Delhi to Kathmandu - Edge of Seven

---

---

Delhi to Kathmandu

Oct 30 - Nov 7, Delhi to Kathmandu

Shelly left early this morning at 2:35 am. I'm on my own now for another 5 weeks. Finally I get a good nights sleep... just kidding. I am exhausted though. This past week has been very tiring - lots of driving, lots of castles, forts and palaces, and meeting many great people. So I have a few days in Delhi to relax before flying to Nepal.

Saturday Oct 30

I am staying at the famous Imperial Hotel . It was highly recommended by my friend Phillipe, as a "must do" experience. It is amazing, with incredible artwork and historical pieces, but it is a little overwhelming. After a good nights sleep, I treated myself to a full English breakfast, read the paper, and got caught up on a few emails and blogging activities. I booked a driver to pick me up at noon, not exactly sure what we were going to do, but I knew I had to get out and see Delhi. My drivers name was Aman and he spoke very good English.

First stop was Connaught Place, a shopping are near the hotel. I had a few things on my list that I had to get before going to Kathmandu. My Sony camera, that I bought in China a few years ago, was becoming totally unreliable, so I bought a new one, basically the same model, but upgraded to today's standards. I also purchased some quality trekking boots (my feet have never been the same since climbing Mt. Kenya with Robbie last year).

Next we decided to visit a Sikh temple. Although my driver was Sikh, he had not been to the large Sikh Temple, in downtown Delhi, so this was a first for both of us. We first went to the entrance hall, where they provide a covering for your head if you do not have one. We then take off our shoes and socks, proceed to an area where we wash our hands and feet and then are allowed to enter the temple. Aman led the way and explained to me all of the rituals. I certainly don't claim to be an expert, but what impressed me is that the temple is open 24 hours, visitors can come to pray anytime, have a free meal, an even have free accommodations. After going through the temple, we went to the dining hall where hundreds of people were sitting on the floor enjoying a full vegetarian meal. I asked if we could join them, and Aman was thrilled that I was willing to do so. It was a great meal, with the only problem being my inability to sit on the floor, cross-legged. oh well, its not a perfect world. Following this we washed, returned our head coverings and retrieved our footwear. Aman thanked me for going to the temple and participating in all the rituals. It was something that he had wanted to do for a long time.

We then hopped in the car and proceeded to the Jaipur Polo Club which is in the Delhi Race course. I suggested that before going to polo, we visit the race track. Aman had never been to the races, so I explained to him how it all works,which is basically the same as at home, except they also have book makers. We were just in time for the third race, so i asked Aman to pick one of the thirteen horses scheduled to run. He picked number 8, so I placed a 500 rupee bet (about 12 dollars cdn) on his behalf for number 8 to win. Guess what? He won! It paid three to one, so he received 1500 rupees. You should have seen the look on his face!

We then headed over to the polo field, which is on the inside of the track. There was a game going on, so we parked the car and walked down the field. I knew my good friend Dan Healy was in Delhi as an umpire for a few months, but wasn't sure if he was there. Sure enough, at half time Dan comes over to the side of the field, saw me, and we had a great reunion. I introduced Aman to Dan, before he went back out onto the field to finish the game. Aman and I sat in the VIP area and watched the rest of the game. I introduced myself to a few of the locals as a visiting polo player from the Toronto Polo Club. As expected, the Indian people we met were very welcoming. Aman was in awe. He was so thrilled to see a polo game and meet all these wonderful people. After the game we got together with Dan. He introduced us to some of the players. We made arrangements to have lunch the next day, and to go back to the Sunday final of the polo tournament. Aman took me back to the hotel, and on parting, he said "Thanks, Mike. This has been one of the best days of my life". I was so grateful to have shared it with him.

Coincidentally, two of my good friends from back home, Mark and Kathy English just arrived in Delhi for a 2 week tour. I knew Mark would be here as we touched base before I left Canada. We got together for dinner at the Spice Route restaurant in the Imperial, which is rated one of the top restaurants in the world by Conde Naste travel magazine. It was great to see Mark and Kathy and catch up with the news from home, and to discuss our respective travel plans.

