JOIN EDITOR CHAD MERCHANT AS HE EMBARKS ON A JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY IN ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST AMAZING CULTURAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL LANDSCAPES.
It’s not the largest country, nor is it the wealthiest. It’s not the most technologically advanced, and it’s not the most populous. But of all the many things Nepal is not, it’s what it is that makes it remarkable.
Nepal, for starters, is home to the highest point on Earth, Mount Everest. Soaring to a peak at 8,848m above sea level, the mountain the Nepalese call Sagarmatha is an irresistible draw for mountaineers and thrill-seekers from around the world, and is doubtlessly the crown jewel in any Nepal-focused tour guide. The Himalayan range that contains Everest has almost innumerable peaks, and indeed, Nepal is home to eight of the world’s ten highest mountains.
But this landlocked country has much more to offer than stunning mountain backdrops and spectacular landscapes. Nepal is also the birthplace of Lord Buddha and is currently host to a rich tapestry of ethnic and cultural diversity. I recently visited this country ripe for discovery, which lies just an easy four-hour flight from KL, and was introduced to just enough to make me want to return for a longer stay.
HOLY SITES
The Nepalese capital city of Kathmandu lies in a large, bowl-shaped valley surrounded by four major mountain ranges and is home to about five million people. In 1979, this valley was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, inclusive of seven specific sites in three cities.
First on the list for my visit was a morning at the Pashupatinath Temple along the banks of the holy Bagmati River in Deopatan, a village about 3km from Kathmandu’s centre. Considered a sacred river by both Hindus and Buddhists, the Bagmati regularly receives the ashes of the cremated, and ten platforms, part of this Hindu temple, are sited right at the river’s edge. On these platforms, the dead are burned in a traditional ceremonial send-off and their ashes swept into the fast-flowing waters below. Ultimately, the Bagmati flows into the Ganges River and out to sea. Patshupatinath, the temple dedicated to a manifestation of Lord Shiva called Pashupati (Lord of Animals), is considered one of the holiest Hindu temples in the world. While there, we saw a family at the river’s edge preparing the body of their deceased loved one for the cremation ceremony, a number of chanting prayer groups, and various “holy men,” with their faces painted in shockingly bright pigments of orange and yellow. For non-Hindus, it’s a bewildering, but truly fascinating sight to behold. Though admittedly the site carries an air of introspective melancholy – the site contains not only the crematorial platforms, but also a centuries-old riverside hospice where many Nepalese Hindus make plans to take up residence as they live out their final days – Pashupatinath is a very special place, regardless of your religion, and is well worth a visit.
BUSTLING BOUDHANATH
Moving on, I spent the afternoon at Boudhanath, a large Buddhist stupa on the eastern fringe of Kathmandu that’s ringed by a circle of shops and markets, giving it a self-contained “town square” feel – though of a circular variety! Boudhanath is a well-known pilgrimage site for Tibetans from the north, and you’re likely to see them here. Though it’s clear that there has been a degree of opportunistic exploitation, as seems to always be the case with popular tourist locales, Boudhanath was nevertheless an enjoyable place to spend a couple of hours and is well worth a stop. Catch a bite to eat or grab a cold drink at one of the rooftop or second-floor cafés, and get a bird’s-eye view of all the activity below.
Over a dozen monasteries are in the nearby vicinity and lend further credence to the importance of this site to Tibetan Buddhists. The stupa itself, though not as impressive as those at Borobudur in Indonesia, stands roughly 36m high on a massive platform with a series of prayer wheels around its base. Devotees walk clockwise around the stupa, covering the entire circular distance with one arm outstretched to spin the wheels as they pass.
CULTURAL SURVIVORS
Another must-see cultural centre is the spectacular ancient site of Durbar Square in the city of Bhaktapur, some 8km east of Kathmandu. Once the grandest expanse of architecture in the valley, this series of palaces once contained 99 courtyards. Almost all of these, however, fell victim to a great earthquake in 1934. What remains is among the country’s most impressive traditional architecture in a square known as Hanuman Dhoka. Built by Newari craftsmen over several centuries, one of the standout buildings is the Nyatapola Temple, dedicated to the Hindu goddess of prosperity, Siddha Laxmi. Nyatapola, which actually means “five-storey temple” in the Newari language, was completed in 1702 and, at 30m in height, is a towering five-tiered pagoda-style temple that ranks among Nepal’s tallest. As you ascend the stairs leading to the platform, little carved statues adorn every step on each side. The examples of craftsmanship and architecture on display here are truly remarkable.
You could easily spend the better part of a day in Bhaktapur. Here, cultural and traditional ways endure, and the city is largely populated by farmers and craftsmen. When there’s a break in the agricultural chores, farmers turn to pottery to supplement their incomes, and in the courtyards of Bhaktapur it was common to see hundreds of pots drying in the hot midday sun.
A STUNNING BACKDROP
For me, however, perhaps the greatest attraction of Nepal lies in its natural offerings. If it’s a rugged landscape you want, you won’t be disappointed here. From the jagged snowcapped peaks of the Himalayas to the lush, verdant hillsides that are home to most of Nepal’s population, a palette of colours delights at every turn in the road and, on a clear day, the views from Nagarkot, at about 2,200m above sea level, are breathtaking. In the Kathmandu Valley, the mountains plunge from over 8,000m to just 1,300m and this dramatic variation in the landscape creates an almost unimaginable series of vistas. At one point, we stopped to take in the view and the sun was shining on a patchwork spread of houses and rice paddies far below. Under the late-afternoon warmth of the bright sun, the iridescent lime green of the rice fields was almost surreal.
Nepal’s considerable strengths, however, are also among its liabilities. Landlocked, with exceptionally rugged terrain and few natural resources, the country has been plagued by poor infrastructure and even beset by political strife. That seems to be changing for the better, and though Nepal is a poor country, the country is making real strides, with the percentage of those living in extreme poverty decreasing from 53% to 25% in the last few years. As more channels open for tourism and trade, it is hoped that the warm, hardworking people of Nepal will reap the benefits and share in the bounty that visitors bring to this remarkable South Asian country.
As a visitor, it’s difficult to see such stoic, hardworking people consigned to a life of unending labour and poverty. It’s almost impossible to look past it, however, particularly on the streets of Kathmandu where the woebegone state of the country’s infrastructure is on stark display. At night, much of the nation is plunged into darkness. Only 40% of Nepal has access to electricity, there are almost no street lights (even in the city), and when electricity is available, it isn’t terribly reliable – rolling blackouts are not uncommon, so ensure your hotel has a backup generator.
Regrettably, too many in our world live like this. Travel is a very real way to not only bring our own tourist dollars to struggling people, but to help us appreciate the good things in our own lives that are often taken for granted. Nepal is a worthwhile holiday destination that will not only leave you with treasured cultural and scenic memories, but also one that will fill you with gratitude for the treasures you already possess.
———————————————————————————————–
Malaysia Airlines operates nonstop flights to Kathmandu three times per week. Almost all visitors are required to obtain a visa, which can be done on arrival for US$25 (for a 15-day multiple-entry visa) or at the Nepalese Embassy in KL for RM95. To book your flight, please visit www.malaysiaairlines.com.
This article was written by Chad Merchant for The Expat magazine.
Source: The Expat October 2012
Read more:
"ExpatGo welcomes and encourages comments, input, and divergent opinions. However, we kindly request that you use suitable language in your comments, and refrain from any sort of personal attack, hate speech, or disparaging rhetoric. Comments not in line with this are subject to removal from the site. "
