Nepalese site named after Lumley 尼泊尔景点以Lumley命名

A popular tourist site in Nepal has been renamed in honour of actress Joanna Lumley and her father.

尼泊尔一处著名旅游景点以女演员Joanna Lumley和她父亲的名字命名以示尊敬。

veterans¹ in the foothills of the Himalayas" width="226" border="0" src="http://www.enread.com/upimg/090802/4_015752_1.jpg" />
Ms Lumley has been visiting veterans in the foothills of the Himalayas

Local people in Pokhara, 200km (124m) west of Kathmandu, have decided² to change the name of Mattikhan Hill to Mattikhan Lumley View.

Ms Lumley, whose father was a Gurkha officer, fronted a campaign³ for UK settlement rights for Gurkhas started in Kent, the UK home of the Gurkhas.

She has been meeting Gurkha veterans during a week-long visit of Nepal.

When she arrived on Monday she was greeted with garlands（花环） of flowers, colourful scarves（围巾） and signs describing her as a "goddess".

'So moved'

During her visit to the city of Pokhara, which is a popular tourist destination, it was announced that local beauty spot Mattikhan Hill would be renamed.

A speaker at a ceremony at the city hall said: "By this act the spirit of the Lumley family will remain forever in the foothills of the Himalayas, the homeland of the Gurkhas."

City officials said the name was changed to say thank you to Ms Lumley for her campaign work and to remember her late father, Major James Rutherford Lumley.

Ms Lumley said: "It absolutely caught my throat. It was the most moving thing in the world, to think that out here in Nepal my family, particularly my father and me as his daughter, are remembered in these hills.

"I cannot think of anything more beautiful. I am so moved and I nearly lost it on stage. I thought I must not start crying."

Ms Lumley has been travelling with Gurkha Justice campaigner⁴ Peter Carroll, who started the campaign for Gurkhas' UK settlement rights.

In May, the government said all retired⁵ Gurkha soldiers - originally⁶ from Nepal - with at least four years service in the British Army, could stay in the UK.