Palpa पाल्पा

Palpa's hill town of Tansen sits on the crest of the Mahabharat range at roughly 1,372 metres, looking west over the Kali Gandaki valley toward the distant Dhaulagiri massif. The old Newar bazaar quarter — expanded after Tansen became a prosperous trade staging post between India and Tibet in the 17th and 18th centuries — preserves carved-timber shopfronts, a hilltop Durbar and old temple lanes. The district is synonymous with two crafts: Palpali dhaka, a handwoven cotton textile in geometric patterns whose topi is Nepal's national headwear, and the heavy brass karuwa water-jug cast in the Taksar quarter of the bazaar.

Rani Mahal, a riverside Rana-era palace on the east bank of the Kali Gandaki below Tansen, was built in 1893 by General Khadga Shumsher in memory of his wife and is sometimes called Nepal's Taj Mahal for its romantic provenance and riverine setting. Ridi, at the Kali Gandaki–Ridi river confluence on the district's eastern edge, is one of Nepal's four chardhams and draws pilgrims at Maghe Sankranti. The Siddhartha Highway connects Palpa to Butwal in about 1.5 hours and on toward Pokhara.