Main photo caption: Charles Haviland of BBC(middle) receiving certificate and cash prize from Mrs.

Nandini Lahe Thapa, fficiating C!o, Nepal To"rism Board. Mr Haviland has #een a$ard Best %eporter&'(() #* Himala*a !+peditions for his reporting for BBC on Tenzing Hillar* !verest Marathon on Ma* ',, '((). -lso seen in the photo(left) is Mr. Bi.r"m /ande*, /resident of rganising Committee.

Nepal introd"ces B"ddhist Circ"its to Chinese To"r perators 0 Media

Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation/Government of Nepal in cooperation with Nepal Tourism Board organized a highly successful press conference and tour operator meet in Bei ing, China on !uly ", #$$%& Attended 'y over ()$ tour operators, top media including electronic and print media, Nepalese delegation disseminated latest tourism information and situation updates of the country as well as unveil the new Nepal 'rand 1Nat"rall* Nepal & nce is not eno"gh* to Chinese travel trade& +pecial focus was given to the promotion of Nepal as Buddhist pilgrimage destination& +ecretary at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Mr& Govinda ,& ,andey assured the gathering that peace had now prevailed in Nepal, which had 'een 'rought a'out recently 'y the people-s movement& .e also e/plained that 0ord Buddha told his disciples to visit four places that hold importance in his life including 0um'ini, the 'irth place of 0ord Buddha& +ecretary ,andey told that the Government was in process of preparing and comprehending new tourism policy and masterplan for guiding Nepal-s tourism development and mar1eting& .e assured all that since Nepalese hospitality was 2orld renowned, Nepal would not leave any stone unturned to ma1e their visit memora'le and pleasura'le& Charge de Affaires at Nepal 3m'assy Mr& +uresh ,radhan welcomed the guests& .e dwelled on the various tourism attractions of Nepal and re4uested all to contact the 3m'assy for information or assistance to visit the Nepal& 5n the occasion, former Am'assador of China to Nepal Mr& 0i 6e Biao spo1e glowingly and shared a'out his e/perience and tenure as an am'assador to Nepal& Acting Managing 6irector of Nepal Airlines Corporation Mr& 7B ,oudel said that Nepal was connected to China via +hanghai, .ong 7ong and Bang1o1& .e also assured that the

airlines would not hesitate to add further flights and sectors if the demand was created& +pecial pac1ages would 'e developed in consultation with the trade in Nepal and China& Addressing the meet, Mr& Binay ,ra1ash +hrestha, 6irector Nepal Tourism Board said that Nepal was a perfect gateway for the Chinese Tourist offering pilgrimage numerous adventures, cultural and natural attractions& .e shed light on the new Nepal Brand *Naturally Nepal85nce is not enough* recently developed 'y Nepal Tourism Board for comprehensive mar1eting of Nepal& New C6 9om presentation showcasing varied attractions of Nepal was also shown to the invitees& Mr& Bi1rum ,andey, a private sector representative presented in detail the various Buddhist circuits in Nepal and its significance to Buddhist followers& At the end of the program, on 'ehalf of Nepal delegates, !oint +ecretary at the Ministry of Culture Tourism and Civil Aviation Mr& +han1er ,& 7oirala than1ed the guests for accepting the invitation and attending the programme& .e also e/pressed sincere appreciation to all for showing deep affection and care toward the peace, prosperity and progress of Nepal& 5n the occasion two luc1y draws, one for media and other for trade, for seven days complementary trip to Nepal including air tic1ets was also held& +ecretary Mr& ,andey also gave away the prize to the winner of Nepal 6rawing Competition organized 'y NTB&

Title of Mayayogi conferred to Acharya +ridhara 9ana

5n the auspicious full moon day when 0ord Buddha first turned the 6harmacha1ra in +arnath, :ndia which was later called as the Guru ,urnima;!uly ((< in the :ndian su'continent, the #%th Throne .older of the Tsarpa su'8sect of the +a1ya tradition of Ti'et, .&3& Cho'gay Trichen 9inpoche, will officially 'estow upon his disciple Acharya +ridhar 9ana, the very special title of Mahayogi +ridhar 9ana 9inpoche ;Nal yorpa Chenpo +ridhar 9ana 9inpoche< as he has shown special signs of deep realizations in his meditation& The +a1ya tradition stems from the a''ot of Nalanda, Mahasiddha =irupada ;%$$ c&<& Mahayogi +ridhar 9ana 9inpoche has 'een in profound =a rayana =ipassyana retreat for the last eleven years under .is 3minence-s aegis& Born to 9ana family fifty8seven years ago, +hreedhar +humsher !B 9ana has imparted many teachings, general and specific, to his disciples during his long and ongoing retreat& Mahayogi 9ana showed interest in spirituality from his early years and was 1ind and compassionate to those who were less fortunate& .e started his spiritual pursuits in earnest immediately after graduating from +t& >avier-s .igh +chool, a !esuit run 'oarding school in 7athmandu& .aving seriously investigated and practiced all .indu approaches availa'le in Nepal, and still lac1ing fulfillment, he started see1ing answers in Buddhism& 3ven as a child 9ana was inclined to teach and share with others whatever he 1new or

found interesting& .e has 'een conferred the title of -Acharya- 'y =enera'le 7arma Thinley 9inpoche and has 'een authorized to teach all aspects of the Buddhism& Acharya-s aim is to 'ring all aspects of the Buddha 6harma to those interested in studying and practicing& The Byoma 7usuma Buddhadharma +angha ?amily has e/tended heartfelt felicitations to Gurupada, Acharya Mahayogi +ridhar 9ana 9inpoche on this auspicious occasion& ?or more detail, please 'rowse www&'yoma1usuma&org

