Photos of Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital

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Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital

Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital in the valley carrying its name, is now a city with a population of around 2.5 million. It is the home of the Newar people, although people of many ethnicities live there. It is a city of palaces and mansions of Nepalese aristocracy and has countless Hindu and Buddhist temples. Kathmandu derives from Kasthamandap, a Sanskrit word meaning “Wooden Pavillion “, a structure in the central Durbar Square (it collapsed in the 2015 earthquake but was rebuilt). The indigenous Newar term for the city is Yem Desa.

Flag of Nepal
 
Narayanhiti Palace
 
Building with political graffiti
 
Back street with small temple
 
Offer in Pig Alley
 
Washing place, Kathmandu
 
Narrow street, Kathmandu
 
Kankeshwari Temple
 
Temple along the river
 
At a Shiva temple, Kathmandu
 
Show with performing monkeys
 
Small temple in Kathmandu
 
Shops, Ganesh temple, Kathmandu
 
Small Buddhist pagode, Kathmandu
 
Ganesh Hindu temple, Kathmandu
 
Paropakar Marg, Kathmandu
 
Freak Street, Kathmandu
 
In Indra Chowk
 
At a small temple, Indra Chowk
 
Seto Machindranath Temple
 
Carvings, Seto Machindranath Temple
 
At Buddhist stupa
 
Buddhist stupa
 
Mahabouddha Stupa
 
Kumari Temple
 
Annapurna Ajima Temple, Kathmandu
 
Campus of Tribhuvan University
 
View towards Kathmandu
 
View towards central Kathmandu
 
Kathmandu from Kirtipur
 
View of Kathmandu
 
Tribhuvan International Airport
 
View of Kathmandu
 
View of Kathmandu
 
View of Kathmandu
 
View of Dharahara, Kathmandu
 

The modern era of Kathmandu may begin with the Battle of Kathmandu in 1768 when the Gorkha kingdom conquered the valley and proclaimed the Kingdom of Nepal. During the Rana autocracy, when the kings were mere figureheads, the rulers became pro-British, and the first buildings in Western European style were built. It included the old Narayanhiti Palace, demolished in 1958 to make room for the current palace in a more Nepalese architectural style. Tribhuvan University in Kirtipur was established in 1959.

Although there have been many changes since Nepal was opened up to the world, Kathmandu has much to offer visitors: its old city still has narrow streets with many temples, and Durbar Square is still its centre. It has important religious sites, both Hindu and Buddhist: Pashupatinath is the holiest site in Nepal, with its Hindu temple and cremation site; Boudhanath stupa, the largest spherical stupa in Nepal, is one of the most sacred sites in Tibetan Buddhism outside of Tibet; and Swayambhunath is an ancient hilltop religious complex, founded as far back as the 5th Century CE.