Fast Facts:
- Country: Nepal
- Capitla: Kathmandu
- Location: Located in South Asia, Nepal is a landlocked country between India and Tibet, an autonomous region of China.
- Language: Nepali
- Currency: Nepalese rupee
For this trip:
- Month of Travel: December to January
- Weather: 18 deg C
- What to Wear: It’s cold but generally comfortable. Bring proper shoes for trekking and extra layers if you’re going for an early morning hike.
We normally celebrate Christmas and New Year with the family, but because we were in different countries this season, we decided to book a last-minute flight to Nepal. We were so grateful to have found Raj, the owner of Himalayan Trekkers who supported us as we built our itinerary. From our email exchange, the warm welcome of his assigned guide and driver, his New Year’s Eve dinner treat to get to know us better to the tiny adjustments made to make our trip comfortable, his support made the experience all the more memorable.
Here we list down new things we acquired as we spent New Year in Nepal.
New cultures discovered
Because of its location, Nepal enjoys the best of the Chinese, Indian and Tibetan influences that in harmony has produced its distinct identity. Hinduism and Buddhism are the two main religions, which are deeply embedded in their culture so our exploration featured a lot of their main religious sites, located in some of the country’s busiest cities and markets.
Pasupatinath Temple is the most sacred temple for Hindus all over the world. It has also been used as one of the shooting locations of Doctor Strange. This is where he found the door to Kamar Taj, home to the Masters of the Mystic Arts.
GALLERY:
Known as Little Tibet, Boudhanath Stupa was where 50 thousand Tibetans took refuge after the Chinese invasion.
GALLERY:
A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Swayambhunath Stupa or the Monkey Temple is one of the oldest Buddhist shrines in the world.
Patan Durbar Square, a Buddhist city, is known as the city of fine arts.
GALLERY:
Kathmandu Durbar Square has some of the most interesting monuments in Nepal including Kasthamandap, where Kathmandu derived its name; Kumari Ghar, the House of the living goddess Kumari (she was asleep when we visited); the Taleju temple; and the Hanuman Dhoka Palace.
GALLERY:
Bhaktapur Durbar Square is referred to as the city of the devotees because of the hundreds of temples in the area.
GALLERY:
Also try to visit Thamel, the tourist hub in Kathmandu; Indra Chowk, a traditional market square and; Ason famous for the oldest shopping place in Kathmandu.
New love for Nepalese food
It wasn’t easy to find reviews of restaurants in Nepal. But with very familiar Chinese, Indian and Tibetan flavors, we were in and we were not disappointed!
Let’s start with the momos. Fried, steamed, kothey (half steamed, half fried) – with chicken, prawn, beef, buffalo (only for Tim), or vegetable, sign us up! We can have this all day. We also enjoyed the Dhal Bat and Thukpa.
The Nepalese must have perfected their cooking because at least for us, we had the same quality of food and taste wherever we ate.
GALLERY:
New mountains hiked
Climbing the Everest is the dream (and most likely our cause of death if we try). But even if you couldn’t conquer it, you wouldn’t run out of trekking options in Nepal.
We did the Nagarkot and Telkot hike where we also caught the last sunrise of 2017. Majestic views of a green mountain range on one side and the snowcapped Himalayas on the other warmed our hearts despite the freezing temperature.
On January 1, 2018, we felt we started the year right with a light trek to Kakani. It wasn’t difficult but for people like us who don’t exercise, easy is never easy.
GALLERY:
(Not so) New perspective in life
After Raj’s dinner treat, we left the restaurant and crowds have already filled the roads making it challenging to move. Almost everyone was headed towards the loud music so we followed the flow.
How does one ring in the new year in Nepal? To our surprise, we found ourselves in a street rave. These events in other countries can get rowdy so we stayed around families with kids and were on guard. After a few minutes, we relaxed again recalling that this is Nepal – home to some of the most gentle humans we’ve encountered.
There were no fancy parties, no record-breaking fireworks, just families and friends celebrating life together. And we thought, this is really all that matters. We know this, but we often take it for granted. And as we all hustle through another 365 days, we are almost sure, we would not only forget, we might even lose this truth. So may this post be a constant reminder to us of what happiness is about. To us that evening, it was simply holding hands, counting down the seconds till midnight, and knowing we have each other always.
Check out our video!