Nepal
 

Nepal was created from an amalgam of principalities in 1768 under King Prithvi Narayan Shah. Under the control of a hereditary king, it became a ‘buffer state' between the British Empire and territories to the north. The country became independent in 1923, but it was not until 1947 (the year of Indian independence) and total withdrawal of the British before Nepal achieved complete autonomy. In May 2008, the monarchy was abolished making Nepal the world's newest republic.

Nepal is a country of highly diverse and rich geography, culture, and religions. The mountainous north has eight of the world's ten highest mountains, including the highest, Sagarmatha, known in English as Mount Everest. The fertile and humid south is heavily urbanized. It contains over 240 peaks more than 20,000 ft (6,096 metres) above sea level. By some measures, Hinduism is practised by a larger majority of people in Nepal than in any other nation. Buddhism, though a minority faith in the country, is linked historically with Nepal as the birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama, who as the Buddha Gautama gave birth to the Buddhist tradition. A monarchy throughout most of its history, Nepal was ruled by the Shah dynasty of kings from 1768, when Prithvi Narayan Shah unified its many small kingdoms. However, a decade-long People's Revolution by the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) along with several weeks of mass protests by all major political parties of Nepal in 2006, culminated in a peace accord and the ensuing elections for the constituent assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of the abdication of the last Nepali monarch Gyanendra Shah and the establishment of a federal democratic republic in May 28, 2008.[9] The first President of Nepal, Ram Baran Yadav, was sworn in on 23 July 2008.

Nepal at a Glance:
Location: Situated between India and Tibet, an autonomous region of the People’s Republic of China.
Area: 147,181 Sq.Km.
Capital: Kathmandu
People: 61 ethnic group and over 100 spoken languages
Population: 25 million
Topography: From the world’s deepest gorge ‘Kali-Gandaki’ to the highest point on earth ‘Everest’
Vegetation: Nepal possesses wide range of vegetation due to its unique topographical variations
Weather: From tropical in the lowlands to alpine in higher altitudes.
Seasons: Winter (December- February), Spring (March-May) Summer (June-August), Autumn (September- November)
Monsoon: Mostly rains day and night, making the following days clean and fresh. Most of the northern belt of the Trans Himalayan Zone is rain –shadowed area and ideal for trekking.