Bodhnath Stupa, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal – the largest stupa in Nepal

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On our last full day in Kathmandu we went to the Indian Embassy to pay for and pick up our visas. On the walk back to Thamel we found a street vendor cooking chowmein for sixty rupees (seventy-five cents), it was the nicest noodles we had tasted during our whole trip.

Street-stall chowmein for sixty rupees, delicious

After this we headed to Bodhnath (or Boudha) to see the Bodhnath Stupa, one of the world’s largest. We took a tempo (shared rickshaw) from Thamel. The stupa looks like many we’d already seen, however it is its sheer size that makes it so remarkable.  It is said to have been built in the 7th century, during the time of Tibetan King Songsten Gampo and also contains a bone that belonged to the first Buddha himself (Siddharta). Around the base of the stupa are hundreds of prayer wheels, which we spun as we traversed in a clockwise direction.

Bodhnath Stupa, Nepals largest stupa
The Bodhnath Stupa surrounded by Buddhist prayer flags
The Bodhnath Stupa surrounded by Buddhist prayer flags
Monk sitting next to the stupa
Sonya turning an extremely large prayer wheel
Prayer flags running to the tip of Bodhnath Stupa
Travis and Sonya at the Bodhnath Stupa
Elephant statue figure in front of the Bodhnath Stupa
Sonya tying a white scarf to a smaller stupa in front of the Bodhnath Stupa

Related posts:

  1. Patan, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal
  2. Swayambhunath, Kathmandu, Nepal – Monkey Temple
  3. Kathmandu, Nepal – temples and cows
  4. Kathmandu, Nepal – Durbar Square
  5. The Winter (Potala Palace) and Summer (Norbulinka) Palaces of the Dali Lama, Lhasa, Tibet

Patan, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

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Patan, or also known as Lalitpur, is the second largest town in Kathmandu Valley and also has a Durbar Square, full of temples and stupas. We did a day trip to Patan from Thamel and spent our time wandering around its Durbar Square and doing a walking tour of the old city. The walking tour gave us insight into the everyday lives of Patan residents, as it entwined us through courtyards, water tanks and wells.

One particular highlight was the Patan Museum which detailed the different Buddhist and Hindu gods and their characteristics. For example, Ganesh, the Hindu God of Prosperity (with the head of an elephant) is often depicted with his vehicle, a rat (or mouse) and because of his love of sweets, holds a ladoo ball (Indian sweet).

Patan Durbar SquareKrishna Mandir stone temple with shikhara-style spire, a Garuda kneels with folded arms on top of a column in frontOne of the pair of elephants at the front of the Vishwanath (Shiva) Temple
Sonya at the Vishwanath (Shiva) Temple with pair of elephants guarding the entranceIntricate stone carving of monkey figure on Vishwanath (Shiva) TempleTravis with the Vishwanath Temple stone carvings in the background
The man-bird Garuda kneels with folded arms on top of a column facing the Krishna Mandir TempleThe man-bird Garuda with the similar looking King Yoganarendra Malla statue in the backgroundJagannarayan (Char Narayan) Temple reputed to be the oldest temple in Durbar Square
Sunken Manga Hiti with carved stone makara (mythological crocodiles) head waterspoutsWindows of the Keshav Narayan Chowk (the former residence of the Malla kings)Mul Chowk with two stone lions guard the entrance to the courtyard
Travis inspecting the museum exhibit on the lost-wax (thajya) method of castingSunken Manga Hiti with three carved stone makara (mythological crocodiles) head waterspoutsJagannarayan (Char Narayan) Temple with two large stone lions
Courtyard to Royal Palace entered through a magnificent gilded door topped by a golden torana showing Shiva, Parvati, Ganesh and KumarStanding river goddesses Ganga on a tortoise statue at Mul ChowkMulti-armed carved wooden deity found on a temple
Degutalle Temple, with octagonal spireUnknown bust possibly related to restoration of Patan, Durbar SquareView of Durbar Square facing north
King Yoganarendra Malla sitting on lotus protected by the hood of a cobraView of Durbar Square facing north taken from a roof-top cafeSonya enjoying a cold drink and the view of Durbar Square
The transport of Ganesh, the rat, offering a ladoo ballStone temple in-between lush vegetationA pair of stone cobras carved on a temple
Small shrines and thunderbolt in an open courtyardTwo lions guarding the entrance to a large courtyard with stupas and shrinesOne of many small temple shrines in a courtyard
Metal snow lion at the entrance to a small Buddhist monasteryGold Buddha statue sitting in the courtyardThe metal ribbon on a temple from the roof to the ground helps the gods descend to earth
A stone statue heavily painted with orange, a main colour of Hindu religionSquare based triple story stone templeColourful string puppets for sale
Garuda of Narayan Mandir TempleStone lions guarding the entranceA small side alley leads to the Swotha Tole with stupa visible
Sonya spinning a prayer wheelStone lions guarding the entrance to the Golden TempleMonkeys holding out a jackfruit as an offering
Entrance to Golden Temple inner entrance is flanked by elephants with riderDeity stone shrineStupa in the courtyard of the Naga Bahal
Sonya with the Purnachandi Pond in the backgroundThe large stupa near Pim Bahal Pokhari pond at sunsetEntrance gate to historic Patan city

