INFO Nepal - Monthly Newsletter
November 2007
New Happy Home Chitwan
Our children are now used to with Chitwan village
life. Mimgma loves village setting and felt like her village. Tengin is very
happy to be in Chitwan then Kathmandu. Kathmandu water is very cold but here is
not cold said Tengin.
Sarita
is very happy to have many new friends in Ganganagar Happy Home. Sanjaya think
he is very lucky to come to Happy Home and see his future bright. I have never
thought to continue my study staying at my home as all of my 3 brother and
sister could not continue their study because of the economy situation of my
parents but now I can study said Sanjaya. Sanjaya is at our Happy home with his
little sister. Sanjaya is brother of Sanjita whom we had 3 years before at happy
home in Kathmandu. At le`ast two of my brother and sister are getting good
education in my family said Sanjita with her lovely smile.
As Tengin had an accident by school bus and he has
lost his Toy but now he is getting batter. A lot of thanks go to our volunteer
Melita who is fully taking care of Tengin in Chitwan Happy Home.
New Happy Home Kathmandu:
We have very good news for this month as we have
moved to our new happy home in Kathmandu. It was a bit sad to say good bye to
old happy home as we had a lot of good memory with this house. But now we are
very happy to move to our own home and felt like we are at home and safe.
My Visit to Germany:
My German visit went very successful as we had a
partner Organization who is sending more volunteers to us. It was very
knowledgeable to see Berlin city and try to feel about the quick development in
the city. The memorial Church can tell how the 2nd world war was. It also tells
you that how developed was Germany before 2nd world war. Accept my
loosing bag every things was great experience for me to visit Germany.
I would like to thanks to Silvia who was
supporting for me to get Visa. We are looking forward for Bicky’s visit to
Holland in March 2008 and out comes from his visit.
Yours
Asim
Recent Volunteer’s Experience
Michelle Ferrer - UK
15th Sept 2007
I arrived in Nepal knowing that my time here would at
times be very challenging. I also hoped it would be very rewarding. It has
been both.
After my weeks training, I had 7 weeks volunteering. I
started in Syabru Besi (one of its many different spellings) in the Langtang
Region but was not sure if I'd spend my full time there.
The town is at the end of the bus route so although
it's in the mountains, it's not completely remote. There is also an internet
café there but if you go there be prepared for it to be very slow and
expensive.
When I first started there was another volunteer
already there, which was a big help. I had no real teaching experience and
it was nice to get an idea of what was going on and get eased into it gently
before being left on my own.
Our main role there was to teach English in the library
at the entrance to the town. We had a really good group of 4-7 kids aged
around 12 that came before school. Their English was already pretty good and
we were able to do some really good activities with them. There was meant to
be an adult lesson during the day and up until the day before I arrived Mary
had been teaching a couple of women and a man but during my time there I
only ever had Ammar come. He was a soldier and I think was mostly
self-taught so although his knowledge of the language was pretty good he
needed conversation practice. For this it was good that there was just the
one of him.
In the afternoon there was a mixed and varied crowd of
kids. Apparently the week before I arrived there were a lot less. I'm not
sure if word had spread that a new volunteer was coming or if it was just
coincidence but my first day there were lots of kids that Mary had never
seen before and they just kept on coming. Their English was very poor and I
couldn’t even work out if they spoke Nepali or Tamang. It was very hard to
keep them occupied for long and it was a great relief there were two of us.
As well as the teaching in the library there is a
secondary school across the river
that has had computers for just over a year. I was asked to help with the
lessons but what I found was the loosest use of the work 'lesson' I have
ever seen. The kids would run in and sit down in front of the machines then
just do whatever they wanted. They were pretty much allowed to do anything
apart from play games so during my first proper session I went round with
the Windows CD and uninstalled the games but made sure Paint was installed.
There was a typing tutor program to use or they used Word or Paint. If they
didn’t feel like using these they would just randomly click on anything they
found. So you would have lots of unwanted files, icons, shortcuts, copies of
shortcuts etc. Between lessons I'd go round and tidy up the desktops. They
did have a teacher but the only thing I ever saw her actually show them how
to do was draw a house in Paint (not exactly a useful lifeskill). It also
didn't help that her English wasn't very good so I found it hard to
communicate with her. I'd spend most morning at the school then head back
at their 1pm break fro the adult lesson at 2.
