Sharing

Back in New Jersey and finally on NJ time. Memories of a wonderful time in Nepal keep flooding into thoughts. Here are two videos, shot during our time there and which will prove worth the time to view. The links will lead you to Kim's videos on youtube.com where she posted them recently. Enjoy!

NANCY READY FOR THE TREK,
AND CHECK OUT KIM'S VIDEO OF THE TREK

 CLICKABLE LINK TO VIDEO ON YOUTUBE:

Trekking easy ? Annapurna


HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS OFF TO AFTERNOON CLASSES

You can't help but fall in love with the Nepali children. Kim, a friend, fellow trekker and Habitat volunteer, provided this touching video of some of them.

CLICK ON THIS LINK:

Children of Nepal

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Returning home

Printed on the back of our Habitat tee-shirts was the message,
“Change Hearts, Join Hands, Build Houses.”
And we did that:
We did build houses,
We did join hands and,
We came home with changed hearts.

NANCY'S TEE-SHIRT HANGING TO DRY AFTER A DAY OF TREKKING IN THE HIGH MOUNTAINS

Back home in New Jersey, it was a culture shock to walk into a local grocery store and find so much: shelves overflowing with plentiful produce, a multitude of canned goods and incredible choices in the meat department. “American plenty” contrasting with the simple Nepali style of life.

Our last few days in Nepal had coincided with the high festival of Dashian, worshiping the goddess Durga. To honor her, homes are cleaned, decorations strung around, families gather together, abundant offerings made and thousands of animals sacrificed for the ritual of drenching the goddess in life blood. We were told 11,000 goats, sheep, and water buffalo had been sold for this. Walking around the royal city of Bhaktapur in the Kathmandu Valley, we saw first-hand, the butchering of animals in the streets and animal parts spread out on tarps. A vivid image to carry into the local American grocery.

Upon arriving in Nepal we learned to say, "Namaste," a lovely greeting which represents the belief that a divine spark resides in all of us. Upon leaving we say, "Dhanyabaad," which is not a goodbye but more of a "so long", and to that we add a thank you to the Nepali people for their welcome and hospitality and for their appreciation of our work there.

Asked of our impressions of this trip, the answer would be “magnificent.” The country is breathtaking and the people, wonderful. Would we return? “Yes.”

Our team was from U.S., Canada and New Zealand. We were two Nancy's, two Suzanne's, plus Christy, Skye, Jim, Larry, Laura, Rich, Glen (construction leader), and Bob, our team leader. We had an opportunity to connect and make a difference; to meet Nepali folks on their home turf and to better understand their culture. Wonderful, happy, proud people who welcomed us into their land. We were honored to be there and work alongside them.
Dhanyabaad!
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A dream fulfilled

In a lifetime, who would have ever expected to see Mt. Everest close up and real. From Kathmandu on Buddha Air. About 30 minutes later, there it was. Spectacular. First view was from the plane's cockpit, as each of the 16 passengers was escorted forward to lean over the pilots'  shoulders and soak in that view.

The plane flew east, to pass the mountain so that the port side passengers had a view from their seats, then 180o turn and the starboard passengers had their seat view. Cameras snapping shots all the time.

FIRST VIEW FROM COCKPIT, EVEREST ON LEFT

EVEREST ON THE LEFT



NANCY, STARBOARD



CHRISTY, PORTSIDE



On the trails

When the Nepali say a trek is easy/moderate they have greatly understated its difficulty. For two physically fit Americans who have been working out to prepare for this, easy was not an adjective to be used.

We were in a group of our Habitat friends, 16 in all. Everyone managed OK, but no one would have described this as easy/moderate. Difficult/hard would have been more suitable.

Overall it was an incredible experience. And, we did it! The steep uphills were called "slopey up" by our guides. Not! And, their "Nepali flat" was more like up and down without changing much altitude.

What were the days like?

Day one, steep uphill for most of the morning. Breaks for tea and lunch at a tea house. Break again for afternoon tea and accommodations in guest house overnight. Double rooms, twin beds, sheet, pillow and quilt provided for 200 rupees (less than $3).

