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Patan is just a few miles up the road from Katmandu. Despite the fact that Patan has fallen victim to increasing traffic and industrialization, it still is a good alternation to Kathmandu's hustle-and-bustle and smog (although the two of them will probably soon be co joined in one city). When strolling down the streets of the old town centre, the metalwork handicrafts shops are mute silences of a time when the manufacturing of handicrafts still was one of the most important ways of making a living (besides agriculture). The commercial handicrafts' heart beats at Mangel Bazaar these days.
Patan has a fascinating and enchanting Durbar square with impressive Bahal temples (the most famous one being the beautifully in detail ornamented Golden Temple), pagodas, shrines, stone statues and monuments. It's a tranquil place (until the moment that you're approached by one of the many guides or hassled by one of the monkeys) that leads up to the Patan Museum, bordering on one of sides. The museum is housed in an impressive building, the former palace of one of the kings, and displays a good collection of objects related to the cultural history of Nepal (that is, when it is open to the public, although one has to admit that the closed door is already worth gazing at).