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About
Dhulikhel |
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Dhulikhel is the administrative centre of Kavrepalanchok
District, Nepal. Dhulikhel lies along the B.P. Highway and
Arniko Highway. Arniko Highway connects Kathmandu, Nepal's
capital city with Tibet's border town of Kodari. Dhulikhel is
located at the Eastern rim of Kathmandu Valley, south of the
Himalayas at 1550m above sea level and is situated 30 km
southeast of Kathmandu and 74 km southwest of Kodari. The
people in the village are Brahmin, Newars, Chhettri, Tamang
and Dalit. Drinking water in Dhulikhel is one of the best
water in Nepal. It was made with the Help of the German NGO,
German Technical Cooperation. |
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History of Dhulikhel |
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Dhulikhel has for many centuries been an important trading
center on the ancient commercial route linking Nepal to Tibet.
Since time immemorial, people of Nepal traveled to Tibet to
bring home salt and gold. Tibetans every year with their groups
of sheep entered Nepal during Dashain, the greatest Hindu
festival. They purchased chilies and other daily necessities in
Nepal and returned to their homeland. The opening of the Araniko
Highway, built with the grant help of the government of China in
1965 changed the life of Dhulikhel considerably. First, the town
became reachable to foreign tourists. Second, the people of
Dhulikhel now found it easy to travel daily by bus, car and
motorbike to Banepa and Kathmandu for shopping, education and
employment. Recently, though the town has transformed itself
into a tourists' paradise with an array of all modern amenities.
'Dhulikhel' is well-known for its rich cultural antiquities. The
local legend has it that the place derived its name from Newari
word 'Dhunkyo': 'Dhun means 'Tiger' and 'Khyo' means 'Playing
Area',. - thus implying an ancient forest, where tigers used to
play. Dhulikhel remains a unique repository of Newar
civilization - replete with numerous art and architectural
monuments with a distinct local identity. |
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Location and Climate of Dhulikhel |
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Dhulikhel is the smallest town of Nepal in terms of population.
It is situated only 30 Km east of Kathmandu, the capital of
Nepal on the Araniko Highway in the knees of Greenwood and at an
elevation of 1,550 meter above the mean sea level and along the
ridge that separates the valley of Panchkhal and Banepa. It
looks as if Dhulikhel is busy in conversation with the Himalayan
range on the north with a beautiful smile. This might be the
reason why many people call this place as the 'Queen of the
hills'. |
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Temples in Dhulikhel |
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There are several temples in the town which depicts an
example of traditional and old Newari craftsmanship of
Dhulikhel. These are important places of worship for local
people. The core area of Dhulikhel has interesting narrow
cobbled streets and lanes which are surrounded with number
of Hindu temples and a few Buddhist Stupa.
Harisiddhi Temple
Alongside Narayan Temple there is the Harisiddhi Temple
whose God responds to the worshippers' problems and sees
their right and wrong doings. Both the temples are
decorated with generous wood carvings and fronted by two
Garudas in quite different attitude.
Bhagwati Temple
Bhagwati Temple is situated at the top of the western part
of the town, it is considered as one of the best place to
see around Dhulikhel and also to enjoy the best mountain
views. The Gaukhureshwor Mahadev Temple is about 20
minutes walk to the east of the town near Tundikhel
Recreation Park and is located in a peaceful and quite
environment. Further up hill, one reaches, within half an
hour trek, the Bhagwati (Kali) Temple. This is a beautiful
pagoda that one can see on the skyline as one drives into
Dhulikhel.
Narayan Temple
Narayan Temple is in the centre of the old town with its
yellow metal roofs. It is dedicated to Lord Krishna whose
birthday is happily celebrated here in August. |
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Festivals
celebrated in
Dhulikhel |
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People celebrate different festivals either they are from Hindu
community or Buddhist community. The prominent festivals
celebrated here are Bisket Jatra, Maagh Sakranti, Dashain, Tihar,
Bhagwati Jatra, Gai Jatra, Nava Durha Jatra, Lakhe Dance,
Krishna Astami Jatra, Hile Jatra, Hari Siddhi Trishakti Jatra
etc. |
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The Mountains - A Tourist Paradise |
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The
wonderful snow fed mountains seen from Dhulikhel must be one of
the supreme panoramic views in the world. When a blue mist
covers the lower portion of the mountains, they seem to be
floating in the air. With the snowy mountains on the backdrop,
Dhulikhel is a stage of enormous beauty and a heaven for nature
lovers. Green inviting hills of which still virgin and some
turned into wonderfully carved agricultural terraces cater to
the beholders' pleasure.
Geographically, the plains rise up steadily up to the green
mountains and further into the snow capped Himalayas. The
landscape offers an amazing view of the Himalayan ranges
extending from Mount Annapurna in the far west to Mount Karolung
in the Far East. More than twenty Himalayan peaks including Mt.
Lhotse (8516 m), Mt. Phuribichyachu (6637 m), Mt. Langtang (7234
m), Mt. Gaurishanker (7134 m),Mt. Annapurna (8091 m), Mt. Ganesh
Himal (7429 m), and many others can be seen in their full
splendor from the different vantage points in Dhulikhel. In
short, it is the leading point for the mountain-oriented
sightseeing since time immemorial. The eco-himalayan atmosphere
will surprise anyone a memorable experience in lifetime. |
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The Old Town |
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The oldest area of the town at the southern end is an
assembly of fine old Newari houses, often occupied by 20 or
more members of the local extended families. They may not
all have glazed windows, hot water or modern furniture, but
they have dignity and a friendly atmosphere. Their most
valuable assets are the beautifully carved windows and
doors, fine examples of traditional Newari craftsmanship.
As one wanders down the traffic free narrow streets, one
passes through a medieval city inhabited for at least five
centuries and may have a feeling that it is in the garden of
cultural theme park. The plan of the city is based on
ancient Hindu planning doctrine with the shape, position,
scale & dominance between buildings, temples, public squares
all having their own meaning and harmony. There are
organically developed compact settlements around Dhulikhel.
These settlements in one hand conserved heat in the cold
valley, and at the same time maximized land for agricultural
use. One of such old settlements is Shrikhandapur, which
lies 2 km west of the core city near the Kathmandu
University, and is also a centuries old Newari and Magar
settlement. |
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Modern Dhulikhel |
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Its
long history and natural beauty has not stopped Dhulikhel from
moving rapidly into the modern technologies age. The town is now
in the forefront of Nepal's efforts to improve education, health
provision and public services. Dhulikhel Municipality is trying
to establish its identity in three important areas:
1) Dhulikhel for quality education
2) Dhulikhel for better health service, and
3) Dhulikhel as a tourist center
As the District Headquarter of Kavre district, Dhulikhel now is
well-equipped with all the modern facilities like electricity,
internet services, telephone, drinking water supply etc. The
Dhulikhel - Sindhuli - Bardibas road and the Information
Technology (IT Park) have further added the flavor in the
development of Dhulikhel. |
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