NEPAL

Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked central Himalayan country in South Asia. It has a population of 26.4 million and is the 93rd largest country by area. Bordering China in the north and India in the south, east, and west, it is the largest sovereign Himalayan state. Nepal does not border Bangladesh, which is located within only 27 km (17 mi) of its southeastern tip. It neither borders Bhutan due to the Indian state of Sikkim being located in between. Nepal has a diverse geography, including fertile plains, subalpine forested hills, and eight of the world's ten tallest mountains, including Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth. Kathmandu is the nation's capital and largest city. It is a multi-ethnic nation with Nepali as the official language.

The territory of Nepal has a recorded history since the Neolithic age. The name Nepal is first recorded in texts from the Vedic Age, the era which founded Hinduism, the predominant religion of the country. In the middle of the first millennium BC, Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, was born in southern Nepal. Parts of northern Nepal were intertwined with the culture of Tibet. The Kathmandu Valley in central Nepal became known as Nepal proper because of its complex urban civilization. It was the seat of the prosperous Newar confederacy known as Nepal Mandala. The Himalayan branch of the ancient Silk Road was dominated by the valley's traders. The cosmopolitan region developed distinct traditional art and architecture. By the 18th century, the Gorkha Kingdom achieved the unification of the region's principalities under the Shah dynasty into the Kingdom of Nepal, and later entered into an alliance with the British Empire. The country was never colonized but served as a buffer state between Imperial China and Colonial India.In the 20th century, Nepal ended its isolation and forged strong ties with regional powers. Nepal was the world's last Hindu monarchy until 2008, when it became a republic

The devastating earthquake not withstanding, Nepal is a favorite with adventurous hippies. You'd find them everywhere- from the foothills of Himalayas to the magical city of Kathmandu. The crisp, fresh Himalayan air and the sweet smoke of marijuana must be a liberating combination, judging from the popularity of this destination with hippies.

KATHMANDU

Kathmandu (Nepali: काठमाडौं) or KTM is the capital city of Nepal. Kathmandu valley includes Kathmandu metropolitan city along with Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, Thimi and Kirtipur areas. It was listed on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Site back in 2006. Measuring 49.45 km square in total, Kathmandu is a geographically smaller city compared to many other important cities of Nepal and its history goes back 2,000 years only. Over time, this small city attracted best minds from around the country and helped it build socioeconomically, making it the most accessible place for living, working and traveling in the whole country. Today, almost 2.5 million people reside in Kathmandu (Census 2012). If you are to visit old settlements around Kathmandu, you ought to find numerous narrow alleys, mud-built houses conjoined together like ‘making love’; inhabitants clad in their native costumes, with rich and vibrant architectures dominating the locales.

The legend has it, a famed meditation deity, Manjushree, brought the city to life by making it habitable. Following the first ascent of the Everest in 1953, Kathmandu became a popular hub among climbing enthusiasts and representatives of nations wanting to spot their flag on the top of Everest. Later, Cat Steven’s famed song “Kathmandu” helped promote the ancient city among many young westerners. The influx of Hippies in 60s’ technically opened the gates of the city for future foreign tourism.The decade of 1960 marks the moment when Kathmandu became a global city. The influx of Hippies through Bhakti movement first arrived in Kathmandu in 60s’ via silk route. Their unconventional lifestyle brought a wave of westernization and liberalization among locals. Kathmanduties started building pop joints, selling drugs, donning western attires, where branded apparels and automobiles became a taste of the group. The government’s move on banning Hippies’ movement and stop on free trade of drugs diminished their existence.

The wave of western tourism didn’t end there. 80s’ started with a bang, when Travel agencies and tour operators first started selling trek and tours in the unexplored regions of the country to the world. It made Nepal an ultimate adventure travel destination. Commercial expeditions of Everest and other Eight-Thousander peaks flourished. The concept of trekking in high altitude regions of Himalaya took over like a storm. Vacationers craving for adventure and holiday in the Himalaya started flooding the city.

