After breakfast our staff will come to pick you up at the Hotel for the morning sightseeing.
Patan Durbar Square: The ancient name of Patan is Lalitpur, meaning city of beauty. It is indeed a city of beauty and grace and is planned on a circular format with Buddhist stupa's at each of the four points of the compass. The city is three kilometers south-east of Kathmandu across the southern bank of the river Bagmati. Like Kathmandu, its most photogenic centre of attraction is its Durbar Square complex, situated right in the middle of the market place. The city is full of Buddhist monuments and Hindu temples, with fine bronze gateways, guardian deities and wonderful carvings. Noted for its craftsmen and metal workers, it is also known as the city of artists. The city is believed to have been built during the reign of Vira Deva in 299 A.D. Some of Patan's more important monuments are Durbar Square, Khumbeshwor, Krishna Temple, Machendranath to name a few.
Tibetan Refugee Camp: An attraction of a different kind is the Tibetan Camp on the outskirts of Patan. The small Tibetan population living here has set up a number of shrines and stupas as well as several souvenir shops offering authentic Tibetan handicrafts such as prayer wheels of wood, ivory, silver or bronze, long temple horns made of beaten copper, belt buckles, miniature thunderbolts and jewels. In this area, one can also see the Tibetans weaving carpets by hand.
Kathmandu Durbar Square: It is the historic seat of royalty. The Durbar Square, with its old temples and places, epitomizes the religious and cultural life of the people. It is here that kings of Nepal are crowned and their coronations solemnized. Interesting things to see here are; Taleju Temple built by king Mahendra Malla in 1549 A.D.; Kal Bhairav, the God of Destruction, Nautalle Durbar(nine-story palace), Coronation Nasal Chowk, The Gaddi Baithak, the statue of King Pratap Malla, the Big Bell, Big Drum and the Jagannath Temple.
On the right hand corner, larger wooden lattice screen hides an enormous gilded face of Sweta Bhairav. The screen is removed only during the Indra Jatra festival. There are also Numismatic Museum and Tribhuvan museum inside the Hanuman Dhoka Palace building. Photography is prohibited inside the museums. Both the museums remain closed on Tuesdays and government holidays. Temple Of Kumari (Kumar Ghar): The temple or the residence of Living Goddess, Kumari, is situated in the vicinity of Hanuman Dhoka Palace. The building has profusely carved wooden balconies and window screens. The Kumari - the Living Goddess acknowledges the greetings from her balcony window. Photography is prohibited.
Swyambhunath – the Monkey Temple: This is believed to be 25 centuries old and stands as one of the world's oldest Buddhist Chaityas. The Great Stupa of Swyambhu is the wonder that was Nepal, the glory that was Nepal. It is indeed listed a World Heritage Site to prove that it serves as the nerve center of faithful worship for all the devout philosophy of Bajrayan in particular and honors Lord Adi Buddha. It is dedicated to the self - originating flame God. The stupa, which forms the salient structure, is well composed of a solid hemisphere of terra - cotta bricks and soil supporting a cornice of copper and gilt. Painted on the four -sided based by of the spiral are the all seeing eyes of lord Buddha, keeping an eternal watch on the Valley distinguishing between vice and virtue. It is some two miles west of Kathmandu City proper across the holy Bishnumati River. Situated on the top of a hillock, it is about 500 feet above the level of the Valley. The whole hill is a mosaic of small Chaityas and pagoda temples possessing great five Mahayan (Lamaism) and one Hinyan (Therbadist). On the hind hill is located another important Buddhist shrine; it is called Manjushree. This Chinese Buddha is the God of Knowledge.
Bouddhanath: From here a short drive leads to the Bouddhanath. The Stupa of Bouddhanath lays 8-kms east of Kathmandu. This colossal and ancient stupa is one of the biggest in the world. This is declared to stand as the largest Buddhist shrine of South Asia. The ancient colossal chorten was built in the 6th century A.D. by King Man Deb.It rests on a series of three terraces and from the bird's eye view it takes the relevant shape or of a lotus flower which indeed remains a very holy object for all the devout Buddhists of the world. The chhorten is surrounded by a circular market, which forms a part of Tibet town. In this case, also the four pairs of the Buddha's eyes give a vivid flash to the four cardinal directions, meaning to keep a diligent watch over the people and their commitments all day all night. The chorten embraces the authentic philosophy of Mahayan the faith of which is known as Lamaism in Sikkim, Ladakh, Bhutan and Tibet. This area is also known as 'Little Tibet' after a visit here observing the Tibetan Buddhist way of life we head back to the Hotel.
