UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Asia (outside India)

As I track my footprints, sometimes I feel that I haven’t travelled much. At other times when I sit back and ponder, I realise that it’s not true and yet yearn for more. The ‘World Awaits Me’ – the idea behind the title of the parent category under which all the posts are listed and photographs are catalogued. Unfortunately the images shown here (excepting Nepal) are not my own as the travel bug had bit me long before the shutter bug bit me. And definitely much before the digital cameras came in. Thank you Wikipedia and yes what an opportunity lost for my Nikon… sigh!

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place (such as a forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex, or city) that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance.As of 2011, 936 sites are listed: 725 cultural, 183 natural, and 28 mixed properties. Italy is home to the greatest number of World Heritage Sites to date with 47 sites inscribed on the list.While each World Heritage Site remains part of the legal territory of the state wherein the site is located, UNESCO considers it in the interest of the international community to preserve each site. [Info Courtesy – Wikipedia]

The places in Asia that we have visited that are enlisted in the UNESCO World Heritage List (most of them are categorised under Cultural sites and not inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger, unless otherwise stated):

Srilanka

Ancient City of Sigiriya

Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications

Sacred City of Kandy, UNESCO World Heritage Link

Sinharaja Forest Reserve [Natural site & not inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger]

All places in Srilanka that are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List

Nepal

Kathmandu Valley – The cultural heritage of the Kathmandu Valley is illustrated by seven groups of monuments and buildings which are the Durbar Squares of Hanuman Dhoka (Kathmandu), Patan and Bhaktapur, the Buddhist stupas of Swayambhu and Bauddhanath and the Hindu temples of Pashupati and Changu Narayan. We visited the Durbar Squares of Hanuman Dhoka,, stupas of Swayambhu and Bauddhanath.