THAMEL

Also known as Hippie’s Den, Tourist trap or Tourists’ Mecca, Thamel boasts a lifestyle different from the rest of greater Kathmandu. The dingy bars, loud western music, trance parties and posh diners give the real impression of the city. A famous flea-market for adventure travelers, here, you can buy or rent stuffs particular to trekking, hiking and climbing. Most of the companies from the Nepalese tourism scene are found in here. Located side by side, sometimes in a single building, these entities -catering clienteles from around the globe, represent the local tourism industry of Nepal. Despite their tiny Brick & Mortar offices, the services provided are larger than life and fairer (mainly because of regulatory bodies, like Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA), TAAN and Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), inspecting these organizations).

Originally, the home of ethnic tribe of Kathmandu –“Newar,” the place received international recognition for its popularity among incoming tourists, mainly Hippies during early 70s’ and 80s’. Thamel saw a large influx of western tourists; those looking for peace, eastern spiritual music and drugs. This place assimilated with the cultures of “Flower Generation” and became a known hipster town. One could easily find Hashish and Ganja (Marijuana) selling on these streets. Later, the evolution of small trade, with establishment of bars and restaurants, made this place an epicenter of commerce in Kathmandu. Despite it cultural transitions, it never lost its roots and charm of yeste-years. You can still find buildings made up of mud and brick among new concrete building, Temples dedicated to ancient Hindu Gods and Goddesses in various corners, inhabitants clad in ethnic Newari couture roaming the streets, and many local festivals celebrated inside the premise of Thamel. The ethnic inhabitants mostly Sold or Rented off their homes in Thamel to businesses that made it what it stands today.

An Urban legend is popular among the inhabitants of Kathmandu, which suggests that Rock Stars like Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison ventured Thamel during their hey day. Today, many stars of the international scene are seldom seen wandering the Thamel streets, like Bruce Springsteen and Sting.Diners and Bars are the prestige of Thamel. A bar called “Rum Doodle” and decorated with pictures from the book “The Ascent of Rum Doodle” has become a popular staging point for expeditions to Mt. Everest, and a joint for mountaineers. It serves free meal for the lifetime to those climbers who have made it to Everest summit. Messner, Lowe, Anker and the like have often ventured here.

Other popular joints known to mankind are; Sheesha Bar, Purple Haze -Rock Bar, Reggae Bar, New Orleans Restaurant, Himalayan Java and Sandwich Point.

Old Freak Street, or Freak Street is a small street located at the south of Kathmandu Durbar Square. Presently known as Old Freak Street, this ancient street was named as Freak Street referring to the hippie trail of the 1960s and 1970s.Freak Street was the epicenter during the Hippie trail from the early 1960s to late 1970s. During that time the main attraction drawing tourists to Freak Street was the government-run hashish shops. Hippies from different parts of the world traveled to Freak Street (Basantapur) in search of legal cannabis. Direct bus services to Freak Street were also available from the airport and borders targeting the hippies looking for legal smokes. Freak Street was a hippie nirvana, since marijuana and hashish were legal and sold openly in government licensed shops. A young restless population in the west, seeking to distant itself from political and social frustration, had firsthand contact with the fascinating culture, art and architecture, and unique life style that attracted hippies to Freak Street. But in the early 1970s the government of Nepal started a round-up of hippies on Freak Street and they were physically deported to India, an action propelled largely by a directive from the government of United States of America. The government imposed a strict regulation for tourist regarding the dress codes and physical appearances. After imposing such regulations by government the hippies felt vulnerable and the hippie movement of Nepal died out in the late 1970s. It was under this directive that the Nepali government came to ban the production and sale of hashish and marijuana in Nepal. The hippie tourism was quickly replaced with the more conventional businesses of trekking and cultural tourism.

Old Freak Street’s history and plum position in the heart of Kathmandu still makes it a popular destination among the locals. Once labeled as being a place to find enlightenment, a lot of things have transformed since the deportation of the hippies in the early 1970s. This ancient street which was named as Freak Street, after the hippies, presently the name Freak Street has been converted into Old Freak Street since the place is not anymore like it used to be back in the 1960s. This place is now just a mythical magnet for hippies and other social variants of the 1960s. Cheap guest houses, trekking agencies, shopping centers, souvenir shops, restaurants are the businesses the local entrepreneurs have adopted after banning of the cannabis in Nepal. Overshadowed by the glamour of Thamel, a primary tourist area in Kathmandu, Old Freak Street has not been able to revive its charm among the tourists since then.

See You Soon...On Another Famous Hippie Location

Until Then...NAMASTE...

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