Sunday Oct 31, 2010

Dan joined me for lunch. I hadn't seen him since Florida last year so it was great to catch up. Dan is a professional Polo umpire, and was hired by the Jaipur Polo Club for most of October and November to referee games, explain the new rule changes, and run clinics for the members. Following lunch we went to the polo field for the Sunday afternoon tournament finals. It was the Cavalry against the Jaipur Team. It was a very close game with the Jaipur team winning by a goal. After the game there was a VIP hospitality tent where we spent a few hours mixing with the players and polo supporters.

The next morning Dan and I had planned to do a little sight seeing, but he was having a little trouble getting off the toilet (to date i have been very fortunate, with no problems down there). We went out for a local lunch in the Khan Market instead. I felt like I may be picking up a bit of a cold, so we stopped at a Chemist and returned to our rooms to get some rest.

The next 2 days, I decided to take it easy. The last 3 weeks have taken a bit of a toll on me. I did hire a driver one afternoon to do a tour of Old Delhi. It was probably a good time to go since it was just prior to Diwali, basically the Hindus equivalent to Christmas. I don't know if it was just being in a big city, or not, but everything was so commercialized. The newspapers are filled with ads for luxury items, the stores are all decorated, the streets are very busy with people doing last minute shopping. Sound familiar? The actual celebration is Nov 5, when most of the stores close, people light up their homes with candles and they celebrate peace and prosperity.

I arrive in Kathmandu on Nov 3. My friend, Phillipa from New Zealand met me at the airport with the local tour operator, Rabi, and our guide Shavi. I thought the roads and traffic in India were bad, but this takes it to a whole new level. Its amazing that for a city of about 3 million people, There was obviously no city planning. The streets are narrow, with motorcycles weaving in and out, and traffic randomly stopping for no apparent reason.

We arrived at our guest house, the Mandala Inn in Thamel, a very hectic , an area of Kathmandu that caters to tourists and trekkers. It wasn't fancy, but what do you want for $20 a night including breakfast and internet. Rabi had arranged a treat for us - tickets to Jazzmandu, the annual Jazz festival that draws musicians from all over the world.

The next next day, we visited a Leprosy hospital that Phillipa and Ravi have been working with for the past several years. I had certainly heard and read a lot about leprosy, but to meet people that have lived with the disease their whole lives was truly an emotional experience. All of the patients were deformed to varying degrees, and are considered outcasts by their family and friends. I wasn't sure how I was going to react since Leprosy is contagious, however, there is little or no risk for people with our background. Before you know it we were joking around and taking pictures with the patients, and they really seemed to enjoy the company.

Following this we attended an adjacent school that was established for impoverished people from Kathmandu. Normally there are about 45 students in three classrooms, however because of the Diwali holiday season, only about 25 showed up.

The next day and a half we got organized for our mountain trip. This area caters to outdoor activities an consequently, there are hundreds of shops selling anything you can imagine, and at great prices.

Saturday, Nov 6

The White water water rafting trip was fantastic! We boarded a van at the hotel at 9am in the morning and drove 25 kms, which took about 3 hours. Our group consisted of 8 visitors, 5 from the Czech Republic - Charles and Andre, Charles and Yanna, and Eva, plus a young couple from Bombay - Manish and Rupoli. After a brief orientation, we started our journey on our raft with our guide Raju down the Trisuli River. In the peak of the monsoon season, the water level is about 12 feet higher, however, this is fine with me , since we will still be experiencing class three and perhaps Class 4 rapids. The guide wanted 2 strong young men to take the front position, so naturally, I was selected (ha, ha).

We rafted for an our or so , then pulled over for a quick lunch and cup of tea. The next 2 hours the rapids seemed to get progressively stronger. There were several times when the we were in a 6 foot trough and the water would come over the bow and soak all of us. We stopped at about 5 pm after reaching our campsite for the night. A crew had gone ahead and set up tents and started preparing dinner. It was quit something to sit out under the stars, sip ON a cool beer, and listen to the water flow through the near-by rapids.

The next morning, we continued down the river through some awesome Class 3 - 4 rapids. When we reached our destination, I was the only one going back to Kathmandu, so they put me on a local bus. Unfortunately there were no available seats inside the bus, so I rode the 4 hour trip on the roof of the bus. What a great way to see the countryside!