Patan Walking Tour

  1. Ganesh Shrine
  2. Sulima Square
  3. Pim Bahal Pokhari
  4. Chandeswari Temple
  5. Lokakirti Mahavihar
  6. Nyakachuka Courtyard
  7. Naga Bahal
  8. Golden Temple (Kwa Bahal)
  9. Manjushri Temple
  10. Megaliths
  11. Kumbeshwar Temple
  12. Uma Maheshwar Temple
  13. Rada Krishna Temple
  14. Krishna Mandir
  15. Narayan Mandir

Related posts:

  1. Kathmandu, Nepal – Durbar Square
  2. Kathmandu, Nepal – temples and cows
  3. Bodhnath Stupa, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal – the largest stupa in Nepal
  4. Bhaktapur, Nepal – Durbar Square and Taumadhi Tole
  5. Swayambhunath, Kathmandu, Nepal – Monkey Temple

Bhaktapur, Nepal – Durbar Square and Taumadhi Tole

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Bhaktapur is a town located about an hour away (by bus) from Kathmandu. It is known in its position as a historical trading route to Tibet. By now the strikes had finished, thankfully, so we took the bus there, it was a pleasant ride costing us only twenty rupees (roughly twenty-five cents).  We walked around Bhaktapur’s Durbar Square first, admiring its cobblestone streets and numerous temples (some with extremely explicit carvings!) before doing a walking tour of the old town. Everywhere we turned there seemed to be women threshing grain or rice, or doing some kind of handicraft.  We had lunch high up on Cafe Nyatapola which is located in a former temple, overlooking Taumadhi Tole. Later we tried the yummy ‘king of curds’, a sweetened thick yogurt which Bhaktapur is renowned for.

West entrance with two large stone lions built by King Bhupatindra MallaSonya at Fasidega Temple flanked by elephant guardians at the bottom of the steps and lions and cows aboveThe spire of the Siddhi Lakshmi Temple
One of the pair of two lions at the east entrance to Durbar SquareA pair of stone lions at the east entrance with the Siddhi Lakshmi Temple in the backgroundSonya sitting on the steps of the Siddhi Lakshmi Temple
Siddhi Lakshmi Temple, Lohan Dega or Stone Temple, the steps up to the temple are flanked by male and female attendantsStairs of the Siddhi Lakshmi Temple flanked by camels, man-lions, rhinos and horsesVatsala Durga Temple with a bell on the temple's plinth
Vatsala Durga Temple with a bell on the temple's plinthSmaller bell on the Vatsala Durga Temple's plinth, popularly known as the barking bellGolden Gate or Sun Dhoka is the entrance to the 55 Window Palace
Goat's head protruding from the mouth of a makara (crocodile demon) at Naga PokhariKing Bhupatindra Malla column, the king sits with folded arms studying the magnificent golden gate to his palaceKing Bhupatindra Malla column with the spire of the Vatsala Durga Temple in the background
Stone carvings of the Vatsala Durga TempleVishnu as Narsingha, the man-lion incarnationHanuman appears in Tantric form as the four-armed Hanuman-Bhairab
Looking over Durbar Square facing EastBrick shikhara style Shiva TempleNasamana Square, with a Garuda statue without a paired temple
Entrance to the National Art Museum flanked by two stone lionsFive story Nyatapola Temple, the highest in the Kathmandu ValleyFive story Nyatapola Temple, the highest in the Kathmandu Valley
The road from Taumadhi Tole to Durbar SquareThe stairway leading up to Nyatapola Temple is flanked by guardian figures at each plinth levelIntricately carved wooden windows, a Ganesh is seen above the entrance
Alley to the North of Durbar SquareWomen threshing grains in the alleys near Durbar SquareA small unknown shrine
Entrance to Mahakali Temple with snow lions flanking the entranceStone Buddha statues with residential buildings in the backgroundNava Durga Temple a Tantric temple with golden door guarded by metal lions
Wakupati Narayan Temple with metal ribbons providing a path for the gods to descendSonya with an orange garuda statueA metal lion on the roof a temple holding the Nepalese flag
Dattatreya Temple with entrance guarded by two Malla wrestlersDattatreya Temple with Garuda topped pillar and entrance guarded by two Malla wrestlersDattatreya Temple with Garuda topped pillar and entrance guarded by two Malla wrestlers
Triple-roofed Bhairabnath Temple (also known as the Kasi Vishwanath or Akash BhairabView of Taumadhi Tole from Nyatapola Temple15th-century peacock window, reputed to be the finest carved window in the Kathmandu valley

