BUDDHA HOLIDAYS

Starting from the moment you decide to visit Nepal for a vacation, Buddha Holidays will assist you in planning your trip here. This includes identifying potential destinations and activities for you and your family to be involved in, holiday planning, hotel and ticket reservation, organizing trips whether it is a tour of the seven World Heritage monument zones in Kathmandu Valley or tiger hunting (with your cameras of course) in the jungles of the south or simply a souvenir shopping spree.

Introduction to Nepal

The youngest republic of the world Nepal, is a state whose foundation lies in legends and myths. For centuries the present day state of Nepal was a fragmented land ruled by many different kings, local chiefs, warlords and princes. Kathmandu Valley was ruled by various different dynasties after the lake here was drained by the Tibetan saint Manjushree according to popular legend.

The state of Nepal only came into being 240 years ago when Prithivi Narayan Shah, the king of Gorkha, a small hilly region in the central region began the expansion of his kingdom around 1770. He succeeded in winning over Kathmandu after nearly 30 years. After him his descendents expanded the territory to the River Tista in the east and Sutlej in the west but much of this territory was lost or conceded to British India with whom Nepal fought prolonged wars. The modern day Nepali territory was defined in 1817 after the Treaty of Sugauli was signed with the British. Towards the mid 1800's Nepal powers landed in the hands of the Rana family who ruled Nepal under hereditary autocratic prime ministers for 104. Nepal was recognized as an sovereign independent state in 1923. It wasn't until 1951 that the Rana regime was overthrown and the Shah monarchy revived. However as the people were not given the multi party democracy as promised the Peoples movement of 1990 and replaced the partyless Panchayat system with a multi party democracy with constitutional monarchy. The more than 12 years of the Peoples War waged by the Communist Party of Nepal Maoist resulted in the second Peoples movement in April 2006 which abolished the monarchy and called for the Constitution to be written by an assembly elected by and representing the people. Nepal was declared a state on 15 January 2007 and a Federal Democratic Republic on 28 May 2008.

Geography

Nepal covers an area of 147,181 square kilometers, and stretches 145-241 kilometers north to south and 850 kilometers west to east. The country is located between India in the south, east, and west and China in the north. At latitudes 26 and 30 degrees north and longitudes 80 and 88 degrees east, Nepal is topographically divided into three major regions: the Himalaya to the north, the hills consisting of the Mahabharata range and the Churia Hills in the middle, and the Tarai to the south. Elevations are varied in the country. The highest point is Mt. Everest (8848 m) in the north and the lowest point (70 meters above sea level) is located at Kechana Kalan of Jhapa District. Altitude increases as you travel south to north while temperatures drop from north to south. The annual monsoon rains occur during the months of June, July and August and sometimes last till early September.

The Himalaya

The Himalayan mountain ranges make up the northern border of the country and covers 16% of the total land area of Nepal. While Mt. Everest (8848 m) is definitely the crown of the Himalaya others like Kanchenjunga (8598 m), Dhaulagiri (8137 m), Machapuchare are no less beautiful and magnificent. Sparse vegetation is found up to 4,500 m along with some of Nepal's most beautiful animals and birds. Most of the people living in the Himalayan region are of Tibetan descent and a majority practice Bon Buddhism. The Sherpa people famous for their mountaineering skills come from the Khumbu region below Everest.

The Hills

Most of Nepal is covered by hills. In fact hills constitute 65% of the total land area of the country and are therefore the most populated area as well. Kathmandu Valley, the heart of Nepal lies in this region. Elevations range from 500 to 3,000 m above sea level. During summer the temperature reaches an average of 32 degrees Celsius. Winters are cold with temperature reaching below zero in the higher hills. Areas in the eastern hills receive more rainfall because of the monsoon clouds which come from the south-east. Many species of plants, animals and birds can be found here many of which are endangered and protected. Agriculture is still the main livelihood of the people of Nepal although there is an increasing number migrating abroad for work.

Tarai

The Tarai covers 17% of the total land area of Nepal. With the rivers bringing down the top soil from the hills the Tarai provides excellent farm land with the average elevation of flatlands being 100 - 300 m above sea-level. Once covered by vast areas of sub-tropical malaria infested forest, much of the Tarai is today farmed. Most of the forests in the Tarai are now protected and are home to endangered species like the Royal Bengal Tiger, One horned Rhinoceros, and the Gharial crocodile etc. After the eradication of malaria in the 1960s, many people migrated to the Tarai in search of farming land. Today, about 48% of the country's populations occupy this region. Flat farmlands and the region's flexible topography has given rise to many industries. The main industrial towns are Biratnagar, Butwal, Bhairahawa, Birgunj, and Janakpur.

Flora and Fauna

Nepal is a land of geographical extremes, ranging from below sea-level elevations in the southern Terai to the world's highest mountains. The country contains a variety of ecosystems; treeless sub-alpine pastures and dense fir forests of the high valleys, oak and rhododendron woods of the middle hills, and tall sal forests of the south. Along the southern borders of Nepal are preserved much of the lowland jungles and grasslands that once covered this part of the sub-continent. Here one can see birds and mammals found nowhere else. Although animal habitat has been somewhat depleted as a result ofagriculture, deforestation and other causes, through Nepal's extensive and effective park and reserve system, the country still has more varied flora and fauna than any other place in Asia. A total of 16 protected areas spread across the country help in protecting endangered species of animals, birds, reptiles and plants.

