Old brick houses with men in an entrance talking
Monday walks,  Nepal,  Squares,  Sunday Stills,  Travel galleries

Gallery: the old town of Dhulikhel

Paved streets gently wind uphill, lined with brick houses three or more stories high. Every door, every window is surrounded by exquisitely carved wood. Locals sit chatting, their day’s work over, or watch from an upper window.

Here we are in another Nepalese town, but very different from the two we have visited so far, Kathmandu and Bhaktapur. Not in terms of beauty, Dhulikhel’s traditional Newari architecture is stunning, but in character.

It is far less busy than nearby Bhaktapur; we seemed to be the only tourists here. It’s higher too, with cool mountain air that made it a real pleasure to wander its streets. And I was pleased to find some street art here, something I didn’t see in many places in Nepal.

At the top of the hill we visited one of the town’s many temples dedicated to the goddess Bhagwati, a manifestation of Parvati. This temple is recorded as having been reconstructed in 1647 by King Jagat Malla of Bhaktapur, but there is no record of its original construction date.

Apart from that one temple this was a place to soak up the atmosphere rather than tick off the sights. And of course to take plenty of photos! Let me take you on a visual stroll around the town, for Jo’s Monday Walks and as a final contribution to Becky’s Walking Squares. I hope too that I have enough vivid colours to qualify for Terri’s Sunday Stills theme; certainly I will have vivid memories of this trip for years to come.

Carved wooden door
Man looking out of carved wooden window frame
Wall painting of woman in traditional black and red dress
Large mural of girl's face in traditional headdress
Small stone statue draped in marigold garlands
Carving of Ganesh, the Elephant God
Colourful street art depicting Hindu gods
Wooden door panel carved with Ganesh
Carved dark wood window frame
Mural of a hand
Two girls with a dog in front of street art
Small stone statue with hands in prayer position
Stone carving of fierce beast painted gold
Bhagwati Temple
Golden lion sculpture
On a column in front of Bhagwati Temple
Tall brick temple with tiered roof
Bhagwati Temple
Young girl sliding on stone wall watched by father
At Bhagwati Temple
Stone carved Hindu god and lions
Entrance gate to Bhagwati Temple
Tall brick temple with tiered roof
Bhagwati Temple
Metal roof edge with small bird and red fringe
Bhagwati Temple roof detail

I visited Dhulikhel in October 2022

48 Comments

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Highly recommended! One thing I liked was the three very distinct regions – the Himalayas to the north; the Kathmandu Valley and foothills in the middle, with all the beautiful Newari architecture and culture; and the Terai (low-lying forests with the national parks and different ethnic groups such as the Tharu) to the south. It makes for such a varied trip πŸ™‚

  • rkrontheroad

    I stayed in Dhulikhel just before the pandemic, building a Habitat for Humanity house in the valley that was decimated by earthquake. Didn’t see the city at all though, so this was a joy to see!

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Oh, that’s a fantastic thing to have done Ruth! We saw first-hand how much devastation the earthquake caused and heard about it from our guide – so awful for that region and its people.

  • Marilyn Armstrong

    What creature is the one in you set titled: “On a column in front of Bhagwati Temple.” I have a duplicate of that creature — who I assumed was a dog or car or maybe a dog-cat — in stone that dates back a lot of years. It was old when I got it and I’ve had it for more than 30 years.

    This is the first time I’ve seen that cratre, whatever it is!

    • Sarah Wilkie

      That’s intended to be a lion. The temple is dedicated to a manifestation of Parvati, the consort of Lord Shiva. Each of the Hindu gods has what is known as a mount or vehicle. For instance, Shiva’s is a bull, Ganesh has a mouse. The vehicle of Parvati is a lion. Whenever you see a temple dedicated to a particular god there will be a statue of their vehicle somewhere nearby. In researching this temple I found the following description of the column:
      ‘Parvati is the wife of Lord Shiva and a huge trident has been made across the courtyard in his honor. A small brass lion holding a trident is Durga’s mount which is etched in the stone column next to the trident.’ (see https://www.mountmania.com/blog/dhulikhel-a-classic-old-newari-town#bhagwati-temple)

      The statue you have however could be a Chinese lion dog? See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_guardian_lions. I think they would be more likely to be reproduced as ornaments perhaps?

