Kathmandu, April 9 -- At 94 years of age, Renu Thapa is among the few people alive who remember the old Narayanhiti Palace, an English-inspired neoclassical palace that once stood where the contemporary pink palace now stands. The former palace, with its numerous porticos and Ionic columns, was a sight to behold, said Thapa. The new palace has none of that charm and it just doesn't compare, she said.

The Narayanhiti Palace complex sits in the heart of Kathmandu, at the end of the city's most upmarket street Durbar Marg. Spread out over 754 ropanis of land, this former home of the royal family was turned into a museum after the fall of the monarchy, formally opening its doors to the public on February 27, 2009. But despite its storied, of...