Pashupatinath Temple

One of the most sacred Hindu temples of Nepal – Pashupatinath Temple is located on both banks of Bagmati River on the eastern outskirts of Kathmandu was built in 5th century by Prachandadev .

  Pashupatinath is the most important temple dedicated to god Shiva. Every year this temple attracts hundreds of elderly followers of Hinduism. 

  They arrive here to find shelter for the last several weeks of their lives, to meet death, be cremated on the banks of the river and travel their last journey with the waters of the sacred river Bagmati, which later meets the holy river Ganges. Hinduists from every corner of Nepal and India are arriving here to die. 

    It is believed that those who die in Pashupatinath Temple are reborn as a human, regardless of any misconduct that could worsen their karma. The exact day of their death is predicted by astrologers of the temple. If you are attracted to the places where the spirit of death can be felt, then consider Pashupatinath as your first destination. It is a temple with special atmosphere of death; death is present in almost every ritual and every corner  

  The main temple of Pashupatinath is a building with a bunk roof and a golden spire. 

 It is located on the Western bank of Bagmati and is considered a masterpiece of Hindu architecture. 

  It is a cubic construction with four main doors, all covered with silver sheets. The two-storied roof is made from copper and is covered with gold. This richly decorated temple with wooden sculptures is believed to make wishes come true. One of the most astonishing decorations of the temple is the huge golden statue of Nandi – Shiva’s bull. 

  

       Only followers of Hinduism can enter the main temple, but all the other buildings are available for foreigners to visit. From the Eastern bank of the river the main temple can be seen in its whole beauty. The western bank of Bagmati also hosts the so called Panch Deval (Five temples) complex, which once was a holy shrine but now serves a shelter for destitute old people. Numerous religious buildings are also located on the eastern bank of Bagmati, most of them are devoted to Shiva. The majority of these buildings are small single-story constructions made from stone. From the outside these buildings are reminding crypts, but in reality, these are sacral buildings, created for holding the symbol of the deity Shiva – lingam . Lingams can be found all over the complex. 

 Along the right bank of Bagmati numerous platforms for funeral pyres are built. The cremations on these platforms are a common activity. 

       Usually tourists have the chance to see at least one open-air cremation. 

The majority of religious rituals are culturally unusual and even mind-blowing for Westerners, but probably the most culturally unusual thing in Pashupatinath is the specific smell of cremated bodies. Unlike any expectation the smell has nothing in common with the smell of decaying flesh, but rather reminds the smell of clabber mixed with different spices. 

        Another culturally shocking thing in Pashupatinath is the image of local women washing clothes downstream the river. The waters of Bagmati contain animal fat because of the ashes of cremated Shiva followers and easily wash the dirt from linen. It is believed that this is how the soap was invented. As far as Shiva is considered the patron of animals and all living organisms, monkeys and dears are wandering all around the temple complex on both banks of Bagmati. Monkeys are very often unfriendly, they beg for food, snatch things from careless tourists and may even be dangerous. 

     It is also very common to meet sadhus in Pahsupathinath. Sadhus are wandering ascetic yogis, who are trying to acquire liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth by meditating. They have a very unique appearance with specific yellow paintings on their bodies. 

      As mentioned in Wikipedia of Pashupatinath,Majority of sadhus are very tourist friendly and eager to pose for the photos with foreigners, but it is not free of charge. They live in caves or tiny cells on the territory of Pashupatinath. Sadhus have extremely ascetic and even miserable life but for a Westerner their independent and unconstrained behavior looks mysterious. 

Essay on Niagara Falls

       Niagara Falls is a city on the Niagara River, in New York State. It’s known for the vast Niagara Falls, which straddle the Canadian border. In Niagara Falls State Park, the Observation Tower, at Prospect Point, juts out over Niagara Gorge for a view of all 3 waterfalls. Trails from the Niagara Gorge Discovery Center lead to other viewpoints. The Aquarium of Niagara is home to Humboldt penguins, seals and sea lions. 