Nepal - Edge of Seven

Tuesday, Nov 9 - Kathmandu to Phalpu

We flew out of Kathmandu on a 20 seater Twin Otter this morning heading to the Airport at Phalpu in the Lower Everest province. As it turns out, it is not really an airport, but rather a gravel covered airstrip on the side of a mountain at 2300 meters (about 7700ft) above sea level. From there we hiked about an hour to the town of Salleri, which is the capital of the lower Everest Region. The Region consist of thirty-four VDC's (Village Development Committees). In the region there is only 1 senior high school which currently accommodates about 350 students. The problem is that it is a one or two day walk to the school from many of the villages. Some students manage to stay at homes in the area, but these are generally males, as it is not acceptable for a female to stay in a house of someone other than a family member. Therefore many young women do not have the opportunity to finish their high school education.

The Edge of Seven was established by Erin Guttenplan to help young women in Nepal. She became aware of the problem I just described, and together with Karma, a local Nepalese from the Lower Everest Region, decided to build a hostel near the school to accommodate young women to allow them to complete their education. Their vision is to select two of the strongest females, both academically, and as leaders, from each of the villages to attend the collage through a scholarship program, and stay at the hostel.

For this phase of the project, we have 14 volunteers, to work alongside local people to start this construction of the hostel. The group consists of:

Erin, from Delaware, and her boyfriend Binod from Nepal
Karma and Sonim both from the Everest Region
Matt, from Los Angeles (Erins cousin)
Kelly from the States and a former co-worker of Erins
Barb, from Cooperstown NY
Phillipe, from New Zealand, and owner of Saffron Road Motorcycle Tours
Kelsey from New Zealand and currently working with Saffron Road
Mick and Trina, from New Zealand and friends of Phillipa
Gayatri who lives in New York, but is originally from India
Averill from Washington, DC


We arrived at the work site around noon, to a wonderful welcoming committee. We were presented with scarfs and flowers , hot tea and a fresh lunch. This community is mainly Buddhist (about 30% of Nepal is Buddhist, with the majority of the people being Hindu). There was a Buddhist monk that did a special prayer for the safety of everyone working and to a successful completion of the project, followed by more tea and biscuits.

By the time the ceremonies were over, it was about 2 pm, so we started work, basically digging out a level area that will be used to build the foundation for the hostel. It was a little disconcerting that no one seemed to know what the plan was, however, we all put our ideas together and started digging, moving rocks and earth.

After the workday was finished we were taken to our family homes. we were each assigned a family to stay with. Matt and I were fortunate in getting the house closest to the work site, a small wooden cabin with 3 small bedrooms a living/dining room a summer kitchen, and an outdoor washroom with a squat toilet. Just what I need for a guy that has trouble touching his toes. We really lucked out though. The family that own the house, Kumar and Magali Tamang have a beautiful son, Furba about 21 months old. Kumar (the father) has worked in Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, was a cook on trekking expeditions in the Himalayas, and speaks good English. They also have 5 goats and 15 chickens, so we get fresh milk and eggs every day. Our beds are basically planks of wood, so I feel fortunate to have brought a camping mattress and good pillow. After enjoying a vegetarian dinner of dahl bhat (rice with lentil soup, a staple in this part of the world) we hit the sack. Daytime temperature here is in the low 20's celsius, and nightime it gets down to about 3 degrees. There is no heating in the house, so I wore an extra layer of clothing to bed.

We are back on the work site at 8 am. There are about 15 locals there to help and it turns out to be a long and productive day. One of the more challenging chores was hiking down several hundred meters and carrying up 4 by 4 timbers on a steep footpath that was damp from the dew in the morning and rain in the afternoon. While we are only at about 2400 meters (about 8,000 ft), the altitude was definitely factor.The Nepalese are hard workers and have a great sense of humour. Kelsey from our group is a real leader and inspiration for everyone. She is quite the entertainer, singing songs and dancing throughout the day. She really helps in picking up everyone's spirits. In turn the Nepalese sing some local songs and dance and joke around.

Back at our home, the family welcomes us. We have many visitors throughout the evening as everyone is curious about the foreign visitors. The kids are especially excited. I brought an exercising stretch band and the boys are all trying to out do one another. Matt has a strong interest in learning Nepalese, so we have a great time trying to carry a conversation with them, and somehow it seems to work.

