Dhampus (Nepal)

Dhampus was one of my favorite places in Nepal. It gives a stunning view of the ice-capped mountains. Although the mountain resort I stayed in lacked in facilities like heater, stable supply of electricity, towels and toiletries, I have really enjoyed my stay on the mountain.

From Dhampus, you could see Fish tail mountain, Annapurna, etc. It is supposed to also have a good view of the sun rise, but because of the weather, I could not see it. 

It is a long ride (about 6 hour) from Pokhara, and the ride back to Kathmandu took me about 8 hours due to traffic jams.

Begnas Lake (Nepal)

Begnas Lake is only about a 20-minute ride from Fewa/Phewa Lake. I went to Begnas Lake on a Saturday and there were many locals who were having picnics and parties there. There were also many school children who were having a school trip. Though it was pretty foggy, I have really enjoyed the view of the lake.

The was a small hill with a hill-top guest house, the top of the hill gives you a good view of the lake and the small village.

In my opinion, the highlight of the visit was horse-riding! I really love horses, and at Begnas lake, there are private horse owners who offer a ride on the horse for less than 2 USD. The man first led the horse with me riding it, and then let me ride the horse on my own. Other than horse-riding, you can also engage a boat and row it in the lake.

Kathmandu Durbar Square & Tribhuvan Museum (Nepal)

The Hanuman-dhoka Durbar Square was splendid site (and sight)! There are plenty of Hindu and Buddhist temples, and of course, plenty of local worshippers.

The entire site was huge, and would take more than three hours to finish exploring the place, inclusive of the palace museums.

My two favorite places in this site is the Hanumsn-dhoka Royal Palace and the Kumari-ghar. The former has been made into a museum which will give you a better understanding into the history of the monarchies IF you have a tour guide with you. The museum provides really brief descriptions of the exhibits and it is advisable to engage a local guide to provide you with greater insights.

Next, the Kumari-ghar is interesting because it is the home of a living goddess. The goddess is a young virgin girl who was selected based on her different attributes. Her 'term' will end once she experience her first period. The goddess will make appearance about three times a day, but I failed to catch a glimpse of her.

In addition, most of the windows of the buildings have windows pronounced as aki-jar (sorry I'm not sure of the actual word). It is because, during the ramu period, they kidnap beautiful girls all over the land and in order to protect the girls, these windows did not allow people from outside to see into the buildings.

All in all, the Hanuman-dhoka Durbar Square is definitely a must-visit in Kathmandu!

Swayambhunath (Nepal)

It is another UNESCO world heritage site in Kathmandu. There are both Hindu and Buddhist temples on the hill. And on top of the hill, there's a pretty good view of Kathmandu, if there is no fog.

The are many handicraft and food sellers along the way, and there are many local devotees. However, the highlight seems to be the monkeys which were roaming around the site. They are really aggressive and you should not hold any food or plastic bags while walking if you don't want the monkeys to come snatching your food away.

Overall, it's a pretty nice place to visit ad there are many intricate carvings of the Gods and Buddhas.