Religion

Until recently Nepal was officially a Hindu Kingdom but this has now changed. Religious practices are an important part of the lives of the Nepali people. Although Hinduism is the most practiced religion, Buddhism is taken as a part of Hinduism. There are also Christians, Muslims and animists. Mythologies of various Hindu gods and goddesses abound in this country and cultural values are based on the philosophies of Hindu holy books like the Gita, Ramayana, Puran and many other local folklore.

Visitors to Nepal will find religious practices in Nepal difficult to follow and understand as it is a complex mix unlike in the rest of the Indian subcontinent where there is a strong line of separation between the various religions. The religious cultural fervor in Nepal is something one would not want to miss especially during the local festivals in Kathmandu.

For Hindus the world over the temple of Shivaite temple of Pashupatinath along the banks of the Bagmati river in Kathmandu is one of the most sacred pilgrimages and thousands congregate here for the annual Mahashivaratri festival which falls in early spring. At the same time Nepal is also the land of Siddartha Gautama Buddha, who gave the world the middle path. His birthplace was in Lumbini located in southern Nepal. The sacred mounds of Swayambhunath and Bouddhanath are examples of Buddhist influence here from the very beginning of Kathmandu.

Population, ethnicity and language

Visitors to Nepal will be surprised to know that there are over 70 ethnic and indigenous communities in Nepal who speak at least 100 different languages and dialects although almost everyone understands Nepali, the major national language. Broadly speaking the Nepali populace can be divided into two broad categories the Mongoloid groups which speak Tibeto Burman languages such as Sherpa, Bhote, Gurung, Magar, Rai, Limbu and Tamang, and the North Indian Aryan groups such as Brahmins and Chetteris. The Nepali population is therefore a broad mix of various ethnicities and cultures which has resulted in this most beautiful of all gardens with a variety of flowers united together under the flag of Nepal, which like the country it represents is the only flag in the world that is non-rectangular.

Economy

Nepal is a developing country with a majority of the people still practicing subsistence farming. In recent years, the country's efforts to expand into manufacturing industries and other technological sectors have achieved much progress. Although farming is still the main economic activity, remittances from migrant workers and the tourism industry are among the top economic activities in the country. The annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is about US$ 4.3 billion.

Agriculture

Eight out of 10 Nepalis are engaged in farming and it accounts for more than 40% of the GDP. Rolling fields and neat terraces can be seen in the hills and all over the Tarai. Even in the highly urbanized Kathmandu Valley, large tracts of land outside the city areas are devoted to farming. Rice is the staple diet in Nepal and around three million tons are produced annually. Other major crops are maize, wheat, millet and barley. Besides food grains, cash crops like sugarcane, oil seeds, tobacco, jute and tea are also cultivated in large quantities.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing is still at a developing stage and represents less than 10% of the GDP. Major industries are woolen carpets, garments, textiles, leather products, paper and cement. Other products made in Nepal are steel utensils, cigarettetes, beverages and sugar. There are many modern large-scale factories but the majority are cottage or small-scale operations. Most of Nepal's industries are based in the Kathmandu Valley and a string of small towns in the southern Tarai plains.

Trade

Commerce has been a major occupation in Nepal since early times. Being situated at the crossroads of the ancient Trans-Himalayan trade route, trading is second nature to the Nepali people. Foreign trade is characterized mainly by import of manufactured products and export of agricultural raw materials. Nepal imports manufactured goods and petroleum products worth about US$ 1 billion annually. The value of exports is about US$ 315 million.

Tourism

In 1998, a total of 463, 684 tourists visited Nepal, making tourism one of the largest industries in the country. This sector has been expanding rapidly since its inception in the 1950s, thanks to Nepal's natural beauty, rich cultural heritage and the diversity of sightseeing and adventure opportunities available. At one time, tourism used to be the biggest foreign currency earner for the country. Nepal earned over US$ 152 million from tourism in 1998.

Getting to Nepal

Nepal is reachable by air or overland through the seven entry points along the border with India in the south or China in the north of the country.

By Air

The Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu is the only direct international flight route link to the country at the moment. You can fly directly to Kathmandu from London, Paris, Frankfurt, Vienna, Amsterdam, Doha, Dubai, Dhaka, Karachi, Munich, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Paro, Lhasa, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangalore, New Delhi, Mumbai, Patna, Calcutta and Varanasi. Nepal Airlines, Thai Airways, Qatar Airways, Indian Airlines, Pakistan International Airlines, Biman Bangladesh, Gulf Air, Indian Airlines, Air Sahara, Jet Airways, Air China, Druk Air, Silk Air, Air Arabia, Quantas etc fly to Nepal regularly. All flights feature business class and amenities of international standards.

Airfares fluctuate with the changes in exchange rates and are to be paid in foreign currency by foreign nationals. Only Nepali and Indian nationals are permitted to pay in rupees for air passage between Nepal and India. Departure flight tickets should be reconfirmed three days in advance to avoid inconveniences by possible flight cancellation or changes in the flight schedule. Overweight luggage charges are levied in foreign exchange.

Overland

All visitors entering Nepal by land must come in through the other entry points in Kakarbhitta, Birgunj, Belhiya, Bhairahawa, Nepalgunj, Dhangadi and Mahendra Nagar in the Nepal-India border in the south or through Kodari in the Nepal-China border in the north. Overland tourists entering Nepal in their vehicles must possess an international carnet. It is illegal for all foreigners to enter Nepal through any other entry point. The journey from any of the entry points along the southern border to Kathmandu usually takes one day on a vehicle. Visitors should be forewarned that frequent strikes by different groups lead to closure of highways on many occasions and should therefore avoid overland travel if possible.

Nepal Fact File