          Several places in the world keep amazing us with the variety and impressive power that nature gave to them. One of these places is located on the border of modern Canada and the United States. Niagara Falls is one of the biggest waters falls in the world and comprises two separate parts that are separated by the Goat Island. The majority of the waterfalls are located on the Canadian territory; the US side, however, offers travelers and visitors developed infrastructure and various excursions to see the beauty and power of the Niagara waterfalls. 

              Apart from its tremendous role in the development of tourism in Ontario province in Canada and Northern part of the US, Niagara Falls became a significant source of energy. The energy of the waterfalls was first utilized back in the eighteenth century when one of the farmers built a small canal to supply his farm with power. Today Niagara Falls Power Company is extensively using the energy of the waterfalls and looking at the development and expansion of its power capacity. 

  

             If you are planning to visit the Niagara Falls, it is better to do it from the Canadian side, as the view on the waterfalls is much better from Ontario, rather than from the US side. If you do not have this opportunity, just take your chance and go to Niagara town on the edge of the falls. Numerous hotels, restaurants and amusement parks will not leave you uninterested.  

Tourism In Nepal

          Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is located mainly in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. With an estimated population of 26.4 million, it is 48th largest country by population and 93rd largest country by area. 

         Importance of Tourism in Nepal isn’t just limited to the tourist coming in. I am an avid traveler myself. And I post some snapshots from my travel on my Instagram account. A few weeks ago, one of my Instagram followers didn’t even know about Gosainkunda, one of the famous and holiest lakes in Nepal. This particular incident got me thinking about the ignorance of famous getaway destinations in Nepal among the young generation. 

  

       While government and Tourism Board are busy drafting plans to attract foreign tourists in Nepal, it is important that most of the Nepali should share the same zeal. Why should we? I can understand it to be a common question? Well, read the following paragraphs and you’ll agree with me. 

  

       Nepal is no longer just an agricultural country. Our economy is sustained by foreign employment and tourism alongside agriculture. Since a decade, as Nepal bade goodbye to long and tragic civil war, the tourism industry has started to come out from the long hibernation. Nepal celebrated visit Nepal year 2010 in order to inform the world “it is okay to visit Nepal now”. 

  

         In addition to that various national campaign has been launched to boost internal tourism in the country.  As a major campaign, Nepal government has planned “Visit Nepal 2020” with an aim to attract hundreds of thousands of tourists, the importance of tourism in Nepal is growing. 

  

Here are some of the major importance of tourism in Nepal: 

  

1.    A significant source of income: 

International tourism is a significant source of income to sustain the failing economy of Nepal. In 2016 alone, tourism sector pumped Rs 177 billion to nations economy. According to the same report, Nepal is ranked 37th country to where tourism directly contributes to GDP among 185 countries involved. In 2017, the tourism sector contributed 8% of Nepal’s GDP i.e. 220 billion Nepalis currency. This figure is likely to go up to 8.25% by 2028. These official figures show that Tourism is a major pillar to sustain Nepal’s current economic condition. 

  

2.    Employment Opportunities: 

According to 2108 report of world travel and tourism council, Travel & Tourism generated 497,500 jobs directly in 2017 (3.2% of total employment) in Nepal. This figure is projected to rise to 3.9% by 2018 and by 2028, there’ll be an increment of 2.11% in the existing figure. These statistics show the promising future in the field of Tourism in Nepal and its likely impact on the nation’s economy. 

  

3.    Upliftment of the living standard: 

In 2017 alone, internal tourism consumption was Rs.168.7 billion according to the report of the World Travel and Tourism Council. This consumption includes the food and lodging during treks, porter costs and so forth. Famous for its adventurous tourism, the expenses in local places is likely to boost up their living standard too. Furthermore, as an integral part of a rural tourism, “homestay” has helped the locals to earn the extra cash while promoting the local tourism. 

  

4.    The increment in local trade: 

Shopping in Nepal is one of the major dreams of any foreigner. The street of Thamel during the months of October to March is filled by tourists from all over the world. They have seen busy shopping either some antique handicrafts or a pashmina shawl or a singing bowl. Anything they purchase indirectly aids in the local trade. 

