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After that visit we attempted to visit another remote village found in the opposite direction of this village, but we were prevented due to the muddy road conditions. The mud was so thick and treacherous we prevented from going further up the mountain and unable to visit the village. The village residents were very disappointed and so were we.

The tires were covered with mud from the hillsides. These cars take a beating and keep on going! Where is Triple AAA? LOL!  

We were unable to navigate through the deep mud left from the heavy monsoon rains~ the SUV kept getting stuck in these thick trenches and the side of the mountain was inches away and very far down! We could not get through~ we would have to visit the second village on another trip! 

We went back to the Gorkha for the evening and went shopping until we were forced to stop due to being attacked by mosquitoes! OUCH!


Wednesday July 30, 2008
It rained hard all night long! I kept waking up and watching the rain come down…I wondered if it was raining like this all across Nepal. There are so many villagers that live in rural areas and I wonder what it would be like to live in a mud hut during rains like this…it is hard for us to imagine. But that is a reality for thousands of Nepali people….they have such hard lives, but by clinging to their culture and values they seem to survive and to live in such a happy way.

The rain stopped in the morning and luckily it has been only overcast so far!
We are attending the second day of the Youth Summit. The young volunteers were so excited to receive cameras, pen drives, and training on how to make web pages and a web site for their community volunteer projects.

Here are many Nepali youth from around the country meeting to discuss their community projects and integrating technology in their Youth Managed Resource Centers.

 
News from California~ 6.0 earthquake in Chino Hills….hope everyone is okay over there! Thank you Pooja!


Tuesday July 29, 2008
Today we met our group at 7:15 a.m. to head to the TMUC/YMRC Youth Summit. We were rather warm all night while trying to sleep because there is no air conditioning here and one must worry about keeping mosquitoes away. We ate a “typical” Nepali breakfast of what seemed to be some type of chickpeas warmed with curry and a small glass of Nepali tea. As we ate we were hoping our stomachs will hold up~ sad but true to constantly be thinking about such things as stomach trouble, but it is an awful feeling to have to “go” when you are miles and miles from a toilet, even a squat toilet!

By the way the view is amazing~ we met a sweet group of boys who were flying homemade kites on a hilltop. It was fun to practice speaking with them and take pictures of them. They love to speak English and have endless questions for us. I would much rather be up in that huge tree and flying kites with the kids than sitting in meetings all day long…I wonder if they will miss me…

 
These are "The Gorkha Boys"! Our new friends from Gorkha~ we enjoyed talking with them, sharing our candy, and watching them fly their homemade kites~ They have a kite flying festival in October~ too bad we will miss it...but we will be thinking of them.

Smile Gorkha Boys~

After my kite flying lesson~ loved it!

 

The hilltop and huge beautiful tree that the boys climbed for hours and hours~ such an enjoyable sight to see~ here they are waving to us! "Namaste Friends!"

Lunch was held at a small village hotel and it was a traditional Nepali meal of Dhal bat, rice, curry chicken, and some type of vegetables served on a large metal divided dish. Once again our hosts ate with their hands and I requested a fork or spoon. I just don’t know how to eat rice and Dhal bat (liquid lentils) with my hands, although they do it without any trouble or mess. I’m afraid I would make a horrible mess of it! LOL~ note to self, bring “sporks” next time!

We had a wonderful day meeting the youth from many different districts and hearing about the wonderful projects they are doing in their communities~ These individuals are motivated to improve the quality of life in their villages and work very hard motivating the youth with community projects in each of their villages.

They are learning to build websites to document and share information on their community projects and communicate with each other and the world. Amazing to see village people who may have not even gone on the Internet learn how to use technology and begin to become educated in technology and sharing with others. Doors are certainly being opened and worlds are being enriched through this process!  Wonderful!

We will attend one more day of this summit and head off to Pokhra, then back to Kathmandu, Sanku, and several other villages through networking at the summit~ we’ve made new friends and met new village schools to visit.

Monday July 28, 2008

Here Heather and Jeff sit with the leader of the TMUC (the elders) board who work with the YMRC (the youth) and help to mentor and support the youth in Nepal! Mulmi-ji is a peaceful and wise man~ he is so gentle and wise~ a very good friend to all.

This morning we traveled four hours to a town called Gorkha to attend the TMUC Youth Summit~ Gorkha is famous for their trained mighty warriors. We were looking forward to getting away from Kathmandu and the big city for a while. Since it has been raining so much we anticipated plush green scenery for the drive, and we were not disappointed!

