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Published on November 10, 2007

My worries that political problems might jeopardise my visit to Nepal proved unfounded. Assajita Awale, the owner of Sanu House in Patan, Nepal, reassured my friends and I that all would be well.

Getting tickets had been a five-month ordeal. All fights from Bangkok were full and we were only confirmed the day before takeoff. This was lucky, because we'd booked our accommodation in advance.

Awale explained that Nepal is a popular destination in September and October because of the Dashain Festival, the most important for Nepalis. The entire population celebrates.

They buy new clothes, eat food and visit family members. It's a bit like New Year elsewhere, with overseas Nepalis returning home.

In addition, October is the best time to go trekking in the Himalayas, so things are very busy.

Before we arrived, all we knew about Nepal is that it's considered by many to be the birthplace of the Lord Buddha, at Lumbini.

The guidebooks told us the country is spectacular, and has a lot of fascinating architecture and cultural destinations and activities.

Kathmandu, the capital and largest city, has a 1,300-year history and refined culture, along with many Buddhist and Hindu temples and palaces.

Its Durbar Square, within the old royal palace, is not to be missed. Other destinations are Pokhara, Nagarkot, Lalitpur, Dhulikhel and Bhaktapur.

We started out sightseeing with the three royal squares that date back to the 12th century and earlier. Admission to these city squares costs 200 Nepalese rupees, or about Bt100.

The largest temple in Kathmandu Square is Hindu. When we visited, a festival celebrating the goddess Kali was in progress. There are many stories about her, but the most famous has her destroying the demon Raktabija by sucking the blood from his body.

Kali then dances on the field of battle, stepping on the corpses of the slain. There is much dancing at this festival.

Around Patan Durbar Square there are more than 100 Hindu and Buddhist temples. One of oldest Buddhist examples is the Golden Temple, to which worshippers come to pray every morning.

This beautiful and tranquil monastery was built in the 12th century. It's pretty plain from the outside, but majestic inside. Its doors stand open to symbolise the acceptance of people from all religions and walks of life.

On the second day of our trip we visited Kathmandu Durbar Square, a World Heritage Site and one of three durbar (royal palace) squares in the Kathmandu valley. It's home to the palaces of the Malla and Shah kings, and its quadrangles reveal courtyards and more temples. The square is the centre for many important royal events, like the coronations of kings.

The original square is believed to have been built around 1069, but there's been much redevelopment since.

This is the location of Kasthamandap, a three-storey temple that houses one of Nepal's largest and best-known pagodas. It enshrines a statue of Gorakhnath and is said to have been built from a single, giant tree.

Nepali culture is rich with references to gods, goddesses and deities in statues, images and paintings. Kumari Ghar, which faces Durbar Square, has a living reincarnation of one as well. The ghar is home to the Kumari - the incarnation of a Hindu goddess. Kumari means "virgin" in Nepali and was the name of the goddess Durga as a child.

The next morning we were up at 4am and headed for Nagarkot, 2,100 metres above sea level. There we waited for a sunrise view of the Himalayas and Mount Everest. We had great views on the way back down Kathmandu Valley, too.

After this it was on to Bhaktapur for a walk around its own Durbar Square, described by the United Nations heritage people as a "living museum".

One annoyance is the children demanding money and gifts from visitors. All this started with Western tourists paying children for photographs. Now it's expected.

It was time to start the adventure leg of the trip and do some trekking. We headed for Pokhara, whose amazing lake reflects the surrounding mountains, with some peaks exceeding 8,000 metres.

From Kathmandu to Pokhara by bus takes about eight hours and costs between US$10 and $15 (Bt320 and Bt475). Along they way you get great views of the Seti Gandaki, the country's largest river, which flows through Pokhara.

We started our stay with a sunset boat ride on Phewa Tai.

The next day we were up at 4am again and headed for Naudanda, about 30 kilometres away and 1,700 metres up. From here we enjoyed fantastic views of Machapuchare and other mountains of the Annapurna Himal range.

After sunrise we began the hike to the villages of Kaskikot and Sarangkot. It took five and a half hours to cover the 16 kilometres.

Along the way we glimpsed the local wildlife and agriculture, stopping at a buffalo farm to get a taste of buffalo milk.

Arriving back in Pokhara we still had a little energy left for some sightseeing.

We visited Devi Falls, also known as Davin or David's Falls. Water from nearby Phewa Tai thunders into a large hole and disappears - a "mystery", according to the locals.

We spent our last day back in Kathmandu, where we visited markets, quickly learning that a little hard bargaining will earn discounts.

Nepal is a treasure trove for souvenir hunters, who can find jewellery, paubha and thanka traditional paintings on cotton scrolls, curved metal khukuri knives and hand-knotted carpets.

The next morning we revisited Hiranya Varna Mahaa Vihar, the Golden Temple in Patan, and prayed. Then it was off to the airport and back to Bangkok.

Somluck Srimalee

The Nation