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Home

It was a sweet last day in Kathmandu. I spent the morning with the Malla family. We ate delicious food (I looooove Nepali food!) and played UNO. And then I spent the evening at home, where we chatted for a few hours and ate more delicious food. It's the beginning of Nepal's largest festival season, so the streets are quiet, shops are mostly closed, and families gather together. I feel so blessed to be part of these two families.

In the morning, Soba gathered everyone around for prayer before Sanga drove me to the airport. The girls were teary eyed (myself included). Somehow being in Nepal feels so right, and leaving feels normal only in the sense that (if God wills it) I'll return.

On the plane ride to Singapore I sat in front of a Nepali family that is emigrating to Australia. We chatted for a while, and then the wife asked if I was Nepali. Ha! Must have been the altitude : )

It's a long layover again in Singapore, and at this point I just can't wait to be home. Dhanyibad (thank you) for journeying with me!

Ranighat

Yesterday was one big adventure.  With an assortment of differing directions from various folks, Johanna and I set off to find Ranighat - an old palace from the Rana kings' rule in Nepal.  Getting there required one steep downhill along a narrow trail studded with cobblestone, up one hill, and down another.  Three hours.  We passed by fields of foxtail millet and steep rice paddies, and the occasional cluster of homes where criss-crossing paths formed a sort of junction.

The palace itself sat in a lovely basin where the Kali Gandaki river bends, and steep wooded hills rise on all sides.  Nobody was there, and we quietly explored the palace's four stories, balconies and courtyards.

Johanna and I conveniently forgot to bring any food with us, and any money.  I checked all the pockets of my bag and came up with 4 rupees.  And we were hungry!  As we left along a different trail we asked a man at a small store what the cheapest food he had available was.  He pulled out little packets of pineapple biscuits, 6 rupees each.  I explained our predicament and he shoved 2 packets of biscuits across the counter, refusing even to take my pitiful 4 rupees.  I insisted he take the rupees, and he said to come back for daal bhaat sometime. 

These little biscuits provided our energy for the four hour walk back uphill.  The beginning was invigorating!  This path followed a bubbling creek to our left; a steep wooded wall rose along our right side and waterfall after waterfall thundered out of its sides.  We passed a guava tree and ate some fruit, and a cluster of bamboo full of monkeys!  What a great day!  And then came the final 1000 meter climb uphill.  With no water or energy left, to say we were exhausted is an understatement.  Somehow we made it home...and devoured some of the rice pudding Johanna's didi had freshly prepared.  One of my favorites!  And so it was a day full of so many of my favorite things!  Though next time I would recommend bringing some food or money for the journey...

     

Tansen

     

Celebration

Today was the third and final day of UMN's annual Family Celebration. We learned all about UMN's work all over Nepal, played LOTS of darts and tug-of-war, sang and danced and prayed and played. It was wonderful to meet so many different people and their families. A great way to end my internship with UMN!

Tomorrow I leave with Johanna to visit where she is now living in Tansen. It will be a grueling 10 hour bus ride...but the views of the mountains, her apartment (with a hot shower!) and potential adventures to neighboring villages and old Rana King palaces is very inticing. I'll get to stay there for 2 days until coming back to Kathmandu. And then I leave for home on Tuesday!

Time is suddenly winding down very quickly. There are still many things I wish I could have seen and done...which is somewhat ironic considering some days passed quite slowly. So all this means, I'll just have to come back : )

Daphne: The Jolly Nepali Giant

You know how in America I'm usually considered short?  Well, quite often in Nepal I'll find myself walking down the road looking over the head of the person in front of me...only to realize it's a full-grown man.  Here I am with one of the aunties at our home who cooks food for the children.  You'll have to believe me that I'm not standing on a step or anything.  Suffice it to say Nepalis tend to be on the shorter side.  I like it : )

Besides realizing such things, this week was mostly spent in the UMN office writing up a report of my findings from Dhading.  It rained a lot this week.  But a few days have been clear enough to see some of the white-capped mountains that tower over Kathmandu Valley's northern rim.

This week I was also able to visit the home of a Nepali guy who I met at the Children at Risk conference I attended earlier this summer.  His wife runs a drop-in center and half-way house for street children (Karuna Ministries).  The ultimate goals are for the children to know God's love and be reconciled with their families.  They have an incredible ministry that they attribute entirely to God's grace.

The weekend is low-key so far.  I spent today sitting in a friend's little shop, eating some yummy (but very oily) snacks her mother kept preparing for me.     

Waiting

I am back in Kathmandu after 11 days in Dhading which, in retrospect, now seemed much shorter than they did at the time.  I spent much of those 11 days waiting.  Learning patience.