It would be a great help if someone had the time,
knowledge and commitment to actually start proper lessons in the school. It
would need to be properly planned with both the headmaster and the computer
teacher being involved.
They have a great resource there that is currently
being wasted.
After Mary left, things got more hectic in the
afternoon classes, even though I had spent a lot of time planning (I really
didn't dare to venture into these classes unprepared). The first week I was
on my own was a real struggle. The group continued to get more varied with
more of the very local children coming. There English was better as some of
them went to the better primary school. Numbers still fluctuated.
I didn't know if I'd last the full 7 weeks up there but
I was determined to not just quit when things got difficult. I'm glad I
stuck it out for as long as I did. After nearly 2 weeks on my own Andrew
arrived to join me.
Things were ok, carrying on as they had been, while
there were two of us but, knowing we were having another volunteer come to
join us and they would be left on there own, we decided to split the
afternoon group into 2 classes. This worked surprisingly well on the first
day but then numbers started dropping a lot and we sort of unofficially made
it one group again. I think the numbers changing were partly due to exams
coming up.
I decided that although I'd enjoyed my time there I'd
like a change of scenery and get away from pure teaching. So I headed back
to Kathandu at the same time as Andrew to move to the orphanage in Pokhara.
I
came back from the mountains and after spending a couple of nights back in
Kathmandu I went to Pokhara to work in one of the cities many orphanages.
There are about 28 children there, with ages ranging from 4-13 (I think). 8
of these children go to school, including the 4 girls. There is a couple who
live there with them and another woman that comes to cook for them.
The day I arrived was the first day of an English
lesson for teenagers that was being started in the orphanage so I got stuck
in and tried to establish what sort of level we would need to teach at.
As well as these teaching sessions at 4pm every day the
routine consisted of teaching the children that aren't sponsored to go to
school. They have a lesson at 10.10 and then another at 11.45, with a Nepali
lesson in between. Then we were free from 12.30 while they had science and
maths lessons.
My most enjoyable and rewarding time spent at the
orphanage was outside of these classes. There were a few English story books
there and I tried to get some of them reading them. With only classes in big
groups and at very different levels, the children are not getting a lot of
reading help. We also played out in the yard and generally gave the kids the
affection they are not getting from other adults.
The orphanage has not been up and running for very long
but hopefully we will continue to see improvements, both in the behavior and
English of the kids, and in the property itself. The rooms get quite damp
and the roof leaks and also makes the rooms very hot in the sun.
I wish I had had more time to really try to make a
difference there but I'm also quite glad in a way that I 'm not there long
term. It was hard enough leaving and having to say goodbye to the kids after
only 2 weeks. I'm sure it would be a lot harder after a few months. They
really are a great bunch.
Naomi and Damunda -
Australia
27th Oct 2007
Our volunteer period of three weeks began with
three days of Nepali language classes, about 3 hours a day. The language
classes were informative, and Krishna our teacher was excellent and
endlessly patient. Realistically however three days of classes in no way
prepares you to converse in Nepali and assist in teaching English.
During this time, we also spent two days at a village just outside
Kathmandu. This gave us a solid introduction into village life, and it
was interesting to have our language lessons in the village and being
able to use the Nepali – no matter if our host family could not
understand a word we said due to our poor pronunciation!|
From here, we were on the bus to Pokhara to our permanent placement in
Nirmil Pokhari, a village about one – two hours (depending on
conditions) bus rides from Pokhara. In Pokhara, due to the remoteness of
the village, we had to wait about 4 hours for a bus to the village and
finally arrived at about 7pm at night. It was a grueling 13 hours of
travel and waiting around, but our family welcomed us with kindness and
a hot meal.
Nirmil Pokhari is a beautiful village situated above the Pokhara valley.
Our day
consisted of waking up at about 6.00am to be at the resource center,
about a ten-minute walk up a steep hill, at 7.00am. We taught between 5
– 20 kids, ageing from about two to eleven years old, for an hour and
half. This was often a challenging experience, especially since we have
had no prior teaching experience, and we were often grateful that there
were two of us, since controlling and teaching children of varied ages
and capabilities would have been otherwise impossible. Some children
were responsive and genuinely interested in learning, while others were
just there to play around. Although we came to teach English, we found
in many cases it was a difficult task because we could not speak enough
Nepali to properly instruct or convey what we meant in terms of
activities and tasks. Nevertheless, we found the children were
enthusiastic about the centre and loved coming there, which made opening
the centre every morning worthwhile, especially when there would be kids
waiting every morning without fail at the top of the hill for us.
