In the east of Kathmandu is Boudhanath, the largest stupa in Nepal. Tendy's new Iceland Trekking ofices are near here, opposite the main entrance of the Hyatt Hotel.

Legend has it that this stupa was built after an old woman asked her king for enough land to build a shrine to the Buddha. The king agreed to give her only as much land as she could cover with the skin of a water buffalo. The woman cut the buffalo hide into thin strips, and, laying them end to end, formed a large circle that became the circumference of the stupa.

An ertire village inhabited primarily by Tibetan emigrants has sprung up around the stupa, so now it is completely encircled by shops, houses, and monasteries. (Frommer's Nepal)

November 10, 1997.