Kathmandu
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In the centre of Kathmandu they have like the other capitals a Durban Square. There is the royal palace and a great number of temples. Tourists has to pay to enter the square, but the ticket doesn't expire soon, so you can walk there next week too. All the time they ask for your ticket. The locals can move freely. It is always very crowded. All over the place the people are laying in the sun and watching each other. It is the real centre of the city. From all directions the streets end up on the square. We have walked in the surrounding for hours. When we are tired we took a bike taxi to the hotel. With the sun in the back you have a beautiful sight on the swarming crowd.
In the very beginning the valley of Kathmandu was a lake. On some moment the barrier broke and come into being a very fertile ground. Almost nothing is known of the country before 1768. With the birth of Bhoeddha 560 for Christ the valley was populated. Indian rulers controlled the country for centuries. In 1768 the valley were conquered by the Ghurka king Narayan. Originating from the surrounding of Ghurka he succeeded to unite the numerous small nations of Nepal. In 1814 Nepal get engaged in a border war with Great Brittan. Two years later Nepal lost the war and lost a lot of territory. But during this war the Brittan's learned to respect the Ghurka soldiers. So they decided to create regiments and absorb them in their army. These regiments exists until now. In some way the country is living from the retirements pays of the Ghurka.
In 1846 the king and his complete family were murdered in a meeting hall. The leader of the revolt was Bahadur Rana, who pronounced themselves to prime minister. He makes the function hereditary. He was forced to allow a monarchy, because the ordinary people consider the king as an incarnation of the god Vishnu. The Rana family wasn't liked very much. There decline started in 1947 with discord in the family and strikes. China conquered Tibet. India interfere and urge for reforms. The king escaped to India. The dissatisfaction grows. In 1951 the king returned and the Rana family lost there power. During the reign of the sun of the king there were free elections in 1959. A progressive government came to power. The king didn't like this. In 1960 the first minister were dismissed during a visit to India and all political parties were forbidden. Until they struggle bravely...
The name Kathmandu comes from Kasthamandap (== wooden house). It is now a days the name of one of the temples on the Durban Square. They tell that the temple is build from the wood of one tree. Today the city is known form is beautiful temples. Splendid pagodas raise above the centre and makes it in one big open air museum. The city is founded on the spot where two rivers flow together forming a natural barrier against enemy armies. There are several reasons for the development to the main city of Nepal. There were enough fertile grounds, trade from Tibet to India. Besides there were a lot of pilgrims, because of two important temples in the neighborhood.