During the day, we spent our time teaching English
at the local government secondary school. Teaching at the school was an
impossible task - the children were not at all interested in anything we
had to say, and generally, if the teachers did not feel like teaching
they would send us to their class. Often they would ask us to teach
subjects such as Social Science; even though we explained numerous times
that, we were unable to speak Nepali. Making the task harder was the
outdated English textbooks, which contained numerous spelling and
grammatical errors, and inaccurate information about different
countries. Something INFO could consider is providing this school with
more appropriate textbooks (we found some really interesting and
colorful textbooks for about 65 Indian Rupees). We often left the
school feeling frustrated because we were achieving little to nothing
there and as were not provided with anything else to do during the day
it was our only option to return there each day.
Our afternoons were spent 5 – 6.30pm at the
Resource center again. This was by far the most productive part of our
day. Only three students came each session, but they had excellent
English skills, and this ability to properly communicate meant that we
were able to teach them about more complex and advanced topics. The kids
that attended this session were also two of the children from next door.
Jeevan and Pradip made our experience in the village - they provided us
with so much information, company, fun, and a real desire to learn and
we will never ever forget them.
Our host family was also very kind, Laxman was
always willing to help, and Sita provided us with delicious Dahl baht
constantly.
One thing we would suggest if you go to this
placement is take a mosquito net and maybe insect spray because we had a
few problems with the world's largest spiders.
Overall, the placement in Nirmil Pokhari has its
ups and downs. Leaving the resource centre, which will now stay closed
until another volunteer arrives is disappointing, as the children do not
have any continuity in their learning. The centre is well stocked with
books – however they are aimed at kids with a far more advanced grasp of
English. A great benefit would be to provide some simple children's
books that would help them develop their English.
Natalia Pratt - USA
15th Oct 2007
Wow!
What an experience. I arrived in Katmandu, and instantly started
exploring the city-which is busy with cars, motorcycles, people, cows,
bicycles, and horns. Katmandu never sleeps it seems. One of the first
nights, all the volunteers were welcomed into Happy Home, where we ate
Dal Bhaat for the first time, eating it traditionally, forming balls of
rice and dal with our hands, and scooping it into our mouths. A little
awkward for someone who has grown up being told not to eat with your
hands-right? We all danced and had fun getting to know each other, and
also got some insight on what the program, which we had signed up with
to volunteer for, was really about. Everyone was so warm and welcoming.
We spent the first week learning all the Nepali that we could in the
class with Rama, and practicing all that we could in the streets and at
restaurants with the locals. It was so fun to be able to say even just
one sentence correctly in a restaurant, at a roadside shop, or in our
hotel at Cosmic. After this week, we were off to training in Dhulikhel.
Dhulikhel was amazing! INFO arranged us to meet up
with a young man named Pashupati -what a character! He warmly welcomed
us to his village, showed us around, and inquired about our lives. My
buddy and I stayed in different houses, getting to experience 2
families. My family was great-so open to getting to know you, teach you
about their culture and let you witness their everyday lives. I had 2
sisters, 1 brother, and a mom and dad. We all sat in one room and ate
Dal Bhaat on the dirt floors, and then I shared pictures of my home and
family with them, all while trying my best to use the Nepali I had
learned. They really appreciate when try to speak their language-even if
it is not perfect-and even if you only remember 2 words. Training left a
great impression on me, and I was ready to be placed in a village to do
my volunteering and to meet some more amazing people.
I was placed for one month in Shyabrubensi, which is north of Kathmandu,
in the Lang Tang region. The bus ride out there was killer, but once we
got there and met our family, everything was great. We volunteered in a
children's resource center, where kids came before school and after
school to learn English and to play. We had the older kids in the
mornings from 7-9am, and the younger kids in the evening from 4-6pm. We
learned that we could do educational activities in the morning, which
the older kids enjoyed and understood. However, in the evenings, there
was too wide of a range in ages and abilities to have a "formal"
educational lesson be successful. With this group, we adopted a more
casual way of teaching and had a lot of fun teaching them things through
activities and games. The kids are great, so alive and full of energy,
eager to learn and show you their progress. It is crazy to think that
these kids get up, at their own will, 3 hours before they have to go to
school, just to get an extra 2 hour a day to learn something more. What
dedication and respect they have for their education. I will definitely
never forget what I felt while I was in Shyabrubensi, nor what I learned
from this experience.
