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Nicole's
Travelogues and Budget Travel Tips..
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PATAN, NEPAL
Patan is 15 minutes drive from Kathmandu. Also called Lalitpur, (the city of beauty) is separated from Kathmandu only by the Bagmati River and is the second largest town in the valley. Patan is famous for its artisans and has a long Buddhist history (the 4 corners of the city are marked by stupas). Patan is often considered to be the oldest and most beautiful among the three royal cities (Kathmandu, Patan, Bhaktapur) in the Kathmandu Valley.
The square contained a unique blend of architectural styles, including numerous red brick temples with pagoda-style roofs supported by carved wooden struts, two tall stone columns topped with gilded statues, two white stone Krishna-style temples and the brick built Royal Palace. I just told them that I didn't speak English and they left me alone. Hahaha of course then I ran into them later when I was chattin' with some kids in English. Ooops!
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Durbar Square Entrance Fee: 200Rs Patan has a population of 166,000. Patan is the only city in Nepal that has produced the highest number of renowned artists and finest craftsmen ever recorded in Nepalese Art History. The monument zone of Patan Durbar Square is one of the seven monument zone of Kathmandu Valley. The seven monument zones were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979 as one integrated site.
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Patan's Durbar square which is a concentrated mass of temples displaying Newari architecture. There were temples everywhere - a much higher concentration than in Kathmandu's Durbar Square. 
Beware of the touts in the square. They are particularly aggressive and there were quite a few tourists that couldn't shake them. They will come up to you and just start talking explaining various temples and then expect payment, even though you didn't agree to use their 'services.'
