Biratnagar (बिराटनगर) is a sub metropolitan city in south east Nepal which is named after the historical King Birat and is considered the second largest town after Kathmandu. In Nepali "Birat" means big and "Nagar" means a place or a city. Biratnagar has given many influential leaders in Nepalese politics including Manmohan Adhikari and Kirtinidhi Bista. Biratnagar is an industrial power house of Nepal with most of the country's industries located in and around its suburbs. It is in Koshi zone- one of the fourteen administrative zones of Nepal and is also the district capital of Morang district. Its geographical location is 26°28'60"N 87°16'60"E.
Since it is situated in the Terai- north-most section of the Gangetic plains of South Asia, the lands are very fertile and hence Biratnagar has traditionally been an agricultural hub and is home to many agriculture based industries of the country. It is located near the border of India and is therefore a major center for trade and commerce with India. Biratnagar is linked with Kathmandu by roadways and airways. Biratnagar Airport is the regional hub for vital air services serving the Eastern part of the country.
According to 2009 census, the total population of the city of Biratnagar was 696,636. Biratnagar's demography chiefly consists of ethnic groups like Pahadis, Madhesis, Marwaris, Tharus and it consists a significantly large Muslim population in Nepal. By percentage of population most people follow Hinduism followed by Islam, Buddhism, Jainism and Christianity.
Biratnagar is equally famous for its high-spirited festival celebration. In Dashain, Nepal's biggest festival, large number of people including youths visit the Kali Mandir, a temple which lies in the heart of the town. Also famous is Tiharr in Biratnagar, festival of lights, when the residents line their homes with diyo (an earthen oil lamp), candles and decorative electrical lamps during the two days of celebration. Krishna Astami (Birthday of Krishna) is a festival which is heavily celebrated in Biratnagar. Thousands of people gather on that day to pull the Holy Cart (Rath) which goes around the city. This event is termed as the Rath Yatra (the Cart Journey). Traffic will be hault for one or two hours on that day. It is believed that the Holy Cart (Rath) was driven by Lord Krishna. So, people keep young child in the Holy Cart as a symbol of Krishna and pull the Cart with joy to celebrate the Birthday of Lord Krishna. The Cart (Rath) is very big and heavy, so needs hundreds of people to move. It has generator to run if required to move fast. It has brakes to stop as it has to stop at many places to allow people to worship the Lord. Some people will be in the Cart (Rath) to distribute prasad (fruits) to the people. The Holy Cart will be followed by many smaller carts which are pulled by oxen. people in the smaller carts play the music and sing hymns with joy and happiness. It is the most important festival for the people of Biratnagr. So, almost all the schools and offices close after 1pm Nepali time to let the believers and spectators attend the Rath Yatra (the Cart Journey).
Friday, December 17, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
manang
Manang District, a part of ghandhaki zone is one of the seventy-five districts
of Nepal. The district, with chame as its district headquarters, covers an area of 2,246 km² and has a population (2001) of 9,587.
The pass of Thorung La at 5415 meters above the sea connects the district to mustang district by providing a route between the towns of Manang and Muktinath.
The Manang Valley, which lies close to the Nepal-Tibet border, offers tremendous opportunities due to its rich natural flora and fauna. Three tracks start from here. The first, via Thorangla, Muktinath, and Mustang to Lhasa—a journey that takes four days; the second via Naur Khola and Naurgaon, which takes five days to Lhasa; and finally the third via Larkiya bazar, which is the one most commonly used by the people of Central Nepal.
Along with the Marwaris who have migrated from India to Nepal in large numbers, the Manangies are the best known traders of Nepal. They have received special dispensation from the King to trade in South East Asia, and travel abroad with precious stones and metals, musk, herbs and other items. They import ready-made garments, watches and electronic goods. Many of the Manangies spend as much as six months away from home, returning only during the summers. Many of them reside in Kathmandu, where their children study in the English medium schools. The parents' lack of proficiency in the English language is irrelevant as it in no way affects their trading skills.
Since the area was opened to outsiders in the late 1970s, many have switched from the traditional agriculture to hoteleering.
The trail from Manang to Muktinath has been used by the locals for hundreds of years to transport huge herds of sheep and yak in and out of Manang. It is an important route for the people of the region.
The northern parts of Manang Valley are dry, brown and desolate places, very different from the thick forests and brown green valleys of Sikkim and Eastern Nepal.
of Nepal. The district, with chame as its district headquarters, covers an area of 2,246 km² and has a population (2001) of 9,587.