The people who I met in the streets, at
restaurants, in the village, at the resource center, on a hike, or just
those who I exchanged a warm "Namaste!" with, will leave a print on my
heart forever.
My Volunteer Experience.
Sarah Cooke, Australia.
Nirmal Pokhari
15th Nov 2007
My experience in Nepal with INFO
has been absolutely amazing. I arrived by myself but four other
volunteers arrived at the same time so we became friends and met
often during my time in Nepal. We started with sight seeing around
Kathmandu and a Nepali language course. Rama, my Nepali teacher, was
fantastic. Not only did she teach us some basic Nepali she also gave
us some much needed cultural knowledge. We then spent one night at a
training village. I stayed with a very poor family so it was
confronting and eye opening, a once in a lifetime experience. I then
headed to Pokhara with the other volunteers. We had some free time
there to relax and explore. Unfortunately, Saskia, the volunteer I
was paired up with, and I became ill with food poisoning. We visited
a great doctor, received anti-biotics and soon recovered. We then
headed to our placement at Nirmal Pokhari. Nirmal Pokhari is a
stunningly beautiful village at the top of a mountain. It has
breathtaking views on the Pokhara valley and the Himalaya.
The villagers are all very
welcoming and respectful; we were greeted with cheerful 'namaste!'s
wherever we ventured. The host family there were hospitable and
loving. Sita, the host mother, is a fantastic cook and she makes
sure you do not go hungry! There were approximately 25 students who
frequented the resource centre for our lessons. They were energetic
and enthusiastic! Saskia and I also taught at the
local secondary school for a few hours most days. The teachers are
very grateful to have volunteers come to help with their own, and
the students, English
pronunciation. The students were very curious and sometimes we felt
like animals in the zoo, always observed with great interest.
Overall the experience was fantastic. I recommend INFO Nepal to all
travelers who have a passion for new, and sometimes challenging,
experiences. What I have learnt and experienced here will stay with
me forever.
INFO Nepal - Monthly Newsletter
September 2007
THE NEW CHITWAN
HAPPY HOME IS UP AND RUNNING!!
We
have some very good news regarding our new Happy Home in Chitwan. It is finally
up and running! On September 6th, after having moved in all the
materials, four INFO Nepal volunteers and one Nepali staff member welcomed the
13 children to the New Happy Home. The children are 6 to 9 years old. They
attend an English Medium School every day, from nursery through class 2. Three
of the children are from the Happy Home in Kathmandu, four are from Sauraha, and
six were brought from the Goljung region of Langtang.
Thanks to our volunteer and staff, everything seems to be
running quite smoothly at the Happy Home. The lice and scabies from the
children’s hair and arms are gone (thanks in great part to Helen Henderson’s
nursing skills!), and the children have adjusted to their new environment.
At the new Happy Home, we have built nine rooms – one
kitchen, one dining room, one large study hall, two rooms for volunteers, and
four rooms for the children. There is, additionally, a beautiful garden and
playground in the backyard, a library of 500 books, some games (including the
much-loved Caram Board), a fridge/freezer, and even a TV/DVD!
Past volunteers may remember Tenjing, Mingma, and Sarita
from the Happy Home in Kathmandu. To update you on what they think of their new
lives in Ganganagar, Chitwan: Tenjing is very happy to be in Chitwan Happy Home
but he is missing Nawarash. Mingma is enjoying the rural setting, as she is
able to go to the Rapatip River on the weekends for fishing. She is also being
a very good help to Mumy as well as the other children. Sarita was a little
worried about the heat of Chitwan at first, but has now realized that when
winter arrives she will still be able to take hot showers, so now she is quite
happy! All three children, being very experienced in the running of Happy Home,
have now taken on leadership roles in Chitwan.
We
would like to thank Colm McKeown, Helen Henderson, Annelen Schartner, and Roland
Trauer for their help in the first month of operation at the Happy Home.
Without their help and input, such a smooth start to our Happy Home would not
have been possible.
F.Y.I. We will be sending our children back to their
villages for the Dashain Festival. When they return, we will make a two-year
plan for each child. If you are hoping to sponsor a child, please contact us
and we will send you the children’s details after Dashain, when the children
have returned from their villages.
