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Blog - Nepal Part 2

August 10, 2008- Sunday

Our flight left at 1:50 so we had to leave for the airport about 11:30 a.m. Before leaving we were greeted by yet still our many friends in Nepal. Ramita made the hour long crowded bus ride to say good-bye one more time~ we will miss her because she is such a wonderful young woman and a great friend. Mulmi-ji and Raj, our fearless driver, met us as well. Many of the hotel staff so graciously wished a safe journey and well wishes. They were fantastic and we highly recommend the Kathmandu Guest House to anyone traveling that way. It truly felt like "home away from home"! 

We felt truly appreciated and loved as we said our good-byes and wished our friends in Nepal the best. We learned so much from them and as we gathered our things to leave felt as though this was indeed the beginning of good friendships to come. We are carrying back precious hundreds of letters written by Nepali students to hand to our students. We are carrying back precious memories and stories of what we learned and experienced while exploring schools in Nepal~ what a wonderful journey...and special thanks to Fund For Teachers again...for making it possible~ Namaste to all of our Friends! 

August 9,  2008 - Saturday

Today was spent wrapping up loose ends and meeting many people for last minute deliveries of student letters and good-bye hugs and well wishes. We find our Nepali friends to be full of graciousness and always wanting to entertain us at their homes with food and drinks~ they really take the time to make others feel welcomed.  It was fun meeting with Bikram's family (a Nepali friend from Pasadena) and they brought several movies and cd's for us to deliver to him upon our return. There are many, many stories of families being separated due to financial hardship and the promise of better opportunities that will benefit all.

We also had breakfast with Y.B. our new friend we met at the hotel and who showed us to the orphanage...again and again we hear their stories of hardship to survive and yet they maintain a spirit and heart of love, grace, and strength~ one cannot help but be moved by such strong courageous people. It makes us realize how privileged and lucky we are to live in the USA, something that is easily taken for granted.

With the trip winding down there is much to pack, repack, and reflect upon. We are tired but excited and we feel that we accomplished what we came to do...to learn and interact with people. We met many, many new friends at the schools and orphanages we visited~ there is much to reflect upon as we end our journey to Nepal.

 August 8, 2008- Friday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GABRIEL!!!!!!

August 7, 2008- Thursday
Back to Kathmandu and the big city~ today we visited Pragya Higher Secondary B. School again to receive the student letters. Mr. and Mrs. Manandhar greeted us with a warm meeting. We talked for a time about Nepal and America and were able to share many of the differences between our countries in education, culture, social, political, and geographical aspects. We appreciate very much the candid conversation and feel we understand many parts of Nepali life on a more personal level as a result of our dialogs.

The Manandhar’s presented us with traditional brass Nepali candle holders as gifts and shared that in their culture they light the candle and leave it burning, in our culture we “blow” the candle out~ he was quite puzzled by that practice…and I can see how that may not make much sense! LOL! Always time for new traditions~

August 6, 2008

Coming back from Nargokot to Sankhu was just as beautiful as going up! Somehow as time goes by you become desensitized to things, such as small rocky boulder filled turned roads with steep mountainsides below~ and you are able to just sit back and enjoy the ride. In many ways life is this way as well~

 

Taking a picture of Heather taking a picture of Ganesh in Sankhu!  

Once back to Sankhu we had planned to visit the Prisoner Assistance Nepal Orphanage home and school. The children who live here are orphans due to parents being incarcerated throughout Nepal. PA Nepal is an amazing organization that helps individuals in a variety of ways. Some of the programs they provide include providing visits for the children with their parents, special education for children who learn in different ways (this is VERY RARE), extra-curricular activities for kids, income generated activities, support and care for children with HIV, and advocacy for women, work and health.  

    

                      Beautiful children everywhere! I could not resist this little smile!

 

The school and orphanage were located just outside Sankhu and walking there took us on a beautiful little hike up the side of a hill with a stream just beside us. The foliage was so thick and grown we could not see the stream but only hear it running. In Nepal there are constant “animal sounds” going on in the background, and it is strange that even in the city, one becomes accustomed to these beautiful sounds and sometimes take them for granted.  

The weather is hot in the daytime now, and there are many beautiful clouds hovering overhead with an occasional dark cloud threatening to drop more rain. Mostly, it seems to rain at night, which we are thankful for…but it does now and then rain in the daytime.
We walked through tall grass beside rice fields as we finally approached, and how I hoped there were no leeches attached to me at the end~ Luckily we all remained “leech free”!

