Another memorable trip out of Kathmandu is the one to Boudhanath, whose whitewashed stupa, with its trademark piercing eyes and strings of prayer flags fluttering from a spectacularly gilded tower, is the largest in Nepal. The monument stands 7 miles (11km) northeast of the capital on the site of an ancient trade route from Tibet – the last place of worship for travellers arriving in Kathmandu from Lhasa. Today, the area around the stupa serves as an important enclave for Tibetan refugees.