We had gained about 3,000 ft that day to settle in for the night at about 1900 m, or 6233 ft.

There is more to tell than possible in this short time. Trekking, people, life on the mountain, animals, exhilaration, grandeur of the mountains and more. We share here a quick view.



ANNAPURNA SOUTH AND PRAYER FLAGS




MACHHAPUCHHRE MT. AT SUNRISE



MORNING AND CHRISTY AT GUESTHOUSE



BRIDGE CROSSES DEEP GORGE,
VIEW FROM WASHROOM WINDOW

5-DAY OLD GOATS

FULL GROWN GOATS STAY ON THE TRAIL

MORNING IN A MOUNTAIN VILLAGE

RICE PLANTED IN TIERS ON STEEP SLOPES

CHILDREN'S CHORES INCLUDE GATHERING CROPS

NANCY AND CHRISTY SETTING OUT ON LAST MORNING

Gone trekking

Saturday was a day for shopping and hanging out in the village. Our most important purchase was trekking poles for aid in up and down the mountains. In the U.S., cost for one collapsible pole ran over $100, but we found some in Pokhara for $9 each.

And then, what a relief from rice and curry.....we had pizza for lunch!

ANNAPURNA MOUNTAINS



DAY SIX -- Last day

SUZANNE FROM OHIO
WITH LUNCHBOX 

 Schedule for a normal day has been to begin with early rising at 6:00 a.m. Breakfast, bus to site at 3,000 ft, work until noon and then lunch. It’s all uphill to the lunch tent; Jim counted the steps: 500…all uphill! Then downhill, work to quiting at 4:30 p.m. Uphill again, for 750 uphill steps to the buses.

LAURA, A CANADIAN
WORKING IN SINGAPORE

The outside panels, ready for painting as follows: Green on the upper ones and blue for the lower panels.

Final Day

"NAMASTE", FROM NEPAL PRESIDENT

Lots of excitement, for the closing ceremony and dedication of the house we built. Worksite finished just before noon, and we trekked down to Begnas Lake, one of seven lakes in this region.
Big ceremony for this event. Police, some in riot gear, and national guardsman all around for the president of Nepal. His Excellency, Ram Baran Yadav, was arriving by helicopter for the ceremony.

Both sorrow and happiness.
Sad to be leaving this family that we have worked alongside for 6 days and happiness for the good life they will have in this home. All of us, so proud to have participated with Habitat and this partner family (one of the 41 families moving into their homes). Rameshwor Koirala, his wife, Apsara, 2 young children plus Grandma. They have been living in a crowded home of 8 family members and suffering from inadequate space, cracks and leaking, and the conflicts normal to joint family living. “They appreciate the help from Habitat.”

House dedication ceremony

A moving time. tears, hugs and laughter. Here are some scenes.


CHRISTY WITH RED TIKA FACE PAINTING, A HINDU BLESSING



HOMEOWNER MOTHER, APSARA
AT OUR RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY



SKYE FROM ALASKA SHOWING FAMILY APPRECIATION GIFTS

 

A FINISHED HOUSE

 

DAY FIVE -- Will the plastering ever finish?

RICK AND SKYE AT THE MIXING STATION

After today, there is only one more day of work. Although many of these trips are five days on the site, this one was stretched to six due to the amount of work.

The plastering continues. Here is a good view of how the goop is mixed.....in heap on the floor and with two people mixing by turning shovelfuls of it. Once this is on the walls and "floated", a primer of whitewash solution is brushed on. This is a drippy toxic solution and the job was given to Nancy DV. Latex gloves definitely in order.



If you think it is difficult to make dinner for the family every evening, try doing it on a wood stove in an outside kitchen. These homes will have a small inside kitchen where many families will have a two burner propane stove, but when weather permits, they'll use the outside kitchen as wood is plentiful and cheap.