OUR
NEWEST PLACEMENT
– SOLOKHUMBU
DISTRICT
Thanks to our volunteer, Spela Sebjanic, we have started a
new placement in the Solokhumbu area of Nepal.
Spela traveled independently to this region, wanting to make contact with a more
remote, and just as direly in need, place. Upon her return, Spela couldn’t say enough
good things about her school and host family. This peaked the attention of
another volunteer, Andrea Fall. She promptly dropped her plan to go to Pokhara,
and instead journeyed the 11 hour bus ride and 5 day walk to get to Mude. She
will be there for 6 weeks teaching English at the local school.
Because
of the initiative of these two volunteers, INFO has decided to expand the
placement in this area of Nepal. We have now made contact with three remote
hillside schools in Solokhumbu, all a 1-hour walk from one another. Roughly
200km East of Kathmandu, and home of Mount Everest, Solokhumbu is now our most
remote placement.
One
of the three schools with whom we have made contact has now received two
volunteers, but the other schools have never had a volunteer and they are very
eager to receive help from our future volunteers. For those with English skills
and teaching confidence, do not hesitate to experience the unique and
wonderfully friendly culture of the Solokhumbu area while helping to improve the
quality of teaching in this remote area of Nepal.
To hear more about our volunteers’
experiences in this placement, contact them at:
Spela:
spela.sebjanic@gmail.com
Andrea:
andrea_fall@freemail.hu
To receive more details about the three
placements we have established in the Solokhumbu area, contact Brittany or Asim
at infonepal@mail.com.np
OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW
September marked the end of Mr. Ryan Betters' time
at INFO Nepal. He had worked as our Volunteer Coordinator for 10 months,
being a reliable and helpful figure for the staff and volunteers. We were
very sad to see him go and we will miss him terribly.
The good news, however, is that in his place we
have found a fantastic replacement. Brittany Sears started as the new
Volunteer Coordinator at the end of August and has quickly learned the ropes
here at INFO Nepal. Please direct any future queries to her.
Ed Kerry, 14th
August – 14th September 2007
Placement in Thula
Khet, Pokhara
Arriving at Kathmandu airport was a
bewildering experience, with about thirty taxi drivers all trying to grab my
bags and lead me to their car. Somehow, I managed to meet up with another Info
volunteer and we were soon on our way to the guesthouse for the first night. The
traffic was incredible to watch, and we had our first accident (a minor bump)
within 10 minutes! Bicky took us out to dinner and made us feel very welcome,
and the next day we moved to the Happy Home orphanage.
All the children had been moved from Happy
Home as the new orphanage in Chitwan was about to open, so there were only
volunteers staying in Kathmandu. I had a few days of sightseeing, cultural
training and language lessons, which were very useful for bartering in the shops
of Thamel! I was able to practice the language more at the training village
where I spent one night with a host family to get a taste of Nepali life. The
family was very hospitable and made me feel welcome with a huge plate of dhal
baat and a comfortable room.
My placement was at a resource centre in
the village of Thulakhet, about an hour's bus journey from Pokhara. It made for
a relaxing and very welcome change from the noise and pollution of Kathmandu.
The host family was again very welcoming, and made me feel like part of the
family. I was allowed to help with a few household tasks such as cutting grass
for the buffalo, but they were very concerned about me getting too tired and
often refused to let me help! The village is in a beautiful location, at the end
of the Pokhara valley, with the lake and city just visible. There is a perfectly
clear river that is great for swimming, and you can see the Annapurna peaks on a
clear day. The room was quite basic, with a very healthy complement of rats,
spiders and cockroaches, and a mattress made of wood, but I soon became
accustomed to it and eventually found it quite cosy!
A typical day at the placement involved
getting up at about 6am, teaching one class from 7-8am, and another from 8-9am.
The first class had anything from 3 to 15 children in it, aged around 2-5 years
old, and it was hard to teach them anything more advanced than the alphabet, so
this lesson usually descended into chaos and plenty of clapping, running and
jumping games! The second lesson had children aged from 7 to 10, and was much
more relaxed. I was able to teach a range of different things, from the months
of the year, past and future tense, geography, different musical instruments,
animals and likes and dislikes. The standard of English was variable, and some
students struggled. The more advanced children would often finish their own work
and then take over from the weaker children, simply writing in their books.