Its hard to describe what it is like here. The scenery is probably as you would expect. Lots of hills, valleys, and the snow capped Himalayas in the background.Whats different is the way people live and work. At the project site, we have just completed day 3, and we are not sure who the Site foreman is, so more often than not we guess at what needs to be done and get on with it. Its coming along, but the plans change daily and sometime hourly. For example, yesterday the plans were explained for the building. It was designed with 6 bedrooms, and 4 people in each bedroom, with a kitchen on the second floor. Each bedroom would be 12 feet by 15 feet. Yesterday it was changed to 5 bedrooms because there wasn't enough room. Today the size of the bedrooms changed to 11 by 14. We have also had numerous occasion of moving dirt from one place to another, and the next day moving it again to another location. Oh well, its all for a good cause.

Friday Nov 12 - Tating, Nepal

Interesting day. One of our guests, Trini, has not been well the past few days. She has a pre-existing kidney problem, and at first we thought this was the source of her discomfort. However, she got progressively worse, so they decided to bring a helicopter in and air lift her out. This was more of a problem than first though, as the pilot could not find a place to land that was close to where she was staying. Since she could not move at all, they had to drug her up to get her out of the house and transport her to the helicopter. After several hours, they managed to get her back to Kathmandu.

We were told at the end of the work day yesterday that they were looking for volunteers to hike to the other side of the valley and bring wood timbers back. Four of us volunteered. Basically we have to trek down 1600 vertical feet cross the river where the hydro generating plant is, then hike up about 1400 feet to where the mill is. I think the wood was pine, and it was all cut by hand using vertical saws. We were accompanied by about 10 Nepali boys between the age of 15 and 20. Once there, we loaded up with timbers on our back using headbands with ropes wrapped around the wood in a vertical position. Its sad to say, but each of us white folks could only carry one timber about 9 feet long. The young boys carried 4 to 6 boards! In total there are about 1600 pieces that need to be transport to the site.

We headed down the hill, which surprisingly, wasn't that bad. The path was very rough and step with lots of rocks. we stopped for lunch at a local's house on the hill and had boiled potatoes, hot tea, and a type of Nepali bread. Following this we reached the bottom of the valley, and started heading back up the other side. I was feeling surprisingly good, and when the others stopped for a rest, I kept going. About an hour later, I reached a small village that I recognized from our trip down. I met three kids taking fruit to the market, and go so busy talking to them that I missed my turn. A short while later, I realized I was not on the right trail, but I kept going thinking I could find my way. Fortunately, I remembered the name of our little village, Tating, and kept asking people if they could give me directions.

I knew from my Casio watch what altitude our village was at, and what altitude I was at, so I wasn't too concerned. At any rate I got totally lost, continually heading up higher and further away. As I was walking through a farmers field, I saw three children , between 4 and 6 years old, playing and I said "Tating? Tating?" they responded indicating that I was there, but there were few buildings, and nothing looked famillair. I asked the children where there house was and they pointed off in the distance. I walked over and there were some people in the house. I asked them where Tating was and told them I was totally lost. Keep in mind that they speak almost no English. All of a sudden I recognized one of the women as someone who had worked at the Project site. I recognized her because she had a ring through her nose, and I couldn't believe how hard she worked. They were talking in Nepalese and joking and laughing. In sign language, I asked if someone could guide me back to the project site. They offered up the 2 youngest, probably 4 and 5 years old. They led me on a narrow trail through the forest and still climbing. I was continually running out of breath, while hanging on to my timber determined to make it back, and they would wait for me. The whole scenario was very funny. Finally we rounded a corner and i have never been so happy to see a rock pile in my life. Surprisingly, I was the first one back, don't ask me how.

I said a quick hello to everyone, then immediately took the kids back to my home and put a goody bag together for them - granola bars, coloured markers, crayons and pads of paper and sent them on their way. All in all a very long and exhausting day, but nice to be back and admire the amount of progress that had been made on the project sight in or absence. We are excited about having a day off tomorrow and an opportunity to visit the weekly market in Salleri, a nearby town.