My second trip to Maidee allowed me an invigorating 4 hour walk there and back, albeit complete with hourly stops for tea.  Why, I thought, would we stop for more tea and sit leisurly under a tree while the sky darkened and thunder threatened?  And so it was that just 10 minutes from our destination there was a downpour.  We waited in the pitch dark under some sort of shelter until we could slosh down the muddy road to Durga's home.  The next day I waited 7 hours for someone who was supposed to come show me around more of the organization's target communities.  Finally, I took a walk by myself. 

And the second day was no different.  I waited 2 hours for a promised visit to a school garden project, but nobody came.  The rains started again.  I sat on the porch and waited a total of 8 hours (interspersed with huge meals that were so delicious but so big they made me ache) until it was time to walk back to Dhading-besi.  Again, we stopped for tea.  Again we were left slipping along narrow muddy trails through rice paddies in the dark for the last hour.  Anyway, I immensely enjoyed the walk!

After Sunday morning's peace march I waited 45 minutes for the microbus to pick me up.  We made good time until we were just 10 kilometers from Kathmandu, at which time there was a "jam."  We waited for over an hour.  It then took 2 more hours to finally make it back to the bus station.  There had been some sort of rioting that involved burning tires in the streets.  Again, it was dark and raining, so I splurged on a taxi to take me home.

I was greeted at Harka's home by many eager smiles, hot soup, and fresh bed sheets.  It's good to be back!

World Peace Day | September 21st

World Peace Day was celebrated with an early morning march through the streets of Dhading-besi.  The march concluded with a series of speakers (all male, incidently) broadcast through a microphone attached to a magnophone.  Each political party seemed to agree that, indeed, peace is necessary.

   

Khaana (Food)

In much of Nepal, the day revolves around food.  From morning to night, you plant it or weed it or chop it or boil it, then eat it.  It is a subsistence existance.  If you're lucky, you can also sell some of your rice or vegetables for added income.

     

Maize Production

  (Stay tuned for story...)

Maidee

         

Communty Salvation

After a rather long and lonely Tuesday, I was not really looking forward to Wednesday. But instead God surrounded me with so many kind and inspiring people!

A woman my age down the street who runs a beauty parlor invited me over for some evening tea. She says she knows how it is to be alone in a new place, and that is why she invited me to visit.

I also met for a few hours with Silas, who is the chairperson for one of UMN's partner organizations called the Himalayan Community Salvation Program. This program works among Tamang Christian communities in the remote region of North Dhading (a 3 day walk from Dhading-Besi). Their goal is to encourage spiritual and physical growth, because right now many Christians place Christ in the heavenly realm and thinks He has no impact on poverty. Silas explains that it is just the opposite: that Christ cares as much about knowing Him more as He does about providing food for people in Dhading who often can only grow enough for 3 months. The organization has also initiated peace and reconciliation talks with Buddhists in the area, who have been antagonistic towards Christians. Silas shared his vision with me, and also some natural medicines that grow in the himalayas which they would like to market for income generation. And he is just 25 years old! He told me to bring Ryan back so they can be friends, and we can all visit mountaneous North Dhading together : )

This afternoon I leave again to Maidee, hopefully this time on foot. I'll likely be there about 3 days, then head back down the mountain to Dhading, and east to Kathmandu.

Counting the Cost

In Dhading, samosas cost 5 rupees each. That means that for $1.00 you can eat 14 samosas. Samosas just happen to be one of my top favorite foods...and so yesterday I ate 2 (I don't think my belly can fit 14...yet).

P.S.

And this morning, just as we were visiting a nursery of coffee seedlings, and just as we were coming over the crest of a hill, there way up in the sky above the clouds were huge snow-capped mountains! The clouds soon closed back over them, but I had my glimpse : )

Maidee

Dhading-besi, the town where UMN's Dhading office is based, has one internet place. If you wait for approximately 10 minutes, your email loads. And thus it is that I have a wee bit of contact with the outside world. I have to admit, my initial impressions were not the greatest. Living by myself in a crowded guest house in a crowded town is not my ideal situation. But I am beginning to see some reasons for being here...

Yesterday afternoon I left with Umesh, Shankara (UMN's food sovereignty person in Dhading) and Susan (a man, actually) for the mountainous village of Maidee. It was a bit of a harrowing motercycle ride...harrowing in the sense that you're driving along slippery muddy roads where - if you go just 2 inches too far to the side - you fall straight down into a rice paddy. But don't worry, mama, we wore sturdy helmets. The scenery as we passed through Nepal's hills, and vallyes full of bright green rice paddies, was spectacular! After 2 hours (which included dismounting the bikes approximately every 5 minutes) we arrived in Maidee, the Village were one of UMN's partner organizations (called Jagorjyoti) is located. This organization then works with 6 of the poorest/lowest caste communities in its area. We had a delicious dinner, plus steaming glasses of fresh water buffalo milk, then slept in tiny rooms in a guest house of sorts (actually the home of Jagorjyoti's president).