Jeff and Heather with some of the children and volunteers at the PA Nepal home!

 

The orphanage had just completed a brand new building on their land. It was huge and beautiful. The building was painted with bright colors and decorated in a very “kid friendly” way!

We met with a group of school age children in a meeting room and enjoyed talking with them for a short time. Then we presented the gifts we had brought from the USA. In Nepal the presentation of gifts is taken in a serious way and it seems they really enjoy the act of “formally” presenting gifts to each other. It seems they do not take such things lightly and want to truly acknowledge and appreciate gift giving and receiving.

Jeff and friend read and model the story~ and a life is changed in the process...

Jeff read “Stephanie’s Ponytail” by Robert Munsch to the kids and used one girl from the group as ‘Stephanie’ as he read! The kids loved it~ at first they sat quietly but as he read more and more giggles started from around the room~ it was so fun to watch! It was touching because at first the little girl Jeff chose to help him reluctantly participated. It was quietly painful for her since she was clearly shy and appeared to lack in confidence...but throughout the story with the caring support from Jeff she moved through what appeared to be a challenging experience. I could tell she gained much through this interaction and felt so happy for her and thankful for Jeff's intuitive teaching and caring that provided just the right amount of support at the right time...amazing~ now THAT is GREAT TEACHING!

 After the story several children left the room and returned with a drum and a guitar for singing. The head volunteer shared with us the song they were about to sing was about someone who had been sold into sex slavery and very traumatized and abused and the song was about her searching for someone to really care for her. When the children started singing it was so beautiful~ the words and music and their voices really touched me…brought tears to our eyes as we thought about these brave children and the hardships they have endured in their lives. Living in Nepal can be challenging enough in itself, but to be cast out and left alone without anyone to help you or take care of you as a child in Nepal is unimaginable~ these children are amazing.

The students were so excited to read letters from friends in America!

 

Reading the letters with the children was fun~ there were many questions about different topics presented in the letters...such as, "What is a skateboard?" They do not have skateboards in Nepal...it would be difficult to find a place to ride one!

After presenting the letters from our Corey students the children spent almost 30 minutes reading the different letters, trading them, and looking at pictures. They were asking us questions about the different students and we were reading the letters together. They will write letters back to our students!

It was fun to watch the children innocently and gently explore the gifts, books, and letters we brought. Nepali culture is collectivistic, so they are used to sharing everything with their friends and others.

 

 
Jeff and friend~ smiling faces...

 After the visit in the orphanage home we went to visit the school on site. What a very different and wonderful school we found here! The buildings were just completed within the past 2 ½ weeks. There was student-generated work up on the walls and students were seated around small tables sitting on the floor! The teachers and students seemed happy and engaged. They were all so happy and proud of their hard work~ and they should be!

Ramita's sister, Paru, Shrestha, is a teacher at the orphanage school and she is doing a great job!

 

This beautiful little girl welcomed us to her class with a bright smile~

We were able to visit their “old” home which is located up the hill from the new home and is still utilized for cooking and some older children sleep and study in the former home as well. It was a traditional looking Nepali building made from mud with traditional multi-levels including small wooden stepladders straight up! As we entered we found the kitchen with several women and a few students cooking tremendous amounts of food preparing the meals for the children! It was incredible to watch briefly as these individuals worked in a small dark kitchen that was filled with dark smoke from the fire they were using to cook. I worried about the health of these ladies as I could barely stay in the house for a minute and could not breath! We walked upstairs to find the former living quarters of the children and it is amazing that so many people can live in one area…it is so different in the USA.

 

This is the kitchen in the "old" house. They cook the meals here for the children twice a day~ Dahl bat and rice, vegetables, and other items. They are using an open fire in the corner of the room and there is a lot of smoke inside the house. We could barely breath and held our breath because it was so strong. After climbing upstairs, the air upstairs was even worse~ we learned from UC Davis professor, Will Agatstein, that indoor air pollution is a serious problem in Nepal causing actually more casualties than HIV. (Here I felt very concerned for our friends....)

What a wonderful day to visit with these amazing children and their caregivers~ One thing that is so inspiring is the caregivers were once residents of the orphanage and became inspired to volunteer and give back to the home by helping the new residents. The spirit of volunteerism is very strong in those who have been helped~ this is quite a beautiful thing…and as one street vendor told me, “Good Karma”… Namaste~ I hope so!

