In pictures: Nepal VW Beetle rally

Dozens of Volkswagen Beetles - also known as bugs - have converged on the Kathmandu area for the sixth rally run by An-Bug - the Association of Nepal Beetle Users Group.

An-Bug President Gopal Kakshapati says hippies driving to Kathmandu in the 1970s brought the iconic car to Nepal. This is his sixth. The frog-like design is by his daughter.

There are 84 listed Beetle owners in Nepal. The rally was flagged off by Beetle owner and German Ambassador, Franz Ring, who says there was even a Beetle club in Burma.

For Satendra Bajracharya, Beetles were "a childhood obsession". He bought this one seven years ago: "It was junk. I restored it gradually." The sponsorship is for this event only.

Anjam Bisht (left) bought her cream Beetle third-hand, about 25 years ago: "I feel secure and safe - there's solid metal around me. I've been hit by a minibus without realising."

These children happily squeezed into the back seat. The event's proceeds will fund two new teachers for a rural school and also pay for operations on children with cleft palates.

"I also have a Nissan but on weekends I prefer a heavy, sturdy car like this - it's a matter of passion," says Anup Maskay. His father bought the Beetle in 1980.

Beetle owners prize their cars' classic interiors as much as the exteriors. Many enthuse about the cars' reliability - but one woman says spare parts have to be imported from Brazil.

During the rally, one of two of the Beetles did fleetingly fail the reliability test...

...but they did reach their string of destinations including the world-famous Patan Durbar Square in Kathmandu.

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