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Day 01: Kathmandu (Arrival)
In the morning arrive in Kathmandu. The cosmopolitan city and
the capital Kathmandu is the main gateway for travellers to
Nepal. Upon arrival, you will be met by our representative and
transferred to the hotel. Kathmandu Valley is the cultural and
political heart of the country. The city enjoyed its most
glorious time under the reign of Mallas in the 16th and 17th
century. Today you will enjoy the first impression of
Kathmandu. In the afternoon you will visit the Swayambhunath
stupa. The stupa at Swayambhunath is the most important and
oldest site of Buddhist worship in Nepal. Swayambhunath Stupa
is famous for the eyes of Buddha which seem to observing the
world from all 4 directions.
Day 02: Kathmandu
In the morning after having breakfast you will drive to
Bodhnath. Bodhnath is the largest stupa of Nepal. Around the
octagonal base of stupa there are 108 images of Buddha where
prayer ceremonies of Buddhist Lamas are taking place since
over 2000 years. Then we proceed to visit the temple of
Pashupatinath which is Nepal's most important Hindu pilgrim
site on the banks of the Bagmati river. The temple of
Pashupatinath is dedicated to god Shiva. In the afternoon
proceed for a half day sight seeing tour of Patan city. Patan
was the second largest town in the valley but it has been
absorbed into Kathmandu. Patan was previously known as
Lalitpur (the beautiful city). The famous King Ashoka built
the Stupas at four corners in the 250 BC. The temple
architecture here gave this city fame to be unique and most
beautiful. After visiting Patan you will proceed to Bhaktapur,
the third biggest city of the valley. Bhaktapur has preserved
its medieval character better than Patan. We visit the golden
door, the Palace of 55 windows (15th century) and Pagoda
Nyatapola (18th century). Overnight stay at the hotel.
Day 03: Kathmandu - Lhasa (by air)
In the morning after having breakfast transfer to airport to
connect flight from Kathmandu to Lhasa. Upon arrival at Gongor
airport at Lhasa, transfer to the hotel in Lhasa. Rest of the
day free for acclimatization in Lhasa.
Day 04: Lhasa
In the morning after having breakfast you will visit the Sera
monastery. Sera is more like a small town on the outskirts of
Lhasa at the base of Tatipu hill. It is the main teaching
monastery and one of the three great Gelukpa Universities -
once housing more than 5500 monks. Here you can see the young
novices learning scriptures in the Debating Garden. After
visiting the Sera Monastery you will drive to visit the
Jokhang temple. Jokhang temple was built in the 7th century AD
and houses the most prized Buddhist relic, a 1300 year old
Sakyamuni Buddha statue. The main section of the temple is
topped with golden roofs found nowhere else except in Tibet.
In the evening you will have a walk in the Barkhor Bazaar. It
is a lively and colourful market where you can bargain over
such treasures like a ornate long bladed knives, prayer wheels
and exquisite jewellery.
Day 05: Lhasa
In the morning you will visit the Potala Palace. Potala Palace
is the dominant landmark of Lhasa which is situated at a
height of 117 meters above the sea level. The construction of
this palace was started on the red hill in 1645 under the 5th
Dalai Lama. An immense building, 13 storeys high with walls 3
meters thick contains over 1000 rooms, 10,000 shrines and
200,000 statues. It was both the residence of the current
Dalai Lama and tomb of the former head of state. The Potala is
full of elaborate art work and frescos that tell many stories.
After the visit of Potala Palace you will visit the
Norbulingka Summer palace. On the banks of the Kyichi River,
there is a tree and flower filled pard known as the
Norbulingka or the Jewel Park. Covering a total area of
360,000 square meters, the park was originally laid out in the
year 1750. Norbulingka is also the site of the summer palace
of the Dalai Lamas (8th to 14th). The small palace of the 13th
Dalai Lama is an odd mix of traditional Tibetan architecture
and modern paraphernalia. In the evening you will visit the
Drepung monastery. This monastery is situated in the west
suburbs of Lhasa city. It was formerly the largest and richest
monastery in the world with 10,000 monks. Of particular
interest is the medieval monk's kitchen with its great
cauldrons of steaming barley 'stamp' sitting on top of huge
earthen stoves and tented by saffron robed monks wielding
massive ladles. From the roof of the monastery one can enjoy
the natural beauty of the Lhasa valley.
Day 06: Lhasa - Kathmandu (by air)
In the morning after having breakfast transfer to airport to
connect flight from Lhasa to Kathmandu. Upon arrival at
Kathmandu transferred to the Hotel. Rest of the day at leisure
for personal activities.
Day 07: Kathmandu (Departure)
In the night transfer to airport for the flight to onwards
journey.
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