Garden of Dreams

After having traveled for weeks on end, with lots of adventures, sights that made a deep impression on me and left a lasting trace in my mind, after hassles and noise, after being active from early morning to late evening, and after a few days in the hectic pleasant chaos of Kathmandu, I longed for a moment of peace, a moment of rest, a moment of inactivity. I needed a break. When I learnt about the Garden of Dreams, or the Swapna Bagaicha, I knew that would be exactly what I needed. Its central location in Kathmandu made it even easier to decide.

The entrance on Tridevi Marg looks small, and conceals what can be found just behind the high wall surrounding the Garden of Dreams. Once inside, as the noise of cars and motorbikes, the voices and yells, disappear behind your back, you walk into an oasis of peace. Suddenly, you realise that there are actually birds singing, you hear the murmur of water, no one tries to sell drugs or trekking tours: you are, in fact, by yourself! What is more: the main relaxation areas in the Garden of Dreams provides cushions to install yourself on the grass. I could not resist, lied down and closed my eyes.

As I was blocking the visual pleasures of the Garden of Dreams, I could still discern the street noise, but it had become a background, almost monotonous noise, which I somehow filtered out. It took little time to relax completely, and I thoroughly enjoyed the silence and the very pleasant atmosphere of the surroundings. When I got up again, I made a tour of the Garden of Dreams. Much more than just a garden, it has been painstakenly restored - the garden was started by Field Marshal Kaiser Shamser in the 1920s, but deteriorated after his death. They have been opened in 2006, work is still in progress, but already now, you cannot miss the combination of overall design and the details that make this garden stand out. Small pavilions, sculptures, waterfalls, exotic plants and flowers, ponds, circular gates, steps integrated into the lawn. A highly romantic place, from which it is difficult to leave.

Pashupatinath Cremation

After getting off the taxi, I walked into a park belonging to the Pashupatinath area. Some teenagers were playing cricket, older people were sitting down for a chat, and a monkey rushed past as I walked on. I turned a corner and saw some souvenir stalls, and paid my entrance fee. Just around the corner, I entered a platform and saw a line of people hanging over the edge, smoke rising behind them, coming from below. When I joined them to look down, I saw fires burning below, and realized that this was the famed cremation site of Kathmandu. I walked down, crossed the small river and joined another line of people sitting on the stairs. It was hard to imagine that this narrow stream of water was actually the holy Bagmati river, on a par with the Ganges in India. However, the atmosphere was different: it felt relaxed, it seemed that locals around me came her for a day out, almost like going to a picnic.

I sat down opposite the cremation site, and watched. For me, the foreigner of a continent where death has virtually disappeared from public life, where seeing a funeral car is the closest you can come to be faced with death in daily life, the openness and accessibility of this cremation site has a tremendous impact. Families with young children were watching with me while a corpse, wrapped in a white cloth, was carried to one of the platforms. A few relatives were bidding their last farewells to the corpse, some flowers were tossed on the corpse, after which it was lifted and carried on the pile of wooden blocks that had been constructed just before. I watched yet another cremation. One of the people working at Pashupatinath was making a pile of wooden blocks, making sure it was the right length and had a more or less straight surface. A coffin, that had been waiting next to a platform, was surrounded by people, and a man opened the lid. He threw clothes and shoes in the holy river Bagmati, which actually is no more than a trickel nowadays thanks to overpopulation. After the coffin was broken apart, its remains were also deposited in the Bagmati. The corpse was covered in flowers, lifted and put on top of the pyre. After relatives walked around it to show their last respect, it was covered by straw and the fire was lit. This was surprisingly little ceremony surrounding the event, and when smoke started billowing out of the pile of wood, straw and human remains, the relatives disappeared.

On the other side of the two bridges spanning the Bagmati river, there are more platforms, for cremation of royalty and those high on the societal ladder. A crowd had gathered around a corpse covered in an orange cloth. Relatives were tossing white and yellow flowes on the cloth, and one woman had to be contained because she was desperate. It was the only display of sorrow and emotions I saw in the few hours I watched the scenes on the banks of the holy river Bagmati. The corpse was lifted, and carried to one of the platforms on the south side of the bridges. It was only when they had left, that I noticed something else, left behind on the stairs. It took some time to sink in: I was looking at a corpse, almost uncovered, lying feet-down on the stairs of the river. I was deeply impressed. When I returned to the south side of the bridges, I noticed that the fire that I had seen started, had almost disappeared. Someone was trying to wake up a fire that had almost extinguished. It was only when I studied my pictures at home that I realized that there were arms and a foot sticking out of the dying fire. Most of the spectators were gone, and someone just pushed the ashes from the platform into the muddy shallow holy water of the Bagmati.

