by Jan Salter and Grazyna Bonati
We never saw the Himalayas in our brief stay in Nagarkot. It was just before
the monsoon was due to begin and therefore the wrong time of the year for
Nagarkot's famous sunrise and sunset views. In fact, thick clouds hid the
Himalayas from our view and we never caught the smallest glimpse of them,
during our entire stay. But we enjoyed our visit, nonetheless, as we had found
a delightful place to stay.
You could easily miss The Fort Hotel at Nagarkot: it is situated right at the end of an untarred road and blends in so well with its surroundings. Its tasteful, traditional architecture and furnishings, in warm brick and earth colours, make it a pleasure to explore in the all-pervading tranquility of Nagarkot.
The Fort Hotel is built in the grounds of the original fort complex. In fact, the name was chosen when remains of the original fort were found there during its construction.
As befits a fort, the hotel is situated on a high rise (2,000 metres), allowing excellent views of the Himalays (weather permitting) and the surrounding area, from each room. Its beautiful, rambling but carefully-tended gardens.
We found it difficult to move away from the tables in the garden where the sense of tranquillity seemed to reach down to the depths of our beings. An ideal place to escape the frenzy and pollution of the Kathmandu Valley.
Unfortunately, not all the other buildings in the area have been built with such care. Too many brightblue, corrugated-iron roofs and unsightly buildings litter the hillsides. Why this particularly ugly shade of electric blue has been chosen for so many hotel and guest-house roofs is not clear, but they are mushrooming in all directions, destroying the harmony of these beautiful, terraced hillsides. However, "CocaCola valley" is the worst abomination maring this beautiful area. Here houses, painted in startling red and white, with the wellknown logo sprawled across them, stand out as a crass sign of the evil power of wealth to destroy all that is graceful and beautiful, if allowed to do so.
Tradition claims that Manushree, who cut and drained the lake filling the Kathmandu Valley, first saw the lake from Nagarkot. This high ground controls the Eastern entrance to the Kathmandu Valley and is an obvious place to build a fort. Since the Lichave period, the ancient trade route to Tibet has passed through Nagarkot and trade tax collection and immigration control were organised from the fort.
Prithvi Narayan Shah knew that he had to take the fort at Nagarkot, if he wanted to untie the kingdoms of the Kathmandu Valley, but there were three battles before he managed to do so.
A few years ago, Nagarkot was a tiny hamlet with barely one place to spend the night. But, as some of the best views of the Himalays can be seen from Nagarkot, increasing numbers of people, both foreign and local, continue to flock there. As a result of this increasing popularity, many new hotels and guest houses have sprung up in an apparently uncontrolled manner: some, like The Fort, blending beautifully with the landscape, while others can only be described as eyesores.
At an hour's drive from Kathmandu (many people cycle, although this takes a bit longer), it is now easier to reach and visit Nagarkot than it was for Prithvi Narayan Shah, but we can still enjoy the awe-inspiring views of the Himalays and a wonderful sense of peace.
One really should spend at least one night in Nagarkot and see either the sunset or sunrise over the Himalays, if not both. On a clear day, the sight is nothing short of awe-inspiring. You can, then spend the rest of the day quietly enjoying the tranquillity of the area of trekking along one of the many paths which begin there. There are several interesting places, such as Changu Narayan and Sankbu, which can be reached on foot in a day-trip from Nagarkot.
But do not worry if it is not the time of year when the Himalayas can easily be seen. There is much else to enjoy - if nothing else, it is cooler in Nagarkot than the Kathmandu Valley.
The
Sunday Post
(A weekly magazine of Kathmandu Post)
October 5, 1997
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