Environment

Nepal sits uneasily on the window sill of the southern Himalaya, wedged between China to the north and India to the south. With a span of 800 by 200 km it is just another small country, but in height it's a world-beater. Not only does it have the world's tallest mountains, including the cloud-hugging Everest and Annapurna, it also has the youngest - and they're still growing. Apart from its four mountain ranges - Churia Hills, Mahabharat Range, Himalaya and the Tibetan Marginals - Nepal also has vast plains in the south, fertile valleys in the midlands and high-altitude deserts in the north. The heavily cultivated belt between the Mahabharat Range and the Himalaya supports the bulk of the country's population, which keeps growing.

There are over 6500 species of trees, shrubs and wildflowers in Nepal. The height of bloom is in March and April, when rhododendrons, the national flower, burst into colour. Nepal also boasts an astounding diversity of animal life, with 800 bird species and exotic mammals such as the royal Bengal tiger and snow leopard, as well as rhinoceros, elephant, bear, deer, monkey and jackal. Unfortunately, due to habitat degeneration and poaching, opportunities for seeing wildlife are usually restricted to national parks, reserves and western Nepal, where the human population is sparse.

Nepal has a four-season year: the fall season (October to November), the winter season from December till mid of February, the spring from mid of February till the onset of the final season: the monsoon (June to September). The monsoon affects the whole country, often flooding the southern plains, before tailing off as it moves away to the north and west. Temperatures vary but are generally hottest in the summer months of May and June and coldest during December and January.