Freak Street :

 

       Freak Street is tucked away at the edge of Kathmandu's shopping and historical center of New Road and Durbar Square. This is the almost mythical magnet for hippies and other social deviants of the 1960s. There was once a feeling of "anything goes" and nothing was shocking to the people lingered there. This was the original center of the city for outsiders to the Nepalese culture, and it gained a reputation as being a place to find enlightenment. Many trekkers and spiritual explorers gathered there to find exotic encounters and try alternative lifestyles, such as not bathing and smoking lots of marijuana. As Nepal became more of a mainstream attraction to hikers and other tourists the area became known as a seedy but exciting place to visit. It also became notorious for being an outlet for illicit drugs and for being populated with junkies and deviants of varied persuasions.