Lo Manthang, Mustang, Nepal

Lying at the end of a four day trek along the Kali Gandaki Valley, and close to the border with Tibet, Lo Manthang is a medieval walled city, and seat of the Kings of Mustang.

Founded by Ame Pal in 1380, the city walls and the Royal Palace, a whitewashed five-storey building typical of the region, date from this time. The City itself is a maze of alleyways connecting the 150 or so dwellings and the four temples which lie within the city walls. A resident population of Buddhist monks from the Sakya school live in monasteries attached to the temples. Inside the monasteries are fabulous murals currently under repair by volunteers from both the local area and overseas. Photographs of these and other treasures in many of the temples are forbidden in an attempt to keep them from the eyes of would-be thieves.

The people of Lo Manthang call themselves Lobas (people from Lo) and maintain a strong sense of tradition and community. The area around Lo Manthang is scattered with numerous ruined forts, villages and cave dwellings which testify to the historic importance of the area as a trade hub, although many of the ruins are now used for traditional Tibetan sky burials. In the mountains surrounding the valleys are Tibetan nomads who live in black woollen tents on both sides of the Chinese border. These people live harsh lives at over 4,000m and hold onto many traditions that such an environment has cultivated, such as polyandry.