Bhaktapur Walking Tour

  1. Sun and Moon Plagues
  2. Terracotta Ganesh Window
  3. Mahakali Temple
  4. Mahalakshmi Temple
  5. Temples
  6. Shikhara Temple
  7. Ganesh Shrine
  8. Prashan Nashil Maha Bihar
  9. Nava Durga Temple
  10. Wakupati Narayan Temple
  11. Tachupal Tole
  12. Inacho Bahal
  13. Chaityas, Statues, Shrines and Lingams
  14. Hanuman Statue
  15. Chuping Ghat
  16. Khalna Tole
  17. Kumari Temple
  18. Bhagwati Temple

Related posts:

  1. Kathmandu, Nepal – Durbar Square
  2. Kathmandu, Nepal – temples and cows
  3. Patan, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal
  4. Swayambhunath, Kathmandu, Nepal – Monkey Temple
  5. Pokhara, Nepal – Lake Phewa Tal

Swayambhunath, Kathmandu, Nepal – Monkey Temple

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A trip to the Buddhist temple, Swayambhunath, was on the agenda for day two. The temple is also known as the Monkey Temple and is located atop a hill west of Kathmandu. We took a stroll there early in the morning.  As soon as we reached the temples, we saw a monkey hanging off a Buddha statue. The climb up to the massive white stupa was tiring, but we were entertained by the monkeys and store vendors along the way.  Although strikes were still on, tickets were still required to be purchased. The top offered wonderful views of Kathmandu valley. The highlight is the stupa, surrounded by prayer wheels, a religious symbol which we requires to be walked around in a clockwise direction. Also atop the hill is a Hariti Temple, a gompa (monastery) plus small statues and stupas.

Smaller stupas at the base of the hill leading up to the temple
The east entrance gate at the base of the hill with stairs leading up to the temple
A monkey foraging at the base of a Buddha statue
A monkey mask painting on a stone leading to the temple
Buddha statues flanking the entrance to the Monkey Temple
The stairs leading to the large stupa visible at the top
The gold gilding of the stupa seen from the lower stairs
View of Kathmandu from the hill
At the base of the Swayambhunath stupa with the Buddhist Vajra thunderbolt visible
Monkey sitting on the Buddhist Vajra thunderbolt
Various monkey and other animal masks for sale
A monkey sitting on the tip of a temple roof with the main stupa visible in the background
A monkey jumping from a smaller red stupa
A monkey sitting at the base of a stupa watching below
A monkey eating a square of ice-cream with a Buddha statue visible in the background
Stone statue of Dipanker Buddha
Stone Buddhas with the large stupa visible in the background
Six metre high figure of Sakyamuni, the past Buddha
The prayer wheels and oil candles surrounding the large stupa
Travis feeding some eager monkeys bits of banana
Three sitting monkeys
Travis feeding a smaller monkey some banana
Look of disappointment, the banana is all gone
A standing Buddha statue at the base of the hill
A Buddhist monastery at the base of the hill

Related posts:

  1. Bodhnath Stupa, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal – the largest stupa in Nepal
  2. Kathmandu, Nepal – temples and cows
  3. Patan, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal
  4. Kathmandu, Nepal – Durbar Square
  5. Lhasa, Tibet – Jokhang Temple and Drepung Monastery