Sightseeing in Patan - what to see. Complete travel guide

Lalitpur, formerly known as Patan, is a miraculous city five kilometers away from the capital of Nepal. This is the third-largest city in the country after Kathmandu and Pokhara. Lalitpur enjoys a fabulous location in the Kathmandu Valley. This is a region with numerous Buddhist pagodas and Hindu temples. In recent years, Patan has become a major center of culture and religion in Nepal. The city can be proud of its rich traditions in art and various crafts. This is a true cradle of culture with approximately one thousand and two hundred sacred places including the bahal courtyards. Nowadays, Patan has completely changed its name to Lalitpur. This name means “the land of beauty”.

At the end of the eighth century, in 796 to be precise, a small settlement called Anhil Vad Pattan was established in the Kathmandu Valley. According to a legend, Buddha and his student Ananda lived in this region. In 250 BC, Asoka, the legendary king of India, decided to settle on the Nepalese land for the period of his large military campaign, during which he had conquered many lands and converted local people to Buddhism. To mark the borders of his new kingdom, Asoka ordered to install stupas with the inscriptions on all sides. The population of Patan was almost one hundred thousand people at the start of the eleventh century. The number of residents was growing continuously. At that time, Patan was among the largest cities in the world.

The period from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries was the most prosperous for Lalitpur. During that time, the Newari Malla dynasty was ruling in the city. When their reign ended, the development of the region stopped, and Lalitpur entered a period of recession. The political importance of the city vanished, and its economy was declining. That being said, the popularity of Lalitpur as a tourist destination has been growing in recent decades. Travelers enjoy visiting this place because of the numerous elegant temples, marvelous pagodas, majestic palaces, and skillfully made decorations of dwellings and other buildings. Many talented artists, architects, jewelers, and craftsmen were living and working in the beautiful city of Lalitpur. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

In the 12th century, during the reign of King Bhaskar Varman, the city got one of its most precious jewels – the Hiranya Varna Mahavihar Temple. The temple has also gained recognition under its informal name – the Golden Temple. This is a pagoda with three floors. There is a statue of Buddha on the second floor, and a giant drum for prayers decorates the central part of the shrine.

The temple is really worth visiting because this is a wonderful example of the region’s traditional architecture. This is the most impressive Buddhist monastery complex in Lalitpur. Intricate ornaments cover all walls of the building, adding a touch of luxury to the sacred complex and making the temple stand out of other famous shrines in the city.

Would you like to learn more about the development of the history of the Nepalese land? On gorgeous Durbar Square, tourists can attend a very interesting establishment – the Patan Museum. This museum is relatively new – it was founded in 1997. The venue offers a collection of the sacred art of Nepal. To find a suitable setting for the treasures, it was decided to open the museum in a real palace that is an important landmark on its own. The exhibited items tell the history of the country through its culture. Some of the artifacts are unique and are not exhibited anywhere else in the world. During a visit to the Patan Museum, you will get a thoughtful insight into Hindu and Buddhist traditions and their meaning.

A large part of the exhibition is dedicated to works of local masters. There are many hammered works made of bronze or gilded copper. After a long walk in the exhibition halls, it is incredibly pleasant to sit in a local café or visit a souvenir shop where the museum’s visitors can purchase traditional jewelry and other sacred items that will remind them of their vacation in the beautiful Nepalese city. The Patan Museum is open every day except holidays.

A thematic exhibition dedicated to modern art is one more interesting attraction of the city. The exhibition is open in an Empire-style building that has a large clay square in front of it. Interesting sculptures in the shape of human feet are installed on the perimeter of the square. There are roughly three hundred sculptures in total here.

The gallery exhibits works of local artists, and sculptures represent a large part of the collection. The first floor has many portrait sculptures of famous artists and poets in Nepal who were working in the XVII-XVIII centuries. The second floor features images of ordinary people performing their daily tasks. In the opinion of many visitors, the exhibition featuring the images of different body parts is the most impressive part of the gallery.

It is not hard to get to Lalitpur as it is located in the Kathmandu Valley, and the distance to the capital of Nepal is only ten kilometers. Kathmandu has an international airport that receives flights from most countries of the world. Upon your arrival at the airport, you can get a taxi to “the land of beauty”. If you choose to drive yourself, choose Kanti Path as this is the fastest way to get to Lalitpur. Thamel, a neighborhood in Kathmandu, has a bus station with frequent bus service to the beautiful Nepalese city.