Our driver, Raj, picked us up at the hotel where we met our friends who are affiliated with TMUC/YMRC, (these are volunteer community based programs in Nepal), Mulmi-ji, Ramita, and Pankash we drove to pick up another person, Namrada. Seven of us in a truck~ it should be a comfortable drive. Unfortunately being Americans we tend to pack many things so much of the space was taken up with our bags! (It’s terribly embarrassing especially since I downsized by taking many items out three times to prepare for the trip!!! LOL!)

We had a flat tire several times on our trip~ and once we stopped due to engine trouble. Nepali people take difficulties in stride~ when something bad happens they all just calmly stop and solve the problem...no problem! We can learn a lot about solving problems calmly and working together! 

It was a relief getting out of the Kathmandu and out onto the open highway. The Nepali highway is winding and twisting and driving past us were an assortment smiling people and honking vehicles. We passed typical little towns and villages and enjoyed the twisty road. Before reaching our destination we stopped by a small town, Manakamana Darshan, where we rode the sky cars up to the top of the mountain. It was a beautiful ride up and over the mountain and we had a lot of fun with our group visiting and watching village life below. When we departed the sky car we got out and walked through a village to a beautiful temple. Several of the members of our group made an offering at the temple, but Jeff and I were not allowed to enter because we are Christians.

Jeff contemplating high above the hill tops!

 

Our friends and guides, Namrada, Ramita, and Pankaj~ Namaste Friends!

These pictures are taken high in the sky from the sky car! It was very beautiful and VERY HOT inside the sky car~ the trip was peaceful and the temple at the top of the mountain was incredible!

As we explored outside we found a sacred little space surrounded by bells and prayer flags~ we had a beautiful view of the Himalayan Mountains from that vantage point. Silently standing there watching the mountains I felt a sense of peace and awe that is found nowhere else~ blessing. We all made one special wish at the temple since this is the custom and walked back to the sky car for the journey down the mountain and on to Gorkha.

 

 

The temple area was clearly a sacred area where pilgrims journey to make their offerings and receive blessings~ it was amazing.

Bells surround the temple site and area used to let the gods know that individuals are arriving and departing~ people ring the bells as they enter and leave the area.

 

An amazing sense of peace and blessing is to be found when reflecting at the top of these mountains~ no words to express here... only BEING.

We arrived to Gorkha and received a tremendous welcome from the community center at TMUC/YMRC. We finally arrived at our hotel a little later. The amenities are much different than we are used to in America~ it is funny sometimes to imagine how some people may perceive Nepal and life in Nepal. There are times when cultural differences do prove challenging for us too~ like at dinner when we began to eat as a group and I (Heather) suddenly realized there was no silverware~ I became panicked because I was not sure how I would eat the Dahl bat and rice with my hands and I did not want to offend the group we were with … this village is somewhat remote and not used to Western visitors, but luckily they had a fork and spoon. We are eating cautiously out in the villages, you never really know if what you are eating or drinking will make your stomach upset or not. It’s a little scary!
Ramita volunteered to teach me how to eat rice and Dhal bat with my hands when we go to visit Sankhu~ I will take her up on that!


Sunday July 27, 2008

Today we had a meeting with the group that Jeff has worked with in past technology training projects in Nepal. We will visit Gorkha within the next few days to interact and participate in a TMUC/YMRC/CDN Youth Summit. This is a community youth program where Nepali youth come from around the country to share and discuss programs they do to support and enhance their communities. We are excited to meet with these older students of Nepal and learn more about their customs and dreams for their futures.

After the meeting we went shopping for gifts for our friends and families. The only problem is we keep finding more and more items that we love and we want to keep! LOL! Don’t worry, we found a lot of cute stuff~ Yah!

In order for our driver who is driving us to Gorkha for the TMUC Youth Summit to take us to Pokhra afterwards we had to buy more gas from the black market~ the gas shortage has really caused great difficulty for many people in Nepal, including the tourists~ we have been paying immense prices just to travel around even close by…Thank you Fund For Teachers for providing a generous grant that has made this exciting trip possible.



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Namaste Friends & Family~  we were in remote villages for almost a week...

Finally back to steady electricity, paved roads & internet connections!!! Blog and pictures to follow!  WOW!!! Lots to share! 

