Chinese expertise helps restore damaged monument in Nepal

The post-earthquake Basantapur Tower and its surrounding buildings in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, in 2016. (Photo provided to China Daily)

Nearly 10 years after it was severely damaged in a massive earthquake, Nepal's iconic Basantapur Tower is once again welcoming visitors from all over the world as it stands tall in all its majesty, thanks to joint efforts by Chinese and Nepalese conservationists in restoring the World Heritage Site to its former glory.

Sun Rongfen, 56, from North China's Hebei province, was one of the key members of the team that worked on the restoration project. Over eight years, she and her colleagues spent a lot of time in Nepal, working diligently and in close cooperation with Nepalese counterparts to complete a challenging yet meaningful task, in the process strengthening bilateral people-to-people friendship.

For Sun, former deputy head of Hebei Institute of Cultural Heritage and Ancient Architecture Preservation, which was involved in restoring the site, one incident stands out vividly in her mind.

Early one morning, a Nepalese neighbor of Sun saw her at their residential community's yard in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. The lady walked toward her, crushed a freshly picked flower and dotted her forehead with the petal's color, and then placed her palms together in greeting, smiling broadly.

The middle-aged Nepalese woman's gesture touched Sun in a way no words could.

"Back then, I didn't know the meaning of that gesture, but I could feel her kindness, so I said thank you in Nepali — the only one of the two words I learned there, the other being hello," Sun recalled.