#75 best destination in the world

 

Annapurna Massif

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  • Among the world’s most dangerous mountains to climb
  • 32% of climbers are fatalities

 

Kathmandu Valley

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  • Crossroads of ancient civilizations of Asia
  • Includes several pilgrimage sites for Hindus and Buddhists
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site

 

Lumbini

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  • Buddhist pilgrimage
  • Stated in Buddhist tradition that in 528 BC the Buddha achieved Enlightenment and founded Buddhism
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site

 

Sagarmatha National Park

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  • Protected area in the Himalayas that is dominated by Mount Everest
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site

 

Mount Everest

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  • Earth’s highest mountain, reaching a height of 29,029 ft
  • 300 people have died on Everest, many of whose bodies remain on the mountain

Boudhanath

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  • One of the largest stupas in the world (a mound-like structure containing relics such as the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns)
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site

 

Pashupatinath Temple

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  • Famous and sacred Hindu temple complex
  • Seat of Nepal’s national deity, Lord Pashupatinath
  • Built in the 15th century
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site

 

Poon Hill

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  • Popular hike with views of the Himalayas

 

Hiranya Varna Mahavihar

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  • Historical vihara (Buddhist monastery)
  • The three story golden pagoda of Shakyamuni Buddha was built in the 12th century by King Bhaskar Varman
  • Inside the upper storey of the pagoda is the golden image and a large prayer wheel

 

Nyatapola Temple

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  • Hindu Pagoda Style temple
  • The temple was erected by Nepali King Bhupatindra Malla from late 1702 to 1703
  • It is the temple of Siddhi Lakshmi, the Tantric Lakshmi who bestows notability
  • UNESCO World Heritage Site

 

Swayambhunath

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  • Ancient religious architecture atop a hill in the Kathmandu Valley
  • For the Buddhist Newars, in whose mythological history and day-to-day religious practice Swayambhunath occupies a central position, it is probably the most sacred among Buddhist pilgrimage sites
  • The complex consists of a stupa, a variety of shrines and temples
  • A Tibetan monastery, museum and library are more recent additions
  • The stupa has Buddha’s eyes and eyebrows painted on. Between them, the number one (in Devanagari script) is painted in the fashion of a nose
  • Founded in 464-505 AD

 

Garden of Dreams

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  • Neo-classical garden, built in 1920
  • Consists of gardens with three pavilions, an amphitheater, ponds, pergolas, and urns
  • From the mid-1960s, upon the death of its patron, Kaiser Sumsher Rana, it lay in neglect but was recently restored with the help of the Austrian government

 

The Yeti Scalp of Khumjung

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  • A small village monastery claims to have a 300-year-old Yeti scalp
  • Purported by the village to have come from one of the “abominable snowmen” of Himalayan legend and was found by Hillary and journalist Desmond Doig in 1960 when they were on an expedition to look for evidence of the Yeti
  • They found the scalp in the home of old Khumjung woman, who said it was a good luck charm for the village and was anxious about letting it leave
  • In order to avoid disaster befalling the village, Hillary agreed to a deal: If he made a donation to the monastery and a local school and took with him a guardian for the scalp from the gomba, they would let it leave and be examined
  • The scalp turned out to have been fashioned from the hide of an animal, most likely a goat-antelope native to the Himalayas

 

Namche Bazaar

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  • Town at 11,286 ft elevation at its low point, populating the sides of a hill
  • Namche is the main trading center and hub for the Khumbu region with many Nepalese officials, a police check, post, a bank, and even a beauty salon
  • Population 1,647

 

 

Costs

all flights $1,104

food $2/day x 12 days = $24

hotel $3/day x 10 days = $30

tickets (all attractions) $126

TOTAL for whole itinerary $1,284