A lesser-known neighbor of Swayambhunath
Most visitors to the Swayambhunath Stupa, standing on a massive hill in the western part of Kathmandu, climb a long staircase from the eastern end. However, the locals usually start from the west, where the street leads to the parking lot between the two peaks and the climb is much easier. The saddle itself is also worth a visit, there are several smaller stupas. In addition, you can ascend to the lower side with other Buddhist buildings headed by the Wochen Thukje Chieling Temple
Views from the hill
As you descend from Swayambhunath to the saddle, you have views of the city. We were here in November, the ideal season for the mountains, but Kathmandu was under a strong haze / inversion and the views were quite limited
In the saddle
The saddle between the two peaks is very lively and there are several stupas and also the Peace Pond lake. Prayer flags are hung between the two peaks
A small gompa under the saddle
There is also a small gompa next to the parking lot. From this place you can see the second small hill, where we will continue
Ascent to the Wochen Thukje temple
The ascent to the temple is by a stone staircase
Week Thukje Chieling Monastery
Finally we are upstairs at the temple. The top of the hill is leveled. It has a good atmosphere here, because unlike Swayambhu, there are very few visitors
Around the temple
The place is really nice, people are praying, relaxing or just looking at Kathmandu from a bird's eye view
View of Halchok Danda (1497 m)
There are also great views from the temple. This is a side hill of Halchok Danda (1497 m)
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