This morning we drank some tea and had an early start, visiting four of the different "targent communities", most of which are composed of Dalits (the lowest caste). Wherever I go God seems to provide children to give me laughter and energy. This was no exception! Most of the kids we visited had never seen a face, so I was a bit of a spectical. I tried out my limited Nepali and took lots of photos, as farmers showed us around their fields. One of the biggest projects Jagorjyoti is doing (with the technical support of UMN) is training people to start vegetable nurseries in their communities. The vegetables are then passed out among the community. Most Dalits do not grow their own vegetables, so this is a new idea for them. I was so impressed with their work, and their commitment to training Dalits from within their own communities to in turn train others. Umesh also providing some training on organic gardening techniques.

After another delicious lunch - plus some clumpy buffalo milk curd - we visited one more Dalit village and then slid - er, drove - back the muddy roads to Dhading-besi. I enjoyed Maidee so much that I am going to go back there later this week to learn and see more. One of the nights I also asked to stay in one of the "target communities." They said that this would be such an honor - since no one (especially foreigners) ever stays with them. I'm very curious what it will be like!

Tomorrow we will travel again to visit another of UMN's partner organizations that works with small farmers. Their emphasis is more on micro-finance opportunities for farmers. We will also spend the night in one of the target communities there.

God is reminding me each day that He is protecting me. But more so, He is reminding me that He is watching over Nepal's people. Watching four men carry a very sick woman one a stretcher to a hospital several hour away took my mind off myself and my own safety on the road today. I am blessed to be a child of a God who advocates for His people and cares so compassionately for all of our needs - whether it be a Dalit child's lack of good food, or my feelings of lonliness.

Dhading

Tomorrow morning I leave for Dhading, the hilly district just west of Kathmandu Valley. Umesh (the organic agriculture advisor) and I will travel by bus, and I'll likely follow him around the first few days to get a "lay of the land" (as my pops likes to say). I'm not sure where I'll be staying, or how long I'll be there (probably 10-14 days), but the aim is to meet with UMN staff and the partner organizations with whom they work to see if they are meeting their objectives for food sovereignty work. I'm hoping to visit some of the communities that the partner organizations work in; these are the places were a program's effectiveness is revealed.

I really don't know what to expect, except some more fresh air, a lot of rice paddies, and perhaps a glimpse of mountains if the sky clears up enough. I'm excited to discover more about the rural Nepal described by development organizations...one that does not have comfy coffee shops, of course. Dhading is, however, known for growing lots of vegetables since it is so close to Kathmandu's markets.

I also don't know if I'll have email access...we'll find out tomorrow! (I have to admit, I'm really hoping I will...)

Higher Grounds Cafe

This morning's great discover!  A comfy coffee shop where the proceeds from my latte go directly to help mothers and children in the community.  Coffee + Kathmandu....yum.

     

P.S. AND they have Mennonite magazines!

Foreigners

Yesterday was a great evening with three other girls who work with UMN!  Jeyran (from Turkey) and Gloria (from Uganda) invited Johanna (from Finland) and me over to their apartment.  We enjoyed a lovely meal, some Finnish chocolate, Turkish and African music, lots of laughter, and discussions ranging from movies to men to working with UMN.  Despite our varied countries of origin we are strangly enough all here in Nepal as "foreigners."  We even stayed up till almost midnight - several hours past Nepali bedtime.

 

Daily Walk to the Office

             

Kathmandu

On Sunday Johanna (another new UMN girl) and I spent the day exploring Kathmandu.  The expedition included various modes of transportation including the bus, the micro-bus, and something even smaller than the micro-bus. We also discovered a place that sells fresh fruit juice, and then discovered another place that has it for half the price. And we took LOTS of photos...

    

Mero Pariwaar [my family]

And five years later, I had the great priviledge of being reunited with my host family!  The walk to the Chabahil neighborhood brought back so many good memories, as did flying kites on the roof, dinner-time conversation full of laughter, and long talks about development in Nepal.  Over the five years, Mukesh has published two books on modern art, Lalita finally produced her own CD of songs, Shreya graduated from college, and Rishav grew so tall...5'8" [a Nepali giant]!  We had a wonderful afternoon and evening together; I even ended up spending the night.  I'm so glad I could finally fulfill all my promises to come see them again!