Rani Pokhari

Rani Pokhari, meaning Queen's Pond, is a large artificial water tank in central Kathmandu built in the seventeenth century by King Pratap Malla in memory of his son. At its centre stands a white domed shrine reached by a causeway opened to the public only once a year during Tihar. The pond was damaged in 2015 and later restored after public debate over its historic stone embankments. Walking its perimeter offers a quiet counterpoint to the surrounding traffic and views of the central shrine rising from the water.