Join Catherine hosted by artist Lora Murphy and the Essence of Mulranny retreat team for an unforgettable excursion to The Kingdom of Nepal. This 12 day trip of a lifetime will include a few days in the colourful, ever friendly chaos that is Kathmandu, several days of exploration in gorgeous Pokhara at the foot of the mighty Annapurna range of the Himalayas, an event at the Art Institute of Nepal plus sightseeing some of the most beautiful places on earth.
Make soulful images with your camera as you journey through the majestic landscapes and sacred spaces of Nepal—ancient temples draped in prayer flags, serene Himalayan villages, bustling local markets, and tranquil mountain trails.
Imagine slowing down, seeing with your senses, and listening deeply to the quiet wisdom of your soul. This is the heart of our creative retreat in Nepal with Catherine Anderson—an invitation to pause, reflect, and reconnect through the lens of your camera.
Photography is a language of light, presence, and reflection. With Catherine as your guide, you’ll explore not just the outer world but your inner world as well—using your camera as a bridge between the two. In the stillness of nature and the sacred rhythm of Nepalese life, you’ll learn to see with symbolic insight and create images that speak from the soul.
The pace will be gentle, spacious, and nourishing—allowing you to fully experience the beauty and mystery that surrounds you. Whether you're wandering through the cobbled alleys of Bhaktapur, greeting the sunrise over the Annapurna range, or meditating beside a quiet stupa, you'll have time to breathe, be, and see in new ways.
This is more than a photography retreat … it’s a creative pilgrimage. This is a journey of "Sacred Seeing through the Lens of Your Senses and Your Soul".
We live in a symbolic world. The images that call to us through the lens of our camera are showing us what we find beautiful in the world around us. They are a way of exploring what we find meaningful. The word photography means “drawing with light”. We will approach image making with our camera as our sketchpad, and will be creating our own Visual Journal , a unique book created around a stitched binding to which we will add pages and images. This book will be a resource for discovering your personal creative vision, and finding seeds of inspiration for your creative work.
During our time together, Catherine will also show you how to create your own unique Visual Journal using Nepalese handmade paper. You’ll receive a book of Catherine’s photographs from her 2025 trip to Nepal with Lora as collage material for your Visual Journal, and learn how to combine these images with mixed media elements to create unique journal pages. Catherine discovered a wonderful gold thread at a store in Kathmandu and is excited to show you how this can be used to add stitching to your photographs. Creating as we travel allows us to ground ourselves in our new experiences.”
We will explore texture, pattern, shape in our photographs and think about how we can use textures as backgrounds in both our Visual Journal and in an art journaling practice. You will discover ways to use your photographs in new ways, combining them with mixed media, and altering and enhancing them with Photo Apps so that they become imbued with your personal art signature. We will also explore adding collage and stitching to our photographs, and adding layers and double exposures using Photo Apps. Lora will also show us how to use encaustics on our photographs. Creating as we travel allows us to ground ourselves in our new experiences.
“The whole point of travel is to have my sense of possibility expanded, to see every box in which I like to put things exploded …”
Each participant will receive a book of Catherine’s photographs from her 2025 trip to Nepal with Lora. The images in the book can be torn out and used as backgrounds or collage elements to expand your Photographer’s Sketchbook. We will have a photo printer so you can print out your photographs and we’ll explore printed photographs in shapes other than the traditional rectangular photo shape. We will visit the wonderful Nepalese paper shops and add these papers to our Photographer’s Sketchbooks.
Creating as we travel allows us to ground ourselves in our new experiences.
For more information about our travels and to register visit the Essence of Mulranny website.
GETTING TO KATHMANDU
I have found the most affordable and easiest flights are with Qatar Airlines. They fly from JFK, PHL and DFW to Doha and from Doha to Kathmandu. If you need any help with planning flights, feel free to contact me.
NEPAL ITINERARY
Please note that this itinerary is subject to change..
The photography instruction will be woven into our days.
Day 1 (Friday, January 16th) KATHMANDU
Arrive at Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu
Transfer to our home base, Hotel Mulberry, in central Kathmandu (30 minute drive from airport)
Relax and settle in
6pm: Welcome reception and traditional Nepalese dinner
Group gathering to go through the itinerary, receive your kit and connect with fellow pilgrims.
Day 2 (Saturday, January 17th) KATHMANDU
Introduction to Seeing through the Lens of Your Senses and Your Soul photography directly after breakfast
Visit to Patan Durbar Square, Museum and Golden Temple
Back to the hotel after lunch for rest and a Creative photography session
Early evening: Introduction to Catherine’s favorite shops in the area, and optional walk to Stupa near the hotel for photography
Day 3 (Sunday, January 18th) KATHMANDU
Morning - Visit BIA Foundation, where resident artists will teach us a traditional Thangka painting workshop, followed by distribution of wheeelchairs and lunch
Afternoon: Visit Bouddhanath Stupa with tea/dinner at one of the restaurants overlooking the Stupa
Day 4 (Monday, January 19th) KATHMANDU
Short creative photography session directly after breakfast to prepare for the day
Visit to Bhaktapur Durbar Square, a UNESCO World Heritage site, home to the 55-Window Palace, the Vatsala Temple and the Nyatapola Temple. This ancient city, known as the “City of Devotees”, is a treasure trove of historical, architectural, and artistic wonders.
Day 5 (Tuesday, January 20th) KATHMANDU/POKHARA
Short scenic flight to Pokhara.
Settle into our hotel with views of Lake Phewa
Introduction to the visual journal we are making using the book of photographs that each participant will receive. Enjoy a relaxing evening.
Day 6 (Wed, January 21st) POKHARA
Early morning optional photography outing before breakfast to the Lake as the sun rises.
After breakfast, a boat ride on Lake Phewa
Rest of day: Visual journals and photography instruction on how to edit photos and/or shopping and relaxing/learning to stitch on photographs using gold thread/encaustic on photographs by Lora
Late afternoon visit to Shiva temple with views of Fishtail Mountain
Day 7 (Thurs, January 22nd) POKHARA
Optional: Rise early for photography at the lake.
10am to 4pm with 1 hour lunch: Sound Healing Instruction
Evening: optional playing in our journals / editing photographs
Day 8 (Friday, January 23rd) POKHARA
Optional: Rise early for photography at the lake.
10am to 4pm with 1 hour lunch: Sound Healing Instruction
Evening: optional playing in our journals / editing photographs
Day 9 (Saturday, January 24th) POKHARA
Optional 5 mile trek into the Himalayan foothills (transport available for non-trekkers)
If staying behind: create in your journals or wander with your camera.
Day 10 (Sunday, January 25th) POKHARA/KATHMANDU
Day to enjoy Pokhara/play in visual journals/photography/stitching until our late afternoon flight back to Kathmandu
Day 11 (Monday, January 26th) KATHMANDU
Depart directly after breakfast for visit to Swayambhunath Stupa
Afternoon free for shopping and packing.
Group dinner with special performance of traditional music and
Day 12 (Tuesday, January 27th) KATHMANDU
Farewell Brunch and closing circle
Transfer to the airport for departures