Kathmandu to the 'Farmhouse'

---

Started today with a quick cup of tea with roti (kind of bread). After that our third class of Nepalese. This one was including some negotiation knowledge(!) and then back to our host families for breakfast (again Dalbhat but now with Buffalo meat and goat meat). After that to GVI where we learned our volunteering job. Megan and I are going to be stationed in Pokhara where we will be helping in a home for homeless children. Pokhara is also the starting point for our 4-day trekking through the Annapurnas. It’s convenient because we may have to go back to Kathmandu for two days to get our Indian visa for our unexpected overnight stay in Delhi. Otherwise it would have cost us even more days. Megan was a bit disappointed about how things were organized. GVI was going to briefly interview the volunteers to find out the best placement per volunteer. But there was no real interview and I think that our previously given information was used to determine the placements. The sightseeing continued and we went to the largest Buddhist temple (Stupa) in Nepal (in Kathmandu). After a lunch on a roof terrace with a view over the temple we went to the farmhouse by bus. Goal was to experience some trekking and an overnight stay in a less comfortable (but beautiful) environment. The roads were really bad more holes than tarmac! The last part of the trip was walking up the mountain with our daypacks to get to the farmhouse. The reward was absolute peace, no city noises, no honking no nothing (not even power for a short time ;-)).

In the farmhouse it was a continuously ‘Mind your Head!’ for me (Jan) because of the very (very!) low ceilings. We can have a shower as long as you like cold water and we can use a ‘normal’ toilet. The place is also home for some very hungry mosquitoes! In the evening there was some trouble to get the power working again. It seemed to be provisionally tapped into the main feed from the road and repairing mend throwing sticks at the pole to fix the connection. It took a while before a ladder was introduced to the repair and after that the power was back permanently (by way of a piece of wood wedged between the line and the power pole!). It was an early night. I had a headache again (must get fitter ;-)) and I had to mind my head twice this night to go to the bathroom. It was Raymond’s (the Canadian in our group) birthday today. Tomorrow we’re heading off to Bhaktapur on foot.

---

Photos

The farmhouse
Small, quiet sitting area for relaxing at the Farmhouse