The pass of Thorung La at 5415 meters above the sea connects the district to mustang district by providing a route between the towns of Manang and Muktinath.
The Manang Valley, which lies close to the Nepal-Tibet border, offers tremendous opportunities due to its rich natural flora and fauna. Three tracks start from here. The first, via Thorangla, Muktinath, and Mustang to Lhasa—a journey that takes four days; the second via Naur Khola and Naurgaon, which takes five days to Lhasa; and finally the third via Larkiya bazar, which is the one most commonly used by the people of Central Nepal.
Along with the Marwaris who have migrated from India to Nepal in large numbers, the Manangies are the best known traders of Nepal. They have received special dispensation from the King to trade in South East Asia, and travel abroad with precious stones and metals, musk, herbs and other items. They import ready-made garments, watches and electronic goods. Many of the Manangies spend as much as six months away from home, returning only during the summers. Many of them reside in Kathmandu, where their children study in the English medium schools. The parents' lack of proficiency in the English language is irrelevant as it in no way affects their trading skills.
Since the area was opened to outsiders in the late 1970s, many have switched from the traditional agriculture to hoteleering.
The trail from Manang to Muktinath has been used by the locals for hundreds of years to transport huge herds of sheep and yak in and out of Manang. It is an important route for the people of the region.
The northern parts of Manang Valley are dry, brown and desolate places, very different from the thick forests and brown green valleys of Sikkim and Eastern Nepal.
mustang
Mustang (from Tibeta Mun Tan which means fertile plain) is the former Kingdom of Lo and now part of Nepal, in the north-central part of that country, bordering the People's republic of china on the Tibetan pleatu between the Nepalese provinces of Dolpo and Manang. The Kingdom of Lo, the traditional Mustang region, and "Upper Mustang" are one and the same, comprising the northern two-thirds of the present-day Nepalese Mustang Distict, and are well marked by official "Mustang" border signs just north of Kagbeni where a police post checks permits for non-Nepalese seeking to enter the region, and at Gyu La (pass) east of Kagbeni.
Life in Mustang revolves around tourism, animal husbendry and trade. Except for a nine km portion from Chhusang to Syangboche (just south of Ghiling (Geling)) as of August 2010, it is bisected by a new road linking it to the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) to the north and to the rest of Nepal to the south. Plans call for the final nine km portion to be completed in just a few years' time, which will provide, with a high point of 4660 m at Kora La on the Mustang-TAR border, the lowest drivable corridor through the Himalayas linking the Tibetan Plateau via Nepal to the tropical Indian plains. (The easiest and only widely used road corridor, from Kathmandu to Lhasa via the Araniko Rajmarga(or Arniko Highway, traverses a 5125 m pass.)
Life in Mustang revolves around tourism, animal husbendry and trade. Except for a nine km portion from Chhusang to Syangboche (just south of Ghiling (Geling)) as of August 2010, it is bisected by a new road linking it to the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) to the north and to the rest of Nepal to the south. Plans call for the final nine km portion to be completed in just a few years' time, which will provide, with a high point of 4660 m at Kora La on the Mustang-TAR border, the lowest drivable corridor through the Himalayas linking the Tibetan Plateau via Nepal to the tropical Indian plains. (The easiest and only widely used road corridor, from Kathmandu to Lhasa via the Araniko Rajmarga(or Arniko Highway, traverses a 5125 m pass.)
karnali
Karnali Anchal (Nepali: कर्णाली अञ्चल) is an anchal or zone (first-order administrative district) in the midwestern development region of Nepal. The headquarters is Jumla.
Karnali Zone is one of the poorest and most remote regions of Nepal, not very accessible by road yet. There are airfields in all districts except Kalikot which is connected by seasonal roadways to Jumla Airport.
Karnali Zone is the largest zone of Nepal, with two National Parks. Shey Phoksundo National Park Shey Phoksundo (with Phoksundo Lake), famous for the Snow Leopard is Nepal's largest Park with area of 3,555km². Rara national park surrounds Rara lak-- Nepal's largest lake 10.2km² -- known as the Pearl of Nepal.
Karnali Excursions offers you the opportunity to experience adventure, exotic cultures and unconventionality in the most mesmerizing and historic places on earth. Our treks, tours, expeditions and educational journeys through the Himalayas and greater Nepal — Mt. Everest, Mt. Kailash, Tibet, Annapurna, Kathmandu, Bhutan, to name a few — are carefully organized and bypass the ‘tourist jams’ in these areas.
