Nepal

Nepal is the second richest country in the world in terms of water resources. The major sources of water are the approximately 600 rivers and rivulets running as the country's veins and arteries. These rivers originate from the mountains and run down towards the plains. The velocity of the rivers is thus very high in the mountains and hills due to the high relief. Disasters like landslides occur frequently due to this reason.Rivers carry the alluvial soil from the mountains and hills and deposit them in the plains where its velocity is gradually decreased and deposition by the river is observed. The major rivers of Nepal are Karnali, Koshi, Mahakali, Mechi, Seti and Gandaki etc. Koshi is the largest river in Nepal which is responsible for most of the flooding in the eastern region. Nepal is a country of adventures. The raging rivers, high mountains, exotic valleys and jungle safaris are all sources of adventure. River Rafting is journeying on torrential river on an inflatable rubber boat. A River Raft is the most enjoyable way of checking one's guts. Both amateur and experienced rafters equally enjoy it. A river trip also provides the opportunity for geological surveys and fishing.Thus, Nepal has major possibilities in promoting tourism in t he aspect of river sports and adventure.

Nepal

Nepal is known for its natural beauty and it offers every bit of satisfaction for the tourists. There is a lot of scope in tourism business in Nepal. There are many beautiful and interesting places, to visit outside the Kathmandu Valley as well,  places of historical importance of noted for natural beauty. Most of them can be easily reached from Kathmandu by road or by air. Kathmandu, the capital and the largest city of Nepal, offers a great view of the mountains as well. Patan is also known as Lalitpur or the "city of fine arts" and is the oldest city in the valley. Bhaktapur or Bhadgaon meaning the "city of devotees" lies 14 km east of Kathmandu. It is the home of medieval art & architecture and still retains its rich medieval aroma. The stupa of Bodhanath lies 8 km east of Kathmandu. It is the biggest stupa in Nepal and is located on flat land and encircled by houses & monasteries. 9 km north of Kathmandu in a small pond at the foot of the Shivapuri Hills lies the half-submerged massive black stone statue of the reclining Vishnu resting on a bed of snakes. Carved out of a hillside, the Chovar gorge is the only outlet for all the waters of the valley. Dakshinkali is 45-minute drive south from Kathmandu. Dhulikhel is well known for its sunrise views and a number of day trails lead along the north ridge of the town. A good way to get a glimpse of Nepalese village life. These comprise some of the important tourist destination within the valley.

Nepal

Kathmandu is the capital of Nepal. It is also the business and cultural center of Nepal. It is also the largest metropolitan city of Nepal. Basically known as the Kathmandu valley, it comprises of two sister cities namely Lalitpur and Bhakktapur. It is also the headquarters of the Central Region of Nepal. A remarkable legend speaks that the valley was covered by a lake, t he geological studies of the valley also proves this theory. Kathmandu, as the gateway to Nepal Tourism, is the nerve center of the country’s economy, with the most advanced infrastructure among urban areas in Nepal. The valley embraces most of Nepal's ethnic groups, but Newars are the indigenous inhabitants and the creators of the valley's splendid civilization. Kathmandu is also known as the city of temples as a temple can be seen in every street and locality. Kathmandu is rich in historical background as it is the first capital of unified Nepal. Situated just below the mountains and the hills, the Kathmandu valley is also considers as the most beautiful places of Nepal. Kathmandu valley falls under the Warm Temperate Zone and thus the weather is splendid throughout the year. However, due to centralization and over population, the valley is getting polluted day by day which adversely affects the climate. 

Nepal

Nepal is well known as the birth place of Gautam Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. He was born in Rupandehi district, Lumbini zone of Nepal located about 360 kilometers west from the capital Kathmandu. He was born and raised in Nepal, later he abandoned everything and wandered into the wild until he gained enlightenment. It is generally believed that lord Buddha and his follower monks visited Nepal on several occasions during his life time. 300 years after his passing away, Emperor Asoka of India visited Nepal and built pillars in various sacred Buddhist sites like Lumbini (Buddha's birth place), and Kapilavastu (Buddha's hometown). Buddhism being the second most popular religion in Nepal is practiced by an integral part of the population.Lumbini the birth place of Buddha is the sacred place for the Buddhists and every year millions of followers and tourists visit the place. The teachings of Buddha like peace and non violence are followed not only just by the Buddhist but also by the people of other religion.

Nepal

Nepal is rich in tradition and culture. Majority of the Nepalese speak Nepali which is also the national language. Other important language include Newari, Vojpuri, Maithili, Awadhi etc. Generally speaking, most Nepalese in the central and eastern development regions speak Nepali fluently. However, there are many areas out west where people still do not speak Nepali. Most of this has to do with the fact that the development has been more intense in the central and eastern regions.The cultural diversity comes from the geographic division of Nepal. The people are divided into 36 castes according to their work position in the society, however this division is no longer believed and practiced. Marriage customs vary among the different castes. Traditional marriages are arranged by parents, although sometimes with the consent of the marriage partners. Nepalese are both vegetarian and non vegetarian. Rice with lentil soup and vegetable curry are often the main dishes in urban areas or among the rural upper classes. The middle castes eat goat or chicken when they are available, and occasionally eat water buffalo. 'Namaste' is the traditional greeting in Nepal. A person places his or her palms together with the fingers up in front of his or her chest or chin and says 'Namaste'.