This is, Agreni, one of the volunteer leaders at the PA Nepal home....she is a gentle and loving soul and we felt instantly close to her. She was also an orphan and has devoted her life to help those children who need help~ what an inspiration...thank you~

 

 

August 5, 2008 Tuesday

Today we visited a smaller town called Sankhu. It is located about 20 miles outside of Kathmandu. Our friend, Ramita, who lives in Sankhu, arranged for us to meet with a government school, a private school, and an orphanage school in her town. It was nice to travel through and out of Kathmandu and into the countryside. Traveling in Nepal is always an adventure in itself because you are never sure what you will see outside your window! Certain things are for sure; however, you will see many vehicles, many smiling faces, and many animals and it will be VERY bumpy because there are thousands of huge potholes everywhere~ I think if our American cars drove on these streets they would fall apart quickly! You must be hardy to survive here!!!! LOL

    

We were greeted by Ramita, her family, and the Sankhu community with warmth and genuine caring. Nepalese people love to be great hosts and love to honor and feed their guests!  We were welcomed with tikas and flowers several times during our visit~ I think this is such a nice custom! In Nepal there are many customary traditions woven throughout many aspects of their lives that create traditions and meaning, this gives a richness to their lives that is quite beautiful.

Ramita with her mom and dad. We were so touched by a video we watched at Ramita's house of her trip to the USA. We were so moved by the loving rituals her entire family went through to send her on her way~ if this video ever makes it on Youtube...you must watch it...it is BEAUTIFUL!

When we first arrived we met with a local youth group, (YMRC), that Ramita works with to do local community projects. We also met with the local women’s sewing group. We are amazed by these groups’ resourcefulness and dedication to supporting each other and helping their community. Jeff talked with the youth of the community on various projects that Sankhu was engaged in through technology. The youth seemed quite aware of what technology was available and what technology was on the way. Things such as CDMA wiereless devices can help a community like Sankhu leapfrog from old technology to the most current technology. A prime example of this is how most people in Nepal own a cell phone (aka mobile phone) because running phone lines through mountanous Nepal would be more costly.

Heather met with the women's group and the sewing group to find out what the women were learning and doing. She presented a generous donation of supplies, fabric and three tables after discovering that the women needed the supplies. The women really bonded with Heather and looked to her as a moral and spiritual role model. One of the most impacting part of our visit was when one woman shared that joining the women's center and learning how to sew gave her the confidence and courage to try new things. She said that she never would have stood up to talk in front of an audience. She was the first and only woman to stand up and share openly her feelings of liberation! Way to go!

Heather being welcomed by the Sankhu locals with Tika and flower!

 

Incense, tika powder and flowers.

Heather with the Sankhu women's group / sewing group.

 Jeff thinks he can sew with the best of them!

The first school visited was the local government school! Ramita actually attended this school when she was very young and some of her teachers still teach at this school. For a full school report see School Visit Report 5.

 Jeff and Heather with the staff, teachers and administration Shree Ganesh Primary School.

The second school visit was a private school that was a short distance outside the main town. This school was much different than the government school.  See School Visit Report 6.

 Jeff at the entrance of Vijaya Academy School.

Lunch was served at Ramita’s home and prepared mostly by Ramita’s sister in law who once married to her brother came to live in their home. This was the first time Jeff and I ever went inside a traditional Nepalese home. It was quite a different experience for us. Everything is small and compact to us and climbing up the spiraling small wooden stairs was challenging for us since we had big bags and big shoes on! LOL! The homes are mostly multi-level and made from clay bricks and what appears to be some type of plaster. Many family members share the living quarters in Nepalese homes and they seem to live with very minimal personal items. Although it was compact things all seemed to be neatly arranged and not cluttered. Everything seems very organized and practical… I kept thinking, “Where is their ‘stuff’?”  Jeff told me, “This is it!”  I think that is a great lesson to learn…live simple and pure! We don’t really need so much STUFF!!!!

Ramita's sister-in-law, Rajya Laxmi Shrethsa, helps at their family shop.

Jeff with Ramita's mom just before lunch!

 

    

(on left) Raj's wife Ruchi and mother-in-law. (on right) Raj and his daugher Beckmaya.