Teens leave for Nepal to shoot doc"mentar*

3arly this morning on !uly ), #$$%, (" high school students of the @+A left their family and friends 'ehind to film and photograph the lives of Nepalese high school students in Manang for a month& 9e'e1ah Canter, Matt McCros1ey, !ustin +hetler and 7enny Meehan of Menlo ,ar1-s 9ie1es Center for .uman 3nhancement will 'e their guides, The 6aily 9eview and www&inside'ayarea&com report& *Nepal was 'y far the most 'eautiful, and the easiest for us to connect with people on a personal level,* said Meehan, who with McCros1ey had spent time in Nepal after college& *:t-s a giant melting pot of ideas and concepts of how to live, what-s important and what-s not& They are less focused on what they have as material items, or how much money they have&* The students from Menlo8Atherton and +ummit ,reparatory Charter high schools were chosen to document their lives in the @nited +tates and their adventure of traveling to Manang, in western Nepal& The film will compare and contrast the teens- lives in the @nited +tates to the goals and o' ectives of their Nepalese counterparts& Those not wor1ing on the documentary will create a photo8essay 'oo1& Traveling to Manang will 'e long and arduous for the (" students and their guides& :t 'egins with a (A8hour flight to Taipei, followed 'y a three8hour flight to Bang1o1 and a five8hour trip to 7athmandu& ?rom there, a ($8day hi1e through the .imalayas will 'egin& ?or some time, Meehan and the other guides have 'een telling the students what to e/pect&

*:t-s pretty rural,* he said& *+ome of the villages have electricity, on and off, two days out of the wee1& ;Manang< is definitely very developing&* Greg +tarling, (B, of +ummit ,reparatory Charter .igh +chool will 'e among the students filming the documentary& .e-s traveled to 3urope and Australia 'efore, 'ut he said this trip will change him& *:t will ma1e me 4uestion my life as an American and see how other people live who don-t have that much necessarily,* he said& *There are other people who are less fortunate, 'ut still 1now how to ma1e it a great life for themselves& : want to go and e/perience that, and ta1e something out of that&* %egional interaction program on 1Nepal2s Ne$ To"rism Brand1 organized An orientation program on *Nepal-s New Tourism Brand* and regional interaction program on New Budget ;?C $%A8$%)< of NTB* was organized on !uly A, #$$% at Bhairahawa& The program was organized 'y Nepal Tourism Board and supported 'y @N6,/ T9,A,& Mr& 0ila Bdr& Baniya, Manager8 +T6@, NTB welcomed all the participants and made presentation on *New Tourism Brand and 9ole of ,rivate +ector in promoting Branding*& Mr& Cogi 7ayastha, Monitoring and 3valuation +pecialist T9,A, highlighted a'out * New 9ural Tourism 6estination of Nepal developed 'y T9,A,& ,resentation on *New Budget ;fiscal year $%A/$%)< of NTB * was also made followed 'y interaction with different tourism sta1eholders& 0ocal government 'odies, tourism sta1eholders from private sector and NG5s participated in the program&

$$$.3a*To!verest.de : - photographic and poetic 4o"rne* to !verest

The first online Boo1 from the 3verest area is pu'lishedD www&2ayTo3verest&de 8 a photographic and poetic ourney to the foot of 3verest& :t remains a 'reathta1ing coffeeta'le 'oo1 of panoramic photographs of the tre1 to 3verest along with dazzling poems on region-s landscape, flora and fauna, people and their rich cultural traditions and history of con4uering the 3verest& The 'oo1 was launched 'y his 3/cellency the British Am'assador of Nepal Mr& 7eith Bloomfield, 7athmandu8Nepal& This *0i1e the earlier successful 'oo1 on the Annapurnas, the current 'oo1 shall send good news to the outside world a'out Nepal,* 'elieves photographer Andreas +timm& A must for every'ody who en oys or will en oy the way to the foot of 3verest& To en oy the way to the 3verest visit www&2ayTo3verest&de or download the

free online 'oo1 from httpD//www&waytoeverest&de/download/+etup2ayTo3verest&zip ;(%E pages, German83nglish, (#( panorama8photographs, (A poems, ( altitude profile, :+BN AFE($EEA$(< ?or detail, please contact 3psilonmedia, Graf83'ersteinstr& "B, B%(FF 7arlsruhe TelD G)F ;$<B#(8E%) A) #(, ?a/D G)F ;$<B#(8E%) AB (A Mo'ilD G)F ;$<(%#8E(( B()F, e8MailD 1onta1tHepsilonmedia&de www&epsilonmedia&de @pcoming 3vents ,illars of .ope ,aintings 'y Go'inda ,rasad +ha-Azad6ateD Till #$ !uly, #$$% =enueD +iddhartha Art Gallery ContactD )#(E$(E :nnovative Art By +ri 0an1an painter 6eneth 6ateD Till #$ !uly, #$$% =enueD New 5rleans CafI, Thamel ContactD FE$A$$#%A( Bagmati 9iver A ,hoto 3/hi'ition 6ateD Till (( !uly, #$$% =enueD Gallery CafI, 0azimpat Harmony- Sculpture Symposium -2006 Date: 29th July- 18th August 2006 Venue: athman!u "rgani#er: A$A%&HA 'ontact (o: 01-)**06+, (agpo-hari .esti/al Date: +0th July 2006 Venue: (agpo-hari0 (a1al "rgani#er: (agpo-hari De/elopment 'ommittee
Rafting

Date: 12th August Venue: &ala2u to &al-hu "rganser: 3$4564'3( &agmati $i/er .esti/al 74co-challenge8 Date: 1*th August 2006

Venue: 'ho9ar-&ala2u-Shi/apuri-Sun!ari2al-3o-arna "rganiser: (epal $i/er 'onser/ation :rust 'ontact (o 01-,01101+