There seems to be an attitude that as long as the work is completed, it does not
matter who wrote or understood it. I made some headway in changing this.
After my morning classes at the centre, I
volunteered at the nearby primary school, which was a bit of a shock. The school
had five classes and only four teachers. However, the teachers spent the
majority of the day chatting in the staff room, so usually at least three
classes were without supervision. Teaching here was a challenge, as the children
would copy things from the board without trying to comprehend what I was saying.
I observed this behaviour in Nepali, history and maths classes as well, and the
teachers accepted it as unchangeable. The teacher's level of English was quite
poor, and they admitted that they sometimes had difficulty with the textbook! I
had to point out to them where England was on a map. The school had no resources
to speak of, and it was not a good advertisement for government education. It
did show that the resource centre was working well, as the children that
attended had a much better understanding of English than those that relied
solely on the school!
In the evening, I would teach another class
of slightly older students at the resource centre, most of them attending the
nearby secondary school. It seems that the standard of education improves
dramatically at secondary level in Thulakhet, as the English spoken in this
class covered similar topics to the morning, but at much faster pace and in more
depth. All the students had confidence and ability with both spoken and written
English, and look forward to the classes immensely. They were very unhappy when
Saturday arrived and no lessons took place!
I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Thulakhet
and Nepal. As well as teaching, I managed to spend a weekend in the Chitwan
jungle, and take a 5-day trek around Pokhara. Unfortunately visiting during the
monsoon meant that the clouds obscured the mountains and the leeches were out in
force, but this did not distract from the experience. I would certainly
recommend spending time in beautiful Thulakhet with the wonderful host family. I
am certain that the volunteers, resource centre and InfoNepal are making a truly
positive impact on the children of the village.
Anisha Patel – UK
Trekking
Rising at the crack of dawn to walk for an
average of 7 hours a day, hauling yourself uphill backpack in tow, struggling
not to slip in 6 inches of snow and a serious lack of hot showers may not seem
like everyone’s ideal way to spend 4 days – but put yourself in the stunning
surroundings of the Annapurna mountain range, with breathe-taking views, fresh
air, and isolation from the commotion of city life, and you may have one of the
most unforgettable and amazing experiences of your life.
When I was initially planning my gap year
travelling, I knew Nepal had to be one of my stops: not only to absorb the
culture of such a fascinating and diverse nation, but also to experience the
enormity of natural beauty it had to offer. It was my first time doing serious
trekking, so naturally I was concerned at my ability to do it, but the team at
INFO was ever- obliging and great in reassuring me, especially Bicky, who
accompanied us as our very entertaining and good-humored guide.
Though tough at times, the overall
experience of the trek was fantastic – I don’t think I have ever done anything
as physically challenging that left me with such a sense of accomplishment at
the end. The diverse landscape also meant you were constantly taking in a range
of views of the vast terrain: from lush green covered hills, to blankets of
fresh snow and muddy woodland. 
Even though The Royal Trek is one of the
easier treks, there were some grueling parts (especially since I am not the
epitome of fitness): at one point, we had to climb 3,300 steps up to Ulleri, the
village where we spent our first night. After what felt like a never ending
experience, especially as the sun had disappeared, and being extremely sweaty
from the mornings stretch, all I wanted to do was have a nice hot shower, and
not climb thousands of steps uphill. Getting to the top was tremendously
fulfilling though, as well as a great relief, and it was exciting to see our
first bits of snow. Having some snow on the trek definitely turned out to be a
lot of fun – the boys certainly enjoyed attempting to play various sports using
snow, including heading a ‘football’ and using a stick as a make-shift baseball
bat. It also added to the picturesque surroundings, which were so tranquil and
beautiful – at times, I felt like I was walking through the forests in Narnia. I
remember a moment when we got to the top of a snow-topped peak, we were greeted
with the most amazing 360 degree view of the mountain range – it was brilliant!