OUTSIDE KITCHEN

Inside, the kitchens are neat and clean. Christy loved that, but would like to add some ideas from her design experience. There is a finished demo home up on a hill. We walked up and the homeowner invited us in. Very nice to see how pleasant these homes will become for each family. We were able to take photos, including one of the kitchen, shown below.

TYPICAL INSIDE KITCHEN

SCENES AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD

WOMEN DO THE CARRYING HOME OF WATER FROM PUBLIC SPOUT

WOMAN CARRYING GRASS FOR HER ANIMAL, PROBABLY HER WATER BUFFALO

OUR HOMEOWNER GRANDMA

'"NAMASTE" FROM HAPPY NEPALI CHILDREN

DAY FOUR -- plastering, plastering

A very slow and tedious process and many panels around the house to plaster. The mixture cannot be too wet or too dry and it is slow going. We try to follow the shade as the work in the sun is hot work at 90+.

Photo to the right is house #8 and high on the hill. We hiked up to see it and its view from the top. You can see the valley far below. Of interest is the scaffolding of two bamboo poles stretched between two bamboo ladders so the gable panels can be plastered. We will do something similar at our house #18.

AROUND THE WORKSITE

NANCY DV, LAST BIT OF WEAVING, PHOTO BY JIM

Without running water, we have to deal with the outhouse. It's mandatory to drink lots of water to counter dehydration and more....with the resultant trips down the hill to the facility. One of the guys came back saying, "it was the toughest deal ever".

After her visit, Christy reported that her sunscreen fell out of her pocket into the floor drain. Oooops. Not a good thing. It had to be retrieved or the drain would be blocked up. Nancy to the recsue. Donning gloves, then kneeing down, the item was pulled out. Success! What a relief, and the sunscreen was discarded!

A blessed opportunity

Tuesday evening was very special for Christy and Nancy as they had an invitation to have dinner with the local Jesuit priest. Fr. Cap Miller is reknown in the region for his work establishing schools in Kathmandu. Beginning with a small group of students there are now over 1,200 at the Xavier school, with 4,000 applications each year for the only 120 incoming spots. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, he has spent the last 53 years in Nepal and in the 1970s was given an honorary citizenship by the King of that time.

We had a wonderful evening with him, the pastor of his church St Ann's, the head of the small school here in Pokhara and 7 candidate Jesuits aging from 17-21.

The Jesuits observe obedience, chastity and sanctity. Fr. Cap Miller is seated center, in the light blue shirt.

DAY THREE -- Bless this house

Early this morning we were visited by the former chaplain of Habitat International (HFHI), and now pastor of the International Church in Kathmandu. Rendell Day, an American, and his wife Teresa, permanently living in Nepal, came for a short visit with a Hindu holy man. The Day's told us of their work here, and blessed our house and its homeowners with prayers.

We later made a bamboo staff and now have the American flag flying its colors.

The houses we are building are 18'x18', consisting of 3 rooms, a living space, a sleeping room and a kitchen. There is a small veranda at the doorway. No running water for a toilet, so there is a new "squat"outhouse with a ceramic bowl on the floor in the rear of the house.

Work today was to finish the weaving, and begin painting a slurry over the walls in preparation for the plastering of a cement/sand mixture. The first attempts at the plastering show that this will be a frustating task, getting the mix recipe right and then getting it to stick, and then smoothing out.



CONSTRUCTION LEADER GLEN WORKING THE PLASTERING



NANCY B.



JIM TRIMMING BAMBOO

DAY TWO

Another hot day. More weaving and more weaving. Subcontractors arrived and began putting the tin roof in place. Yesterday we had one family member working with us, but today that increased to include extended family on site: wife and husband, sisters, grandmom, and children. Other supporters cheering us on were the family water buffalo, goat and chickens.

 Scenes from the worksite:


LEADER BOB AT MORNING MEETING

 

SUZZANE FROM COLORADO

LARRY, MASTER DRILLER

INTERIOR WALLS WITH FINISHED WEAVING AND
READY FOR NEXT DAY MORTAR