kathmandu - signs from the past

A photographic collection of Kathmandu’s iconic hand-painted store & street signs

This coffee table book is a snapshot in time of a Kathmandu many will recognise if they’ve walked the city’s fabled streets in the past. Hand-painted street signs of all shapes, colours, and wording have long decorated the rustic stores they represent.

In recent years they have been vanishing. Replaced by generic plastic signage and gaudy lights. This unique part of Kathmandu’s heritage has been overlooked. This book, by the author David Ways, captures the street signs before they vanish forever. With over a decade of experience writing guidebooks about Nepal and creating the world’s number one website about traveling to Nepal www.thelongestwayhome.com David has created a wonderful photographic collection of a part of Nepal which is so memorable yet never before documented.

Kathmandu is a sensory overload that many find challenging to take notice of in detail when avoiding traffic, bicycles, people, and the odd cow.

All that charm and character lives on here in this book which can now adorn your coffee table or bookcase. Browse through the photographs. Raise an eyebrow at some of the sign’s misspellings, smile at the quirkiness of many, admire all the artwork, chuckle at a few of the terms. These signs come from a different place in the world. A place that seemed to hold onto time for a little while longer than anywhere else.

This book honors the artistry, efforts, and characters of all these signs from the past in Kathmandu.