Durbar Square – Kathmandu Nepal

Kathmandu is one of the most fascinating, unique and colorful cities in all the world. At the heart of this city lies one of the most beautiful urban squares we have ever seen…Durbar Square. There are actually 3 “Durbar Squares” in the Kathmandu Valley (we also loved the one in Bhaktapur) but it is impossible to match the one in Nepal's capital city Kathmandu. The square is centrally located in the city and after a little bit of wandering Lindsay and I entered the square with our eyes wide open in amazement. You are actually supposed to pay to get into the square but we were so amazed we wandered right past the ticket counter. :) The square lies immediately adjacent to the Royal Palace so the surrounding architecture is spectacular. The style is called Newari and it is characterized by large red brick structures with intricate detailed carvings and heavy roofs. Every direction you turn in Durbar square you can see examples of this architecture and it is beautiful. In addition to the royal palace there are numerous other pagoda temples, statutes, and buildings all with a unique yet consistent style. We especially loved one particular building that had very intricate red wooden windows. One of the windows was open and there are two light colored statues of a man and women. It is such a unique looking design and is one of the most recognizable images of Kathmandu. At the center of it all is a turn of the 20th century modern building with pillars and triangular roof (looks like a courthouse). It is painted entirely white and is actually attached to a much larger building. You would think this would look totally out of place but it somehow fits in very nicely with the surrounding historic buildings. Amongst all of these buildings and temples are numerous statues and shrines. There is one particular statue that Lindsay absolutely loved. It shows a God with wings kneeling on one knee with her hands clasped as if she was meditating/praying. It truly was a beautiful piece of art. Mixed with all the beautiful buildings and temples are thousands of people coming and going, selling goods, making street food, hanging out, etc. While hanging out and walking through Durbar Square you truly feel that you are in the center of Kathmandu. The overall “buzz” of the area is fascinating to watch and the only thing you have to worry about is getting hit by one of the thousands of motorcycles cruising through the square very fast. Our favorite thing to do in this square was exactly what all the locals were doing…sitting, hanging-out and people watching. The numerous stairs and levels of the pagoda temples are the perfect perch and there are so many people hanging out it can almost be difficult to find a place to sit. Once we found a good spot we would sit for long periods of time just watching, smelling, listening and chatting it up with the locals. We meet numerous people including one very nice little Nepalese boy. He just kept smiling at us and trying to chat (his English was very limited) and we eventually just had to take his picture. Of all the travel experiences we have every had very few compare to just sitting in Durbar Square Kathmandu watching the amazing scene in front of us unfold. During our time in Nepal we came back to Durbar Square numerous times to perch ourselves on a pagoda temple, chat with the locals, and experience one of the most unique places on earth.