After learning about the major earthquake that recently struck Nepal, I looked through the digital scans of negatives from the rolls of film that I shot in 1998. As I counted the years on my fingers, I realised that it was about half a lifetime ago when I visited Nepal.
I didn’t take many travel notes back then, but I have fond memories from this trip. The warm smiles of the children in the mountains; sidestepping huge chunks of yak dung that dotted the walking paths; drinking a big bowl of garlic soup on the first night of our hike and enjoying the warmth as it spread throughout my body; having hot tea and Tibetan bread with sugar and eggs at breakfast in mountain tea houses; the endless horizon of snow-capped peaks as we walked up and down and around the Annapurna mountain range; the amazement of being in a constant drizzle as we passed through low clouds; being closer to the night sky with stars looking so big that I felt I could touch them if I just tiptoed.
I turned 18 in Nepal amidst these majestic mountains and awe-inspiring views. My first (legal) sips of alcohol were that of Nepali whiskey, poured out of a kettle mixed in with warm water as we danced to local songs by the lake in Pokhara. I still remember the chorus of my favourite tune.
It was an adventure and a privilege to spend those two weeks in Nepal. It was humbling as I stood amidst these majestic mountains, thinking how small we are and how lucky we are to be surrounded by such beauty.
I used an Olympus mju point-and-shoot camera when I was in Nepal. The negatives had turned yellow and degraded over time due to the humidity in Singapore. Previously, I had only re-touched the photo below which was taken at Annapurna Base Camp.
Looking at these old images yesterday, I was motivated to ‘restore’ the digital version of some of the photos that I took in Nepal in 1998. Here’s an example of a ‘before’ image:
It took some fiddling around on Photoshop to adjust the colours. Below are the results:
I couldn’t adjust the colours of the photo below to my satisfaction. I removed all the yellow in the photo and ended up with this image which reminds me of old colorized photos taken in Japan. I quite like the effect.
Several of the buildings in this photo were probably destroyed in Saturday’s earthquake. If you wish to give your support to Nepal and its people, there are various ways to do so. Here are some useful links: The Guardian and Time.
I hope that Nepal will receive swift aid from other nations who have more resources and start rebuilding itself. Just like it did after the devastating Nepal-Bihar earthquake in 1934.
Angelina Hue 
It is such a tragedy. My heart is heavy. Seeing you taking care of your old photos though makes my smile. Well done.
Such events remind me of how temporal our time on earth is and to make the most of every day.
I should scan the actual prints – which I think should still be in an alright condition – the next time I’m back in Singapore. Would make for less work 🙂
Yes, scanning or taking a very good photo of the old prints is the first step to an archive 🙂
And this are the precious photos you took, glad you had them. Every historic site are destroyed here and became memory. It such a wonderful back then. Thanks for visiting. tc
I’m thankful too that I have these memories that I can share of a wonderful time spent in Nepal, thank you.