Kathmandu and its valley illustrate a cruel paradox. Like a recap of Nepal's History the most refined and sumptuous architectural achievements are strung out along a few dozens of kilometers only.

Countless temples, mostly Hindu but Buddhist as well, where religious fervor decreases at nightfall only. Gorgeous palaces, abodes of the sovereigns of this Himalayan kingdom, one of the poorest countries in the world.

Nepal is not India. You can clearly feel the differences, in terms of development for sure, but also, and mostly, in terms of its population's warm-heartedness.

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25 April 2015. A 7.9 magnitude earthquake strikes the Himalayan area, followed in the days after by powerful aftershocks. In its wake, there is only desolation and devastation. The human and material toll is heavy in Kathmandu, where media attention is focused, but also, and mostly, in the remote countryside areas.

Langtang valley, where I had trekked a few months earlier, is wiped from the map, so to speak. Nature, majestic and overwhelming, seems unshaken by the human tragedy. At the time for taking stock, hundreds of people, tourists and locals, are reported dead or missing. I must have crossed paths with some of them. These pictures are dedicated to them.

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How could I pay a more heartfelt tribute to the Nepalese people, who live in one of the poorest countries in the world and were so badly afflicted by the 2015 dreadful earthquake, than by openly, and with dignity, paying witness to their daily life ?

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