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July 26,  2008 -Day 9~ Saturday
Our friend and waiter from the hotel, Y.B., offered to take us to an orphanage that had a teacher on the premises. We agreed that we would like to visit and we had plenty of gifts to bring to the children. We were a little apprehensive but open to what we may find because earlier after visiting with Freema we had seen some of the conditions of the orphanages and some of them are heartbreaking. We were amazed by this amazing haven.

Once again we climbed into the sturdy taxicab and headed off through the twisty cramped streets towards our destination. Since it was Saturday there were many festivals and people shopping so just going was an adventure. I say constant prayers while we are driving because it literally looks as if we will collide head-on with most cars and vehicles on the street. We stopped at a little market to buy chocolates, juice, cookies, and treats for the children.

The kids LOVED these balls! Thank you YOUKO~ these were the balls you donated!

(Y.B., Heather, David)

 We had a delightful visit with David & Ruth and all of their 26 children! We visited, played games, read letters from our students from America, and toured their home. It was a delightful time for all of us!  We will return again to pick up letters from the children to deliver back to our students in California~ all of the children were happy to write back to our students. We were also thankful to meet Hannah, a volunteer from California who is visiting Nepal for the summer.

Please check School 4 School Visit Report to see more pictures and details on the visit!

July 25, 2008- Day 8~ Friday

This morning we met a most fascinating lady who has been doing work in Nepal for the past fifteen years. She is truly an inspiration and living proof in the powerful difference even one individual can make in the world. Freema has been active in many different programs in Nepal, all of which are geared towards helping individuals improve the quality of their lives and to provide hope and dignity to those who are without ~ she is in the process of bringing innovative ideas in providing services to orphans and other individuals who are without connections. Within the framework she shared with us, Freema educated us in a variety of areas of culture, political, and legal ramifications of working in Nepal. Of all that we gained through this most interesting morning conversation, Freema's spirit of Love & Belonging for all people shone through. She inspired us in her generous and gracious spirit~ being with her for a short time helps one know that indeed there are living heros and "sheros" amongst us! We are looking forward to working with Freema in the future~ Namaste!

Later in the day after determining that our upset stomachs had finally settled and it would be safe to leave the toilet for an extended period of time we decided to go to a small village called Sankhu. (yes...the fruit, momos, and curried potatoes may have all been too much!!!!  YUCK! Although, it could have been the filthy dirty street water that was splashed in my face by a passing car while riding in a taxi cab... it was as if a bucket of dirty water had been thrown directly into my face~ sure it was full of great toxic things!   NOT GOOD!)

 Sankhu is about one hour away from Kathmandu, but due to blocked roads, and the gas shortage it took us about two hours to just get out of the city of Kathmandu! We hired a cab to take us for our visit but before we could leave he had to get gas.....the gas lines are two days wait and miles long...but our taxi driver went and got gas from the "black market"....it was a little crazy and exciting. We drove down twisty windy crooked little streets that were so bumpy I thought the car would certainly be destroyed...somehow these Nepali cars just keep going over and around and through the most treacherous driving conditions! You would not believe it unless you actually experienced it....after a very long and difficult journey, we arrived outside the city and into beautiful Sankhu.

We had a nice visit and toured the Women's sewing center and Youth Managed Resource Center. The women were learning how to sew and youth were learning how to use computers.

Please Note:  Check out "School 1, 2, 3" under the School Visit Report....there are many more pictures and blogs on the schools we've been visiting!  

July 24, 2008-Day 7~ Thursday

Today we were supposed to leave Kathmandu and head to Sanku, while first stopping by a famous lookout area, but due to the calling of a national holiday, we were not able to go. The people of Nepal were taking the day off to protest the newly elected vice-president - he  is choosing to not speak traditional Nepali but a differet dilect-which has people, especially the youth, very upset! As we shopped a little in the day we saw a protest march and it was a little scary~ a huge group of passionate young men filled the street shouting and chanting while carrying signs and pictures...I wanted a picture, but Jeff thought we had better lay low~ I agreed...but it was a sight!

If there are no street protests, and no strikes, and if there is gas for the car, then perhaps we will be able to leave tomorrow for the rest of our adventure. I actually was thankful for the extra day to rest because I needed a little bit of rest time!
 