  • grandmisadventures

    I just love the art and architecture around every corner here. From the intricate details on the temples to the statues carved from devotion to the more modern street art. Really beautiful pictures πŸ™‚

  • starship VT

    Sarah, what an incredibly wonderful collection of images you’ve chosen for the several challenges you mentioned. If I know you, you probably took dozens if not hundreds of photos of Dhulikhel, so it must have been difficult to select only a small portion of those to share here!! If that’s the case, you did a marvelous job because the people, the architecture, the art, the vivid colors and unique details you captured are all fantastic!

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Thank you so much Sylvia πŸ˜€ Yes, I did take many more photos than this (but not hundreds, we were only here for about an hour!) My selection for this post was partly influenced by my wish to ‘square’ them, as not all would work so well in that format. It’s an interesting discipline and a good way to narrow down the number to choose from when posting!

  • Monkey's Tale

    What beautiful pictures of Dhulikhel. To be the only tourists in this Newari town must have really added to your experience. There are so many special places in Nepal outside of the typical tourist spots where people are living their typical Nepali lives, but that are so different from our own. Sounds like an amazing trip. Maggie

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Thanks so much Maggie 😊 I may have given the wrong impression though, in saying we were the only tourists. It isn’t a major tourist destination but it does get some. We were the only ones at this particular point, but only because we arrived quite late in the afternoon – I know others (including a couple from our hotel in Kathmandu) had been here earlier in the day, but we spent so long taking photos in Bhaktapur that we came after anyone else, it seemed, and had the place to ourselves!

  • Terri Webster Schrandt

    You nailed vivid perfectly, Sarah! Not just the colors but I imagine the beautiful memories of just being there! I’m struck how the modern street murals not only show vivid images we’re used to seeing, but also how they are juxtaposed with the iconic statues and architecture of (Hindu?) culture. A great stroll with vivid character!

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Yes, for the most part the religious culture here (and all over Nepal) is Hindu, but with a fairly large dose of Buddhism thrown in. The religious iconography in my photos here is all Hindu. The full-length figure of a girl is wearing traditional Newari costume, as is the large one with a headdress immediately below her. So glad you enjoyed the stroll!

  • Margaret

    Vivid memories for you as you say Sarah and wonderful pictures for me as I haven’t been to Nepal and it’s extremely unlikely I will visit now.

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Thank you Margaret 😊 I’m very pleased to be able to take you and others on virtual tours, whether that’s to inspire them to visit for themselves or take them virtually to places they may not get to in person!

  • Anne Sandler

    Being the only tourists certainly was an advantage here. Such beautiful images. I wonder how old some of those doors are, and your street photography is great and more natural than in a tourist destination.

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Thank you Anne. This is to some extent a tourist destination – certainly the locals were used to strangers wandering through. But it’s more low-key than the other places I’ve featured so far and we arrived quite late in the afternoon when other tourists had come and gone, I believe πŸ™‚

  • restlessjo

    It#s all very different than you might find on a London street, isn’t it? Is it commonplace to have those carved doors, Sarah, or just on more important buildings? I’m guessing the brickwork is fairly earthquake tolerant but I’ve never been to that part of the world. Trip of a lifetime, you might say, but I’m sure you and Chris have much more planned. Many thanks for sharing.

    • Sarah Wilkie

      Those are ordinary houses you’re seeing with those carved windows and doors – they seemed like apartment blocks of a sort, housing several families. All the ones in the old town had carvings, some more elaborate than others. We didn’t see many really modern houses close up, mainly from the road, but certainly carved doors remain popular today although I’m not so sure about frames etc. I’ll have a walk for you some time soon in a very different Nepali location, a small rural village – you won’t see much ornamentation there!

      And yes, more planned – starting with Colombia in February πŸ˜€

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