank known as the Tusha Hiti. Built in 1647, the renovated tank has 72 carved stone plaques depicting Tantric deities and was used by the king for ritual ablutions. The spout is new; the original was stolen in 2010
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Krishna Narayan Temple
Cross to the south bank over the weir, then take another bridge back to the end of the spur, which is covered by the shrines and statues of the Krishna Narayan Temple.There are also temples to various incarnations of Vishnu here – the largest temple has roof struts depicting Vishnu
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Stone Inscription
On the outside of the white palace wall, opposite the Vishnu Temple, is a long, low stone inscription to the goddess Kalika written in 15 languages, including one word of French. King Pratap Malla, renowned for his linguistic abilities, set up this inscription in 1664 and a Nepali
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Tharu Cultural Show
Most of the larger lodges put on shows of traditional Tharu songs and dances for guests, including the popular stick dance, where a great circle of running men whack sticks together in time. It’s very much a tourist experience, but the shows are fun and they provide employment for
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