We met at 8 am at the project site and hiked about half an hour to the village of Naya Bazaar. The is a big deal as people come from neighbouring villages to buy and sell their goods, mostly produce, farm animals (chickens, goats, etc) and clothing - some native, mostly American style clothes imported from China. After wondering around for a while, three of us, Averill, Guytree and myself, walked to the next village, Salleri, the capital of the district. We had heard that there was a guest house there with a hot shower, so that was our primary goal. It wa only about a 15 minute walk, but we must have run into about 10 people that we know. How random! Two of the encounters stood out above the others. The first was a Nepalese gentleman that had help me in the market about an hour earlier. He saw me walking along and waved me over to chat. It turns out he was the mayor of Salleri for 15 years. He spoke good English and had a brother who lived in Toronto. He himself had visited the there and talked about the CN tour and other sites. We exchanged contact info and he also agreed to come and visit our project site.

After saying good bye, we continued on, and another older man stopped us to talk. He spoke very good English, and was quit interested in what we were doing in Nepal. He invited us to his house to meet his family and have a cup of tea. It turns out that his name is Master Tsiring Dorji and he is the Chairman of the largest Buddhist monastery in the district. Also, sixty-four years ago , he was the first person to teach English in Nepal schools. He was very excited to show us his biography, a book about his life. The book was written in Nepalese, but had a forward written by Sir Edmund Hillary. There were many interesting colour photos of him with Sir Edmond, as well as with several other world dignitaries. It was so interesting meeting him, but the best part was that he gave me a copy of the book with a personal note signed by him.

We then moved on to our ultimate destination, The Laxsmi Guest houuse for our hot shower. I insisted that the girls go first as I know they are desparate to have their first hot shower in a week. When they came down, I asked them how it was and they said the hot water was not working so they had a cold shower instead. Reluctantly, I asked the owner if I could have a shower, and inquired as to why the hot water was not working. I followed him up and he turned a few knobs and I proceeded to have a wonderful hot shower. I felt so bad when I told the girls, but we all had a good laugh about our experience.

Most of our dinners at our homes have been variations of rice, potatoes and vegetables. So the night before, I asked Kumar, our host, if it would be possible to buy a chicken at the market and cook it up for dinner. He said no problem, so I organized a dinner at our house for the evening invited and invited the volunteers from the project. At the market I also bought candles, incense, and some local garb. Six people showed up plus some locals. We played cards, listened and danced to local music, drank local beer, and had a fantastic dinner prepard by Kumar consisting of curried chicken (it was alive 2 hours earlier), and fried rice with vegetables. Outstanding! Party was over by 8pm, and we went to bed early as usual.

We are making good progress at the project. It is still a little frustrating as no one person really seems to be in charge. I am finally realized that it is not about being precise, accurate and efficient, but more about working hard, accepting the way the locals work and having fun. Given how much physical labour is involved, I cant believe how much fun everyone is having. Our volunteer group is developing a very close bond, and trust and friendship is being developed with many of the locals, especially Nero, Dilip, Pemba, Minmar, Chirring, Pasang and many others.

Monday Nov 15, 2010 Tating, Nepal

The original plan was to take a day off work and hike three hours up the mountain to a spot where there is an excellent view of Mount Everest. Our first day in Tating, the weather was perfect. Sunny, great views, and not too hot to work. Since then the weather has gone downhill. It has been cloudy most days and cool and humid. We were waiting for another clear day for the everest climb, but it wasn't happening. we decided to take a chance and make the climb today even though it was very overcast, hoping it would clear up by the time we got there.

We left from our project site, which is at 8,000 feet above sea level, at 6:30 and climbed for 3 hours to 11,000 feet with our guides Chirring and Karma. Unfortunately it was still overcast and we didn't get to see the view. We had a quick lunch, then started our hike down. After about a half hour, it became apparent that our guide was lost. We all tried to give our oppinions as to which way to go. Averill seemed very confident that she knew the right course, but with the language problem, and not wanting to second guess our guides, we followed our fearless leaders, even though they didnt really seem too confident.
As it turned out, we hiked for 2 hours in the wrong direction and downhill. We finally came across a family that was tending their cows. They informed us that we were about 4 hours away from our home village. We offered to pay the father, Pemba, to guide us out. We finally made it back to our homes just as it was getting dark and totally exhausted.

