Thimi, the valley’s fourth- largest town, lies on a plateau 4km west of Bhaktapur. The name is said to be a corruption of Chhemi, which means “capable people”, a bit of flattery offered by Bhaktapur to make up for the fact that the town used to get mauled every time Bhaktapur to make up for the fact that the town used to get mauled every time Bhaktapur picked a fight with Kathmandu or Patan. Thimi, a large Newari village built on a raised plateau surrounded by a sea of fields. The town’s main artery, accessible only on foot, runs north- south, linking a series of temple- studded square. This place is better known for its superb craftsmanship on ceramics and papier-mâché masks, as well as green vegetables. Pottery is an even older local specialty, and one can watch potters at work in alleys and courtyards all over the north end of town. The process is the same as in Bhaktapur, except that the capable people of Thimi have traded in their traditional wooden wheels for concrete- filled truck tyres. Pottery doesn’t travel well, but one might be tempted by the elephant shaped flower pots.Thimi only temple of note is that of Balkumari, a 16th century pagoda located near the southern end of the main north-south lane. The temple is the focus of frenzied New Year’s festivals in April, when dozens of deities are ferried around on palanquins and red powder is thrown like confetti. Many festivals are celebrated here with music and dances performance on various occasions. The festival of 32 palanquins of deities tongue boring festival, different kinds of mask dances like Mahakali dances, Bhairab Dance, folk dances, Jyapu Jyapuni Dance, Lusi dance are a few to name.

Situated in beautiful surrounding of Bhaktapur, the temple of Ganesh is placed in a sylvan setting to catch the 1st rays of the rising sun. Surya Binayak is one of the valley’s 4 main Ganesh shrines. A steep stairways climbs up to the temple on a forested hilltop. Lord Ganesh is very popular as the god of wisdom and good luck, among Hindus. Devotees throng this temple especially on Tuesday and Saturday to pay homage and offer animal sacrifices to the elephant- headed deity. The image of the god sits in an enclosure in the bottom of a Shikhara and there’s a second golden image on the Shikhara spire. Statues of Kneeling devotees face the image and the Shikhara is flanked by large bells. It is a good picnic spot flanked by many attractive landscapes. During marriage seasons, one may chance upon newly married couples seeking blessing from the god for peace, pleasure and mutual harmony in their martial life. Because of its height, the place is also pleasant to view the Bhaktapur city as well as the Himalayan panorama.

Behind the main temple, there exists a very thick forest of Schima Wallichi and Castanopsis Indica with thick undergrowth. It is very lively to see the flowering of many wild plants in spring. Rhododendron Arboreum, the national flower of Nepal, blooms in spring season at the upper level of the forest. The whole forest turns reddish during the season. Different types of orchids are also found hanging in the trees in this forest all the year round. This type of forest is one of the best breeding grounds for different kinds of resident and migratory birds sing here in different seasons. Lot of warblers can be seen during winter. Winter is the best time for bird watching in these areas since many types of birds can be seen and the forest will be free from leeches. Moreover, it is one of the best wintering grounds for finches, warblers, birds of prey and many other birds. It is the best refugee place and breeding ground for many summer visitors like flycatchers, cuckoos and bee-eaters. Many resident birds like doves, magpie, treepie, woodpeckers, flower peckers, nuthatches, laughing- thrushes, Minivet, barbets and bulbuls can be seen everywhere in the forest. The eastern and south eastern parts of the forest, since it is more exposed to the sun rays, have more bird diversity. Bird activities in that part of the forest areas are more easily seen in the early mornings. This forest area is the second place where White- Bellied Yuhina can be seen in the Valley.

The 108ft Shiva, tallest Shiva statue in the world, was opened in June 2010. The statue is constructed at Chhitpol-5, Kailaskut hill in Bhaktapur. The construction took 6 years and involved 100 Nepali and skilled labors from India. The construction of foundation alone took two years. To protect the statue from natural factors like sun, wind, and rain, it is coated with zinc. It is further coated with copper on top of zinc coating. According to Kamal Jain, the outer cover of the statue contain 6000 kgs of zinc and copper.