Hey everyone
We have all made it safely to Nepal and have spent the past few days in and around Nepal. Despite all flying on different airlines at different times through different cities, we all arrived within 2 days without any problems except for some crazy jet lag. Kathmandu has proven to be a wild, crazy, dirty, and amazing city. Apparently people are supposed to drive on the left side of the road but from what we have seen and experienced it seems to be a free for all that has all of the nimbleness and art of a ballet mixed with the horn blaring forcefullness of a demoliton derby. Miraculously we have seen no accidents as buses, cars, tuk-tuks, bicycles and pedestrians all jostle for a piece of the road. We were met at the airport and given our first taste of the city by the leaders of INFO Nepal who ushered us into the more touristy district of Kathmandu called Thamel. We spent the first night here as everyone in the group trickled in before moving to the outskirts of the city to stay in the "Happy Home" which is the program director's house. It is a wonderful new four story cement building on the edge of town that is always abustle with volunteers and the director Asim's family. The first day we were on our own as we waited for Shweta to arrive so Wes, Rich and I went to a national forest right on the edge of town and hiked up around 2,000ft to the Jomachal Buddhist monastery. It was a great respite from the city as the hike up took us away from the hustle and bustle of the city and left us above the pollution to look down upon the whole Kathmandu valley.
Once Shweta arrived the next day we began our program in earnest. We spent the first two days taking Nepali language classes in the mornings for 3-4 hours with our instructor Krishna. It has been a little hard to pick up for me because I am not a great language guy. Luckily we have Shweta who knows Hindi, which apparently has some similarities to Nepali. In the afternoons we have been sightseeing around the city at all of the important Buddhist stupas and Hindu temples. Despite the bustling city around them the temples and stupas still offer an incredibly peaceful and tranquil environment. It is hard not to feel the history and importance they have when you are around them.
Yesterday we travelled about an hour and a half outside of the city to a "training village" where we lived with Nepali families in more primitive and typical settings seen around the country. We were all prepared for what we would find which was a far cry from what is considered basic in the United States. We shared small rooms in mud/concrete homes with wooden beds covered with mats. The floors were all dirt and the bathrooms were little more then holes in the ground. For breakfast and dinner we ate the customary meal of daal bhaat, which is plain white rice with a lentil curry poured over. No one uses forks or spoons so we all got to let loose our inner child and eat with our hands. The families were very kind and accommodating and the kids were eager to practice their english with us and help us communicate with the rest of the family. It was a good taste of what to come on the rest of the trip.
We are back in Kathmandu now fully trained and cultured and are eager to see the rest of the country. Tomorrow we are heading down south to the Chitwan region where we will run several health camps at the loval orphanages and monastaries. Chitwan is also home to one of the countries' most famous national parks where we will take a safari to see the rhinos and elephants. We should also be able to ride the elephants for a while and even help bath them in the river! We will update along the way when we can. Take care everyone!
Bryan | 