We have an interesting selection of itineraries to choose from, or offer you the opportunity to work with us to create an itinerary that suits your specific needs and desires. We tread lightly in many sensitive areas, always helping to preserve and protect the environment. Our treks and tours are affordable and accommodating, bound to ensure the ‘Journey of a Lifetime’.
Karnali Zone is one of the poorest and most remote regions of Nepal, not very accessible by road yet. There are airfields in all districts except Kalikot which is connected by seasonal roadways to Jumla Airport.
Karnali Zone is the largest zone of Nepal, with two National Parks. Shey Phoksundo National Park Shey Phoksundo (with Phoksundo Lake), famous for the Snow Leopard is Nepal's largest Park with area of 3,555km². Rara national park surrounds Rara lak-- Nepal's largest lake 10.2km² -- known as the Pearl of Nepal.
Karnali Excursions offers you the opportunity to experience adventure, exotic cultures and unconventionality in the most mesmerizing and historic places on earth. Our treks, tours, expeditions and educational journeys through the Himalayas and greater Nepal — Mt. Everest, Mt. Kailash, Tibet, Annapurna, Kathmandu, Bhutan, to name a few — are carefully organized and bypass the ‘tourist jams’ in these areas.
We have an interesting selection of itineraries to choose from, or offer you the opportunity to work with us to create an itinerary that suits your specific needs and desires. We tread lightly in many sensitive areas, always helping to preserve and protect the environment. Our treks and tours are affordable and accommodating, bound to ensure the ‘Journey of a Lifetime’.
dharan
Dharan (Nepali: धरान) is a major city in eastern Nepal, in the sunsary district, situated on foothills of Himalayas with southern tip touching the edge of the Terai at an altitude of 1148 ft (349m). It serves as a trading post between the hilly region and the plains of Teraii region. It was once the location of a British Gurkha recruitment center, opened in 1953. The recruitment center is closed and the campus is now the home of B.P Koirala school of medical science since 1993The modern Dharan's foundation was laid in 1902 A.D. by prime minister Chandra Shamsher. He established a small village at the foot of Vijayapur hillock and named it Chandranagar (now Purano Bajar). The purpose was to supply timber to East India Company, who in 1890s had expanded its North Eastern territory and was laying railway tracks. The first government official to be appointed in this small village of Chandranagar was Subba Ratna Prasad. A settlement grew steadily over the course of time. This growing settlement was named Juddha Nagar (now Naya Bazaar) after Prime minister Juddha Samsher. In 1960 Dharan was recognized as a 'municipal town'.
This transformation of Dharan was triggered by the establishment of the British Gurkha (GORKHA) recruitment center in 1953. Recruits from all over Nepal flocked to join British Gurkha, thereby drastically altering the face of Dharan. There was a surge in population with recruits bringing their families, and others who came to seek employment and exploit business opportunities. As a result, Dharan has emerged as one of the biggest towns in eastern Nepal. It is in true sense a melting pot of different ethnic groups, languages, dialects and religions.
In 1962, Nepal was divided into 14 administrative zones and 75 districts and Dharan was made the zonal headquarters of Koshi Zone. Initially, the town was divided into eleven wards, but in 1980 Banjjhogara Gaon Panchayat at the east (which is now the most developed area of Dharan) and Ghopa Gaon Panchayat at the west were added to Dharan Town Panchayat. This expansion led to the reformation of the wards. Now Dharan is divided into nineteen wards.
This transformation of Dharan was triggered by the establishment of the British Gurkha (GORKHA) recruitment center in 1953. Recruits from all over Nepal flocked to join British Gurkha, thereby drastically altering the face of Dharan. There was a surge in population with recruits bringing their families, and others who came to seek employment and exploit business opportunities. As a result, Dharan has emerged as one of the biggest towns in eastern Nepal. It is in true sense a melting pot of different ethnic groups, languages, dialects and religions.
In 1962, Nepal was divided into 14 administrative zones and 75 districts and Dharan was made the zonal headquarters of Koshi Zone. Initially, the town was divided into eleven wards, but in 1980 Banjjhogara Gaon Panchayat at the east (which is now the most developed area of Dharan) and Ghopa Gaon Panchayat at the west were added to Dharan Town Panchayat. This expansion led to the reformation of the wards. Now Dharan is divided into nineteen wards.
ilam
Ilam (Nepali: ईलाम) is a municipality and tea-producing town in Nepali. It is in Ilam districtt which is in hilly Eastern Region of Nepal. It is famous for its natural scenery and landscapes.