July 23, 2008-Day 6~Wednesday

Today we decided to do some site seeing around Kathmandu area since we will be leaving the area tomorrow. It was raining quite a bit, but we decided to have a Nepali spirit and go for it anyway. After breakfast we obtained a cab from the hotel for the day and made our plans. First, we would go to the famous town of Bhaktapur and then we would go and visit "Monkey Temple".  All of which would take over five hours time.

The drive to Bhaktapur was interesting. We passed a variety of vehicles and avoided a mutlitude of head on collisions with each! (It always seems to me as if we are about to crash head on with the objects that are attempting to travel in the other direction! But so far, so good!)

This is a "normal" bus for Nepal~ it's raining really hard and people are still on top!

 

Bhaktapur was fantastic! The rain was steady but we had our umbrellas in hand and we made the most of it. Since this is the low season for tourists we found the local sellers and "tour guides" hounding us especially hard! I do not enjoy this part of shopping/site seeing in Nepal...but I cannot blame them, they have to make a living.

Jeff is finishing a pot while being mentored by an ancient potter in Bhaktapur!

 It was exciting when we saw an ancient looking potter~ we recognized him from a travel show we had both seen on Nepal~ Jeff accepted the offer to attempt to make a pot with the clay and he climbed up into the man's little shop. Although Jeff had never made anything of clay before he was able to create two pots! Awesome!

The gas line goes on for miles and the people must wait for days for gas!

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Monkey Temple was next, and driving back from Bhaktapur we saw over and over the gasoline line~ cars, trucks, buses, and motorcycles are lined up literally for miles waiting days for gas. There is a fuel shortage here in Nepal and the streets are virtually empty because most everyone is waiting in line for gas. We saw many more people walking, walking, walking...

Even the monkeys pay their respect throughout the temple site! 

Monkey Temple is a beautiful and famous temple. Our driver dropped us at the bottom of the temple and there must have been one thousand steps straight up to get to the top of the temple site. We climbed and climbed, huffed and puffed, laughed and almost cried a few times...it was hilarious (excpet Jeff's knee was hurting). We saw monkeys amongst the different statues of gods and goddesses and on different Buddhist statues. It was worth the climb because the view was amazing~ the city looked amazing and the mountains were showing themselves a little from behind the clouds. Great visit~ but we did have to go back down those thousand steps! Yikes!  We made it fine, laughter is good medicine.

 

July 22, 2008- Day 5~ Tuesday
The day started with a Nepali breakfast of fresh fruit, some type of fried wheat bread, and curried potatoes! It was delicious, but we were cautious to eat the fruit. So far our stomachs have been only minimally upset...it is no fun having a sick tummy, battling time changes, and navigating a foreign country...so we are taking care! Today, however, I (Heather) felt quite ill. Thankfully, I pushed through it and finally felt weak but okay for what was an amazing day.

This is the view from our car on the way to the school~ it's a little crazy!

Initially our very nice waiter, Y.B., was going to take us in the morning to visit an orphanage school, but he suddenly had to cancel and reschedule. Jeff called his friend, Bikram Panday, with CPREC (Center for Policy Research & Consultancy) to see if we could visit a very special school located in Boudha 6 Kathmandu area.  Shree Nawa Jagriti Lower Secondary School, is a community public school that is located in a very poor section of the city~ a very special aspect of this school is  the community  members have taken an active stance in providing quality education to their children (Go to School 3 on the main menu to see a full report on this school).

We had a wonderful time meeting the principal, teachers, and students. The children are so beautiful and happy~ They loved to engage and delighted in having their pictures taken! What joyful faces!

Here Heather is talking with the school's math teacher, Shankar Raj Neupanr, and special new school friends! Namaste~

P.S.  Shortly before leaving for the school site we met with Anjana's sister, Daya Rai and family, to deliver the package from America. She was so nice and we all enjoyed visiting. It was fun watching Daya show her son pictures of his cousin from the USA!

 

 Daya Rai and family!

 

July 21, 2008- Day 4~ Monday

Today the weather was clear and not rainy in the morning so we decided a visit to the public garden close by would be fun! We asked our waiter the directions to the public garden, Garden of Dreams, and then took off on foot after breakfast. Walking through Kathmandu Thamel area can be quite hazardous, but we are getting good at dodging rickshaws, motorcycles, cars, and bikes…as well as defending against persistent sales people peddling any number of items along the way.

