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Published: November 6th 2007
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Namaste!
I'm finally getting a chance to update the old blog again. I do think about it, about how much you guys are pacing around back home barely being able to go on with your days, but I’m a busy girl, what can I say?
My days in Chitwan have officially come to an end. Tomorrow morning I am on the 5+ hour bus journey (provided there are no Maoist road checks or attacks or anything) to Pokhara to start my trek in the Annapurna mountain range. I’m sad to be leaving everyone I have met here. I’ve become so attached to all the kids I teach, the locals in our surrounding villages and of course the kids at the orphanage. Tonight is my last night with the kids and then it’s goodbye.
It’s very surreal here and the novelty of us westerners just doesn’t seem to wear off for these people. They are always so excited to see us - just to say hello or ask where you are going today. The dinner invitations have only become more regular. Everyday while biking home from the orphanage or school it’s like “Hi, what’s your name, do you want
Dashain Festival Celebration With the Kids
Drishti and I with our tika's, made of rice, curd, tika powder and water... her's slightly bigger than mine (don't quite know what the significance is, I think the kids just like them smeared across their entire faces). to come to my village to meet my family?” Refusing their offer is very difficult (and as you guys know, I have trouble saying “no”.) - Needless to say, I’ve been caught in some awkward visits with people I don’t know. They are always so excited, glowing from ear to ear while they serve me a chunky mixture of buffalo milk-curd that I have to choke down - something saved only for special houseguests that definitely can’t be classified as “food safe”. It’s always a guessing game… “Am I going to be sick later?” Surprisingly enough, I haven’t been yet - knock on wood! It must be my tough Nepali stomach, being a local and all… haha.
Through the schools I’ve met some pretty amazing kids - one in particular, my sweet little Bibek. During computer class one day, I was having the kids create a PowerPoint presentation about their families and Bibek wrote a slide about how his family doesn’t love him so he doesn’t want to live with them anymore. It honestly broke my heart… but then you think, what do you do? If we were in Canada, the red flags would go up, the teachers would
step in and there would be social workers involved. Here in Nepal it’s just ignored. You can’t really do anything, and no one does. I ended up meeting up with Bibek after class and we talked a little. I didn’t want to press the topic and he was a little reluctant to say much anyway, so we just hung out, got a samosa and chatted about things that make him happy. He is very timid and shy, but has started to open up a bit. He invited me to come to his village to meet his mother, so how could I say no. He lives in a very humble one room house with his mother, father and sister. It was basically 2 beds, a desk and a bar to lay their clothes over. It’s sad because it’s normal for kids here to come from abusive families. Even the teachers and principals whack them for not getting the answer right in class - there’s no hiding it either. It’s just accepted and it’s frustrating knowing you can’t do anything about it.
On to less serious and happier things to report though…
During my time away from school and the
orphanage, I’ve been exploring the area. A friend of mine Claire, who is a volunteer from Pokhara, came down for a visit last week. We went on a few long bike rides (my bum is becoming accustomed to the bumpy roads.. FINALLY) with Brittany who is a past volunteer just back for a visit. Chitwan is filled with miles and miles of rice fields bordered by tiny gravel paths connecting the villages of many different Nepali tribes and casts. We also played tourist one day and did our elephant-back safari, visit to the Elephant Breeding Centre and canoe trip down the Rapti River, where we saw a Rhino, numerous crocodiles and some deer, birds and other animals. The infamous Bengal Tiger has yet to be seen this year by anyone, but apparently they’re still are some out there. It was nice to get out into the jungle after being here for almost one month!
Things at the hotel are good, now that I’m not being shuffled around anymore from room to room. It was really busy here for a while with some big tour groups coming through from India so I had to be moved to the Hotel California
next door. Now I know why there’s always “plenty of room at the Hotel California” - because it’s a termite infested dump! Night after night I was woken up by this strange scratching sound coming from under my bed. I couldn’t see anything, but it was like something was eating my wooden bed frame. I would bang on the bed and the sound would subside a little, but then it would pick up again. Turns out it’s a termite like bug called a “wood cutter” - they were probably ready to break through the bottom of the frame and start gnawing at my pillow. Not only that but my shower head didn’t exactly work. It completely missed the shower and shot straight out into the hallway of the hotel room. No wonder everything smelt like mold. Thank god it was time to move rooms again, back to my glorious suite at the Royal Park Hotel (although the word “Royal” has a different meaning in Nepal I think).
On Saturday we took the kids to the cinema to see a Hindi-Nepali film. What a treat! We’re talking THE low budget of all low budget films. They should come with a
Rhino in the jungle...
From a top our elephant-back safari... warning: “Please take Graval before entering - may cause nausea”. I honestly got motion sickness from the camera man’s filming techniques, or lack thereof. The kids loved it though - lots of fighting, drama, love, dancing and singing. I also got to experience rickshaws for the first time, to and from the cinema. All 11 of us piled into two metal framed carts pulled by men on bicycles - not exactly the fastest mode of transportation, especially given the roads they were working with.
Yesterday was my last day of teaching. All the kids came to class bearing gifts - flowers, candy, peacock feathers, notes in broken English, tree branches they pulled from their neighbour’s yard - it was so flattering. I’m going to miss them so much. All the little things, like when they say the alphabet, some letters just don’t come out right… “H, I, J, K, Yel, Yem, Yen, O, P” - difficult to translate at first. It’s bittersweet leaving for Pokhara tomorrow - I want to experience more of Nepal, but I’d also like just a few more weeks here. I’m super excited for my trek in the Annapurna’s though. It will be nice to
get away from the mosquitoes and into the mountains for a little bit.
I hope everyone is happy and healthy at home. It’s been over 3 months know since I’ve been gone and I still feel it’s summer back home and nothing has changed. Don’t go having too much fun without me because I’ll be home soon!
Love you all!
Meg xoxo
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Anita
non-member comment
“H, I, J, K, Yel, Yem, Yen, O, P" I think this is hillarious. Thats exactly how my mom reads the alphabets, I laugh and get upset at the same time whenever she does that. She has visited states 4 times and still have no clue. but I know its not her fault, she is new to all this just like those innocent kids.