Nepal

In Nepal religion is not just the set of beliefs but it is the soul of its people which is accompanied down from generations to generations. Nepal is formerly a Hindu country and majority of the Nepalese follow Hinduism. However, the religion has become strongly intermingled with Buddhism and as such it is difficult in reality to define Nepal as one or the other. 90% of individuals Nepalese people classify themselves as Hindu, 5% of Nepalese people classify themselves as part of the Buddhist religion and the remaining 5% is primarily split between the Islamic and Christian religion. Prior to the intense diversity in religion, the people have developed a kinship towards other religions and respect all the religions and their followers. The Hindus visit the temples for their prayers, the Buddhists go to the monasteries, the Muslims go to the mosques and the Christians go to the church. There is a mutual cooperation amongst the people and there has never been disputes over religion so far. Though Nepal is famous, as the world's only Hindu Kingdom, equal respect is given to other religions as well. Buddhism is the second largest religion followed in Nepal, others being Islam and Christianity.

Nepal

Nepal has a wide cultural diversity. The cultural heritage of Nepal comprises with its vast demographics. The distinct variation can be found with the separation of the area within the mountain, the hilly and the tarai region. The culture, customs and tradition of the people living in the mountains completely varies from those living in the hills and tarai and the culture, customs and traditions of the people living in the hills and tarai varies completely from those living in the mountains. However some basic things like the food and some traditions are similar within these areas as well. Music and dance are favorite pastimes among the Nepalese. Religious ceremonies require the use of drums and wind instruments preserved from ancient times. Important in most religious and family occasions are devotional songs that have elements of both classical and folk music. A remarkable feature of Nepal is the religious homogeneity that exists. Apart from the Hindus and the Buddhists, Muslims form the third largest religious group.

Nepal

The modern history of Nepal starts with the rise of King Prithvi Narayan Shah. He unified the kingdom which was previously divided into several small partitions each with a separate ruler. After he unified Nepal into a single kingdom his predecessors ruled over Nepal for a long period of 239 years until the monarchy was abolished in 10th April 2008. Throughout history Nepal has had several rulers ruling different eras until it was finally declared as a democratic republic. The 'kirat' ethnicity were the first to settle and rule Nepal. Later in history it was ruled by the 'maurya' empire and the 'gupta' empire. In the fifth century rulers called the Licchavi's ruled the majority of its areas which was followed by the 'newari' era. Later in the 14th century the 'malla' dynasty ruled the area for 200 years. In the mid 18th century after several battles and sieges, King Prithvi Narayan Shah managed to unify the country making Kathmandu valley as the capital. This was the beginning of a new era in the history of Nepal, however there were many disappointing battles during the Anglo-Nepalese war in the year 1815 in which Nepal was forced to do some treaties in which it lost most of its territories. 

Nepal

The geography of Nepal is very mountainous, it is located in the Himalayas and the northern part of the country is home to a wide range of mountains which contains Mount Everest; the tallest mountain peak in the world.  Mount Everest is just over 29,000 feet in height. This region is also the home of the  majority of the other Himalayan peaks including the other famous mountains Kanchenjunga (8,598 meters) and Dhaulagiri (8,137 meters). It hosts the seven out of ten tallest peaks in the world some of the famous peaks including Lhotse (8,516 meters), Makalu (8,485 meters) etc. In addition to the Himalayas, the geography in Nepal also hosts  two other physio graphic regions known as the ‘Hills’ and the ‘Tarai'. The Himalayas make up approximately 15% of Nepal, the Hills makes up approximately 65% and the Tarai makes up approximately 18%. The hilly region is prone to most of the climatic disasters like landslides in the rainy season due to deforestation. The geography of the Tarai makes it excellent fertile land for farming.  This zone is host to marshes, forests and wildlife such as the rhino and crocodiles. Due to this diverse land geography, the weather and climatic conditions are clearly very different within these zones.

Nepal

Nepal is a landlocked country located in the heart of Asia. It has recently been announced as the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal. It is located in the Himalayas and touches the border of China in the north and India in the south. Kathmandu is the capital and the main business center of Nepal. With an area of 147,181 square kilometers it is comprised of approximately 70% of hills and mountains. With a population of approximately 30 million it is the 41st most populated country in the world. Nepal is best known for its geographical features including the mountains with the highest peaks in the world and for the rich flora and fauna in its vast hilly forests. It is divided into mainly three broad physio graphic areas namely the mountain region, the hilly region and the tarai region all three parallel to each other, from east to west, as continuous ecological belts, the bio diversity being the different in each belts. Although Nepal has a temperate climate, the climatic condition differs within the three ecological belts. The mountain region mostly has a cold climate with snowfall and rain. The hilly region has a warm climate occupied with rainfall in the monsoons and the tarai region basically known as the food basket of Nepal has a warm climate.