The garden was a photographer’s heaven~ A glorious treat because within the walls of this safe haven were plush plants and fancy flowers that were well cared for thus creating an amazing retreat if you love beautiful peaceful places!

We met a young college student named Hari Lama who was so kind to take us on a tour at a local government school! Here we were able to actually begin the formal exploration of our fellowship purpose~ observing students and teachers in Nepal to learn about the similarities and differences found in each place. We enjoyed the process of meeting the administration, teachers, and students. It was quite a different experience for us to be inside a government Nepali school and we are still processing our experience (See School 1 on the main menu for pictures and report). We took lots and lots of pictures and video taped as well. We are planning on visiting this site again to do further exploration on the Nepali culture and education. What a wonderful day!
 

July 20, 2008 - Day 3 ~ Sunday
Sunday was a day of rest and visiting with Jeff’s contact with the nonprofit group he has worked with in the past. We met Ramita and Hempal for a long and wonderful conversation. We drank Nepali tea and ate vegetable and pepperoni pizza (Jeff and I ate the pepperoni pizza). It was wonderful talking with Jeff’s friends and getting to know what their lives in Nepal are like and the work they are doing to help their people.
 

July 19, 2008- Day 2 in Nepal~ Saturday
Today is Jeff’s birthday!  “Happy Birthday Jeff!”

 

It was raining in the morning~ Monsoon season and it is scheduled to rain every day this week (and probably the entire time we are here)! The rain is steady at times and it is very humid. The temperature is about 80 degrees, but it feels a little hotter sometimes because of the humidity. We met a driver that Jeff knew from earlier trips and we asked him to take us to several famous sites. Driving through the streets of Kathmandu can be a very stimulating and overpowering experience. The streets are very narrow and filled with moving vehicles, motorcycles, bikes, rickshaws, bicycles, pedestrians, dogs, and holy cows and bulls. Although everything moves simultaneously and harmoniously, normalcy can seem somewhat chaotic to the untrained eye. It is amazing that more people are not injured, as there appears to be no “rules” or guidelines of travel. Actually we did see a bus hit a motorcycle and it was quite scary, but thank goodness the motorcycle driver was not injured~ the same could not be said for his bike! It is common to see huge cows and bulls lying in the street and they are never injured as everyone pays deference to them and drives carefully and respectfully around them!

 

First we visited the largest stupa in Nepal, Bouddhanath, and we walked around the stupa with many other visitors including some Buddhist monks. It is quite a beautiful place and the sounds of Tibetan incantations and incense filled the air in this holy place. I felt calmed entering this space as we moved from the busy street inward. We enjoyed taking in the smells, colors, shapes, and contrasts that surrounded us there~ this is the charm of Nepal~ the magic of the people and the land that is so richly and purely filled with life! We met a group of small young girls at the stupa and we enjoyed watching them play and say their prayers as the walked around ringing the bells and spinning the prayer wheels surrounding the stupa.

Our next stop was Pashupatinath, a cremation site on the Bagmati River.  I had seen this place on travel shows but never experienced it until today. Once again the exotic beauty of the land and the spirit of the people were almost overwhelming.

To celebrate Jeff’s birthday, we will have dinner at a restaurant called New Orleans with our two new British friends from the Kathmandu Airport. Legend says that the best apple pie can be found there!

July 18, 2008 (Arrival to Nepal!)

The flight from Bangkok to Kathmandu was about 2 ½ hours long. We enjoyed traditional Nepali food on the airplane and it was delicious! Upon arrival we experienced a variety of challenges getting through the visa process. First, we did not have the proper paperwork filled out so after waiting in line we had to get out of line fill out the paper and then get back in line. After waiting again in line we were told we had to pay for our visa in a different line, so we got into yet another line. We were literally the last people at the airport visa area… except for two very scared looking British young women (Emma and Cat) who were about to be escorted to the immigration department because they did not have US dollars to pay for their Nepali visas. Jeff saw them and their scared faces and did not hesitate to see how he could help them. Once he knew what their dilemma was, he immediately paid for their visas with American currency. Emma and Cat were both so thankful and amazed that someone would just come up and assist them in this way.  I think it was their lucky day because Jeff helped them through the airport…managing all of the other “subtle nuances” of traveling in Nepal! Jeff was their guardian angel on that day~ and I am sure they will tell the tale of a tall English speaking Chinese American guy they met in Kathmandu! Namaste~ and Welcome to Nepal!