But sometimes, it became less visually appealing, and posed as an additional
obstacle…
Walking downhill in the snow turned out to
be a more arduous and difficult task than it first appeared, and after slipping
and falling more than a few times, I found myself wishing for a pair of ski’s –
it would’ve been faster and probably a lot easier! The boys were slightly more
adventurous than me going down the big slopes – they just slid down on their
bums! Something I refused to do at first, because let’s face it; frost bite on
your behind is never a good thing. I must admit at one point, I became
increasingly infuriated at my lack of pace compared to them and attempted to
crouch and slide down a hill. But whilst I tried not to get too close to the
edge (as there was a considerable drop down), I managed to flip myself over onto
my side and crashed into the guys. Not so good, but very entertaining for the
rest of the group…
Climbing Poon Hill to see the sunrise was
an incredible highlight – though getting up at 5am and then going out into the
bitter cold and total darkness of the early hours, aided by only a torch to
climb 400m was not my idea of the perfect Sunday morning. Nevertheless, making
it to the top in time to see the luminous hue of orange creeping into the
sapphire blue skyline, casting its warm rays onto the snow capped mountains
whilst sipping on hot chocolate was absolutely sumptuous. What came to follow
the spectacle of the sunrise, however, was possibly the hardest thing I have
done – I think I pushed every bone, muscle, ligament, and all my other body
parts to the maximum. We knew we had a good 8-9 hour walk ahead of us, so we set
off early, walking 5 hours straight. After the first few hours, the sun had gone
away, and the surfaces seemed more slippery than usual. I was beginning to
think, “Why am I doing this to myself?” - I was cold, tired, and hungry, my
feet were wet, and it felt like our destination was miles away. Regardless,
after a quick stop for lunch, we carried on another 3 hours to Ghandruk, our
resting place for the night. I’ve never been happier to see a trekker’s lodge
than I was at that moment. I remember hugging Bicky and saying, “We did it!” –
10 ½ hours of walking, finishing in one day what most people take a day and a
half to do.
Sometimes the best part of trekking was
reaching your destination triumphantly, the trekkers lodge, at the end of a
day’s walk. With cold, often wet feet, exhausted, and in need of a hearty meal,
it was almost decadent warming myself by a nice fire with a hot cup of tea,
accompanied by other trekkers from all over the world. The lodges, though basic,
boasted a lively, spirited atmosphere - with only our banter to keep us
entertained, we sat around the fire exchanging life and travel stories. It was
also great being able eating copious amounts of food as this was probably one of
the only times that I could eat so many carbs without wanting to kill myself!
Finally, the evenings would end with people dropping into their beds one by one
at shamefully early hours (I think 7:30pm was the most disgraceful of my bed
times…).
At the end of the trek, I was left with
blistered feet, bruised toe nails and aching muscles – but I also had the most
amazing and cherished memories of a fantastic expedition that rounded up my
experience in Nepal perfectly – all thanks to the brilliant team at INFO Nepal.
I’m already planning when I can return to try a more challenging trek!
Orphanage
Placement
I have to admit, being the first stop in
our travels, and our first placement, the thought of staying here for a month
was a bit daunting – but at the same time, exciting, because I knew I would
learn so much from it. I had decided that I wanted to volunteer in an orphanage
rather than teach because I wanted to really give something back to children who
weren’t as fortunate as me to have a stable family growing up.
Having stayed at the Happy Home for the
first two weeks, any daunting thoughts were firmly expelled – the warm,
welcoming atmosphere created by Asim and his family really made me and Menisha
feel at home. He had warned us though that the orphanage we would be placed at
wouldn’t be as comfortable as the Happy Home, which was described as the ‘Club
Med’ of orphanages. But I had gone in with no preconceptions, and the beautiful,
beaming smiles from the innocent faces of the children was enough to settle us
in. They were what I can only describe as amazing – full of life, energetic, and
always polite and courteous. I often found myself thinking back to how children
in the UK had lost these basic childhood traits. All the children we had met in
Nepal had been absolute gems, and the children at the orphanage were no
exception. I was deeply touched by how cheerful and content they were with what
little they had, and how much love they showed us: they were always singing and
dancing with us, making us gifts, and above all, smiling. I wondered if I would
have anything to offer them, and whether I could make a long-lasting
difference. 
We mainly helped with the daily runnings of
the orphanage. At only 22 years old, Ram looks after all the children at the
orphanage, as well as his own two young boys. He’s the same age as me, but you’d
never guess it. He does so much more than just running the orphanage; he is like
a father figure, or at least an older brother, to all the children. It’s quite
remarkable how selfless this young man is – there is so much genuine love from
his heart to every one of these children. During the week we would help get the
children ready for school, getting them their breakfast and making sure they
were washed and that their homework was done. The evenