Nepal, Nov. 18 -- With the Himalayas glistening in the morning sun, almost every flight to or from Kathmandu in autumn feels like a mountain flight. The drive from Chandragadhi Airport in Bhadrapur is scenic until the Mai Khola Bridge, where heavy downpours and flash floods in October have caused extensive damage to the highway. In Ilam district, the loss of life and property from these unseasonal rains brought untold misery to local communities. The landscape remains scarred in several places, but people seem to have learned to cope with the devastation.

Unlike garish welcome gates in most parts of Nepal, Ilam greets its visitors with grace in a restrained manner. It is a quiet town along a ridge, a convenient vantage point from which t...