The Garden Of Dreams

An oasis of calm amongst the chaos of Kathmandu

Space is at a premium in the busy streets of Kathmandu but I managed to find a haven of calm amidst the chaos.

I would never have known it was there if someone hadn’t recommended it to me as we were chatting over breakfast at the hotel.

It was a hot, dusty day and I’d spent a couple of hours wandering around Thamel, I’d walked there from the hotel and decided to walk back and, remembering the advice I was given, I checked my map for the Garden of Dreams. I’d walked past it on my way into Thamel but hadn’t noticed it, if I hadn’t particularly looked for it I would have missed it on my way back as well.

The Garden of Dreams is hidden behind a high wall only metres from a very busy intersection and what an oasis it is. You pay a couple of dollars entrance fee but it’s well worth it. It’s a neo classical garden created as a private garden by Field Marshall Kaiser Sumsher Rana in the early 1920s which was restored and opened to the public in 2007.

The ivy clad walls of adjoining buildings create a cooling atmosphere while the meandering footpaths, the green lawns and the lily pond provide a tranquil spot for locals on their lunch break and tourists wanting a bit of a breather. The Kaiser café provides light lunches and I certainly took advantage, the cold Heineken went down well too.

So, if after surviving an exhausting morning in the chaotic streets of Thamel you’re in need of reviving make sure you find that door in the wall that will take you into this amazing Garden of Dreams.