Tuesday Nov 16 Tating

This is the last day on the project, and I must admit, I am physically tired and ready for a few days rest before embarking on our motorcycle trip. I feel guilty in some respects, as there are volunteers in our group that are staying for another 2 weeks. It was a very rewarding day as we finally started building the foundation. We moved the large stones to the edge of the trench as the local stoneworkers placed the stones so that they fit tightly together, filled in with smaller stones, then covered in dirt before starting the next layer. From our group, Barb and Kelsey stood out with their never ending energy and strenghth. The rest of us were very tired from our little adventure yesterday.

Also during the day a videographer, Norma, was on site taking video of the proect and interviewing the volunteers. We knocked off early (4pm) as Barb had arranged a volleyball game with the locals at a nearby school, and I returned to my family home to pack for the hour long hike to Phalpu airport (at 5:30 am tomorrow). I also wanted to say a formal goodbye and thanks to Kumar and his family for the frienship and hospitality. I took some group photos and presented them with a few small gifts: a Crazy Canucks T-shirt, a Canadian flag key chain, a double framed picture of Johnny and I from our BC fishing trip the fall (I wanted to leave something personal, and I felt these pictures represented my family and Canada), and finally, one of my prized possessions, my last flying monkey. Guess what, the flying monkey was the big hit!

We also planned a final night party at the project sight with a bonfire, canned beer, local music and our last dinner prepared by our cooking crew. There was very short notice for this little get together, and it couldn't have turned out better.

It was a very emotional experience for me. Sharing a very special meal prepared by our awesome kitchen staff. We started with French Fries (our one and only special request), home made vegetable and broth soup, Spaghetti with tomato sauce, fresh cooked carrots and green beans, and the grand finale, apple pie. Wow! The food has been so good and plentiful on this trip, I may actually put on weight. After dinner, they lit the bonfire. When I suggested having a fire, I didnt realize that firewood is a very special commodoty. They built a base in a Tee pee shape of small sticks and filled it and topped it off with wood shavings from the project site. It looked like a christmas tree, It came to life when lit and everyone cheered. The music started and people danced to a mixture of traditional and american music. One of the highhlights was when the music was shut of and a group of 8 locals did a traditional Sherp dance. We said our good-byes, and went back to our homes savouring the wonderful evening full of frienship, laughter and conversation.

---

Photos

Edge of Seven Team
Gayatri, Mick, Trina, Kelly, Phillipa, Barb, Kelsey, Mike, Binod, Averill

Our Family
Matt, Magali, Furba, Kumar, Myself

Swing bridge over Trisuli
Very common way for villagers to cross river

Comments

[Shelly]

You're awesome!
I am so proud of you Mike! I love this blog...so inspiring.

[michelle]

so cute!
I'm dying at how cute the kids are! Such sweet faces.

[Linda Boag Moores]

Brilliant
Your narrative makes one feel that they are almost participating in your activites. I truly admire your graciousness in all your travels. I'm honoured I met you at Shelly's Mom's birthday.

[Lisa Gleva]

Thanks Mike!
Only word--awesome :) Thanks for sharing!

[Rod]

So interesting Mike - I couldn't stop reading!

[Bill Trought]

Our Trip
Mike I am so enjoying our trip. It's great seeing so much of this fascinating country. I have one suggestion. as I don't know when I will be able to get back to this part of the world again I think we should go to the ancient city of Golog in Tibet and visit their ancient Buddhist Temples. They are suppose to be spectacular. It is not far away. Let's go for it Bill

[Dave Offen]

Amazing
I look forward to you doing manual labor at Polo For Heart set up next year now that we know you can get your hands dirty. Sounds like an amazing trip. I'm sure you have touched many people's lives. Get home safe. Dave

[Kathi Healy]

WOW
What a fabulous trip you are on. Thanks for sharing it and thanks for visiting Dan he really enjoyed seeing you. Hope to see you in Florida Love Kathi

[Denise Riddle]

Hello
Hi Mike, Hope all is well. It sure looks like you are enjoying yourself. I love to read the blogs, it is so cool. Stay well and have an amazing rest of your trip. Fondly, Denise

[John Emery]

Excellent
Great Blog Didnt know you were such a scholar !! !! We all love your notes! GREAT TRIP

[Simon]

Hey, Mike...You are not far from Cambodia....go to Ankor Wat!!!....hahaha! See you soon!

[Mikes world]

Thanks. Just finished the trip in Nepal. New blog soon. What have you been up to? What is your next trip?