Ilam is a small hilly town with pristine landscapes of sloped tea gardens, thick natural forests, holy sites and a unique culture. There are several holy sites one can visit in and around the area. Ilam is a popular tourist destination for travelers of all kinds. It is also famous for its special brand Ilam Tea.
Ilam Valley Tea is a high-quality tea product of Himalayan Shangri-la Tea Producers (P) Ltd. Its wonderful quality and taste will make your tea time a delightful experience and its excellent health benefits will ensure that you live a long and happy life! Himalayan Shangri-la Tea Producers (P) Ltd., a premier tea company in Nepal, is looking for potential customers and dealers for its Ilam Valley Tea product around the world. Ilam Valley Tea is reasonably priced despite its extremely high quality
Ilam is a small hilly town with pristine landscapes of sloped tea gardens, thick natural forests, holy sites and a unique culture. There are several holy sites one can visit in and around the area. Ilam is a popular tourist destination for travelers of all kinds. It is also famous for its special brand Ilam Tea.
Ilam Valley Tea is a high-quality tea product of Himalayan Shangri-la Tea Producers (P) Ltd. Its wonderful quality and taste will make your tea time a delightful experience and its excellent health benefits will ensure that you live a long and happy life! Himalayan Shangri-la Tea Producers (P) Ltd., a premier tea company in Nepal, is looking for potential customers and dealers for its Ilam Valley Tea product around the world. Ilam Valley Tea is reasonably priced despite its extremely high quality
lumbini
Lumbini is the traditional birthplace of Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, who was born in the 7th or 6th century BC.
According to Buddhist tradition, Maya Devi (or Mayadevi) gave birth to the Buddha on her way to her parent's home in Devadaha in the month of May in the year 642 BC. Feeling the onset of labor pains, she grabbed hold of the branches of a shade tree and gave birth to Siddharta Gautama, the future Buddha. The Buddha is said to have announced, "This is my final rebirth" as he entered the world. Buddhist tradition also has it that he walked immediately after his birth and took seven steps, under each of which a lotus flower bloomed.
In 249 BC, the Buddhist convert Emperor Ashoka visited Lumbini and constructed four stupas and a stone pillar. Ashoka's Pillar bears an inscription that translates as: "King Piyadasi (Ashoka), beloved of devas, in the 20 year of the coronation, himself made a royal visit, Buddha Sakyamuni having been born here, a stone railing was built and a stone pillar erected to the Bhagavan ["blessed one"] having been born here. Lumbini village was taxed reduced and entitled to the eight part (only)".
Monasteries and temples were built at Lumbini until the 9th century, but Buddhism declined in the area after the arrival of Islam and later Hinduism. All that remained was a sculpture, revered by local women as a fertility symbol. The garden of the Buddha's birth was lost for a thousand years.
The site was rediscovered in 1895, when a German archaeologist came upon Ashoka's Pillar, identified by its inscription. Records made by the Chinese pilgrim Fa Xian were also used in the process of identifying this religiously acclaimed site. Lumbini was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997.
According to Buddhist tradition, Maya Devi (or Mayadevi) gave birth to the Buddha on her way to her parent's home in Devadaha in the month of May in the year 642 BC. Feeling the onset of labor pains, she grabbed hold of the branches of a shade tree and gave birth to Siddharta Gautama, the future Buddha. The Buddha is said to have announced, "This is my final rebirth" as he entered the world. Buddhist tradition also has it that he walked immediately after his birth and took seven steps, under each of which a lotus flower bloomed.
In 249 BC, the Buddhist convert Emperor Ashoka visited Lumbini and constructed four stupas and a stone pillar. Ashoka's Pillar bears an inscription that translates as: "King Piyadasi (Ashoka), beloved of devas, in the 20 year of the coronation, himself made a royal visit, Buddha Sakyamuni having been born here, a stone railing was built and a stone pillar erected to the Bhagavan ["blessed one"] having been born here. Lumbini village was taxed reduced and entitled to the eight part (only)".
Monasteries and temples were built at Lumbini until the 9th century, but Buddhism declined in the area after the arrival of Islam and later Hinduism. All that remained was a sculpture, revered by local women as a fertility symbol. The garden of the Buddha's birth was lost for a thousand years.
The site was rediscovered in 1895, when a German archaeologist came upon Ashoka's Pillar, identified by its inscription. Records made by the Chinese pilgrim Fa Xian were also used in the process of identifying this religiously acclaimed site. Lumbini was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997.
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