After our visit to the private school we jumped back in the truck and headed up the mountainside to the famous Nagarkot, which is on the one of the thousand places to see before you die list! The drive was breathtaking and as we climbed up the mountain the air became markedly cooler. Fewer and fewer homes and people were seen as we climbed up and with each turn of the rocky road came a different and amazing scene. There was plush green jungle greenery combined with mountainside views and rocky huge waterfalls streaming down tremendous mountains~ amazing! Such beauty is difficult to express in words or even with a photo….

A beautiful waterfall on the way to Nagarkot!

Since this is the monsoon season it is not prime tourist time and the hotels were very empty. There were only a few other residents in the hotel when we arrived. After climbing many stairs straight up, we arrived to the dining room and were greeted by our hotel hosts. Being so high up we were engulfed by clouds which when they rolled in blocked our view of the majestic Himalayan Mountain range, but it was still incredible!

The incredible view from Hotel View Point, Nagarkot.

 

   

Do you see the beautiful Himalayan mountains peeking through the clouds?

A Nepali boy posing at Hotel View Point ~ he met us in the morning and "sold" us a postcard for 20 rupees. He is so young and already "working" to help his family. His English was very good, and he is already quite wise! It was fun meeting him.

August 4, 2008, Monday

We spent this day shopping and while we were out we stopped by Pragya Higher Secondary B. School to say, “Hello”, and pick up their letters. The principal, Satya Narayan Manandhar, greeted us and requested that we visit again on Thursday because they wanted to give us a cultural demonstration of some sorts! We are excited to see what they have planned for us!

 

August 3, 2008

Today we revisited the Abba Home orphanage. We planned to visit after 4:30 because that is when the children are back from school. It seems different schools have different schedules (like in the USA) but some seem to start rather later and end later too! There was virtually a monsoon as we traveled across Kathmandu to the Abba Home and it is amazing to see Kathmandu life in the rain. Many people just walk without any umbrella or covering, others use umbrellas and some use lightweight rain protection that they keep invisibly handy for such instances. Clearly, they all just take the hard rain, muddy streets, and chaos in stride…I wish to learn this from my Nepali friends.

The children were so excited to see us~ they call me “DiDi” which is “Auntie” and they call Jeff “Uncle”. This is very common in Nepalese culture to call others by personal affectionate terms and to regard even those you first meet as family members and engage in a close relationship. The children presented us with wonderfully kind letters and pictures to carry back to our students in the USA.  We know our students will be so excited!

Back at Abba House, Heather shares pictures with the children. Not sure who is happier? The children or Heather!

Beautiful little faces surrounded us and our hands were never empty as little hands filled them with affectionate attention. I kept thinking how much physical affection and love each child needs and how it must be so difficult for these little ones to get their needs met and I wanted to hug each one of them at least ten times! We did get as much affection in as possible as we shared the pictures we brought to them from our first visit to give them.
There were giggles and shouts as the children saw their pictures and the pictures of their friends~ it was fun!  Jeff saw a hand-drawn picture of a scuba diver and showed everyone his scuba diving video from Hawaii on his computer and they were amazed by it! Since Nepal is landlocked many Nepalese people have never seen the ocean! It was fun to watch them watching the video with joy and amazement.

Dinner time! Where's your plate?

We visited for about an hour and then had to let them eat their dinner and settle down for the evening. Can you imagine cooking for and feeding 26 children! I was amazed by their kitchen system~ and I had never seen such a huge pot of rice in my life! The customary meal in Nepal is Dhal bat and rice and Nepali people eat this twice a day every day of their life~ many of them literally never eat anything otherwise for meals. The children each have their names written on the bottom of their metal plates and metal cups and they use them at mealtimes. (Great idea!)

At the Abba House, everyone helps with chores! Veggies are from the garden-btw!

Before we left we talked with David and Ruth about the management of the orphanage and we found that they are faced with many challenges. It is difficult to manage and they often worry about how they will survive. We wanted to make a small donation to their home and said that we would share their story with our friends and family as well~ and since they are Christians we were able to offer them a little Christian support as well. “Religion that God our Father finds pure and faultless is this ~ to look after widows and orphans in their distress and keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”  (found in James). We are thankful for Ruth and David two people making a difference in the lives of children in Nepal~ they are true heroes!  Namaste, Support & Blessings Friends~