  

5.    Publicity of hidden treasures: 

Everyone is well aware of Pokhara and its beauty. Same can be said in the case of ABC (Annapurna Base Camp) or Everest base camp (EBC). But there are many other heavenly places in Nepal such as unexplored trek route, new river for rafting, a new place for paragliding and so forth. These hidden treasures can be exposed to the world only through the publicity which is best done by Tourism. Once known as a Hermit nation, Nepal was not open for anyone. Today, millions of tourists enjoy the beautiful landscapes, birds, and animals. So, only the tourism industry can unlock the hidden potentials such as honeymoon in Nepal. 

My Experience of Earthquake

I was at home reading books, suddenly the window shakes and produce noise. I was afraid and ran towards my mother .we were afraid .the door were making a lot of noise. The house was shaking,it remained for at least 5o second. We came out of the house to an open space when earthquake stopped finally. They were  falling , people were coming out of the house, it was too cold outside. 

I tuned radio which announced the 7.9 rector scale. Many people were dead, many houses were collapsed and, in the meantime, radio announced that our Dharahara was collapsed. We were so sad to here that. People were crying because they had already lost their friend family and loved one. My closed brother Dippu was dead falling from wall. We went to his house, everyone was crying.it was so sad moment. several after-shake came for many days, we were compiled to stay in the tent because of fear. My heart was moving faster because of after shake .we knew about so many landslide and collapsed of ancient houses and temples. 

My heart still trembles if I remember that day. Our country lost so many primitive natural properties. Earthquake destroyed the dream of people, their houses, school, land, bridge and so many things. We didn’t go to school for so many days. More than 15000 people died. I am very shocked .It was so bad for my country and all Nepalese people ,our country pushed far behind and taking a long time to recover from that disaster .Government announced the package for affected people but that took so long time to rich the people, so many people became homeless ,penniless, without family . 

Jhamak Thapa
Damak
Class 7

Real Story

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The small country Bhutan is surrounded by India and China. Constitutional monarch is the head of the country. Gigme Nygmgel is the first monarch to rule the country and is followed by the Wanchuck dynasty to rule the country. It is believed that a small group of people came from Tibet and started living in the country at first and some people from Nepal were taken at the beginning. The country is in the process of developing. People use simple and traditional tools for farming, they also rare cattle. There was a batter system at the beginning. The national language spoken is Dzongkha but there are people speaking Nepali too. Nepali speaking people live in the southern belt of Bhutan. The southern part of Bhutan is fertile and is good for the cultivation of crops. People grow food crops and cash crops and they also produce cardamom and exports to other countries like India. 

      It was around 1990, government of Bhutan forced people to speak the national language Dzongkha instead of other languages. people in the southern belt use to speak Nepali and they could not speak Dzongkha. Not only that people were asked to put a national dress and were forced to follow their rules. As a result, many southern Bhutanese were forcibly evicted from their motherland. Eighty thousand southern Nepali speaking people came to Nepal. All these people were assisted by UNHCR in Nepal. My family is among all those people who lived in the Eastern part of Nepal. All these people lived an exiled life as a refugee. People who has spent life being refugee can easily describe how hard the life is sustained. 

     There were hungry mouths searching for food, helpless hands asking for help, angry faces struggling from all corners for anything in anything. People struggle a lot just to survive and just for the basic needs such as shelter, education, clothing, food and water. All Bhutanese lived in a small hut made up off bamboo and thatch and plastics' all depended on the food provided by United Nation high commission for refugee. Whatever they get from UNHCR for living was not sufficient to live .life was tough though there was no any other alternatives rather than eat and live in refugee camp. As I along with my family grew up in the refugee camp, I went to school in the refugee camp. CARITAS NEPAL provided us with education. Children studied in the refugee camp up to grade X .I was one of the kids among all the refugee who finished grade X and studied further more outside the camp. After living for more than seventeen years in refugee camp, people were provided opportunities to go and live in developed countries like USA, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, Norway, Netherlands and  Newzerland. Many refugees were resettled in all these countries and struggled a lot to make their life better. Today most of the Bhutanese who resisted in these developed countries learnt a lot about the culture and diversity of the country they were resettled. They also learnt how to adjust with the Society of that country. They also learnt how to work, drive and make money and be self-depended on themselves.