Boudha Stupa

Inevitably, I knew what the stupa of Boudha would look like before I arrived. Still, when I walked the main street in Boudha I did not notice anything special. Only when I turned to the left, the stupa and the golden tower on top of it presented themselves to me. Even so, it was only when I arrived at the end of the alley that the entire stupa unfolded before my eyes. Yes, it was big, yes, it was crowded, and yes, I wanted to get on top! I walked clockwise around the stupa, and climbed several levels to the highest level where you are allowed to walk.

Actually, the Boudha stupa has nine levels, representing the World Mountain, or Neru - home of gods and centre of the cosmos. The levels represent the five elements. The stupa itself, whose original version was probably built in the 7th century, consists of three levels, accessible to the visitor. They symbolize Earth; two higher plinths symbolize water, and the golden tower above that bear the eyes of the omnipresent god. Between each of these eyes, in three colours, you can find a third eye, the symbol of wisdom. Stair-like steps leading up to the top represent the steps to enlightenment; the pyramidal shape symbolizing fire. The canopy on top stands for air, and the spire defining the top of the structure stands for the sphere.


Obviously, as can be seen in the amount of people circumambulating the stupa on the kora at ground leve, the stupa is of significance to Tibetan buddhists, who have established a large community in Bodhnath or Boudha - many of them fled Tibet after the failed uprising in 1959. At the same time, it is a gathering place for many people, and indeed, is as pleasant a place as any to while away your time. The sun has unobstructed access to the sides of the stupa, and, with a little caution for the sloping sides of the stupa, you can sit virtually anywhere. As the sun goes down and the colours of the stupa become warmer, there are more people around. The prayer flags flying above your head, the murmur coming from below, the friendly eyes of the omnipresent god that never even blink looking down on you, make for a peaceful experience, whether you are a buddhist or not.

Sample the Himalaya - Easily accesable viewpoint

Sarangkot is a semi developed village.

It is the highest viewpoint easily accesable from Pokhara. Two hours walk up the staircase, or get most of the way up by local bus or Taxi.

Sarangkot has great views in all four directions, Pokhara below, The Annapurna Range including its highest peaks, Rolling Hills off to the sunset and a rural lanscape out along the ridge road.

This is a most popular spot for sunrise watchers who come up in the morning and head back to Pokahar after breakcfast.. But in my opinion if you have a spare night in your itinery - stay the night in Sarangkot. There are plenty of places to stay from a few dollars upwards. Sunsets are even better than sunrise most days, the food is better than average for most villages, and it is a great place to loung arround and have a few beers for an afternoon.

Stay the NIGHT in sarangkot for best experience

If you're staying in Pokhara, a visit to Sarangkot is a must. and although many people choose to catch (expensive) early morning return taxis to this hilltop, it's much the best to head up one day, perhaps a gentle walk up the hill (a pleasure in itself), have your afternoon tea, evening meal up there, maybe enjoy the mountain views (or views across the lake) during sunset, and stay overnight. It's cheap to stay - and if it's only for a night, no need to check out your regular hotel in Pokhara - just regard the few rupees you spend on accommodation as what you would have spent on taxi fare! Yes, you might get stunning view at sunrise - but more likely you'll get it at another time. and who knows, maybe you'll like the place and the people enough that you'll want to 'chill out' there for a few more days... Plenty of good walking in the area, including along the ridge towards Kaski and Naudanda (half day's level walk along ridge to naudanda, and you can get a bus from there back to Pokhara, if you like) ...

Pokhara: First-time Visitors

Travelers who are headed to Pokhara for the first time are in for a trip which will expose them to a unique culture in an area which has an interesting history and which offers numerous activities to its guests. Visitors should make it a point to learn up about the safety issues associated with travel to the area before heading there.

Once in the area, travelers should strive to achieve a balance in their trip of enjoying the beautiful outdoor activities offered in the area and taking respite from the often rainy weather with activities located indoors.

As far as the outdoors go, travelers should be sure to head to the Annapurna mountain range to do some hiking. Visitors who make it to Sarangkot peak will be rewarded with an amazing view of Pokhara from above. When visitors are ready to head indoors, the places they will want to be sure to check out are the museums and the local temples. In terms of the latter, the Bhimsen Mandir and the Bindhyabasini Mandhir are the two best locations for truly experiencing the Buddhist and Tibetan religious culture of the area.

Pokhara: Sightseeing

Many traveler come to visit pokhara each year. Pokhara is known as paradise City. Following are the main sightseeing places in Pokhara.

• Fewa Lake
• Barahi Temple
• Davi's Fall
• Gupteswar Cave
• Refugee camp
• Mountain Museum
• Annapurna Museum
• Pokhara Museum
• Mahendra Pul Main Town
• Old Bazar
• Matepani Stupa
• Bhadrakali Temple
• Manipal Hospital
• Pokhara Hospital
• Bindabasini Temple
• Prithivi Narayan College
• Seti George
• Mahendra Cave
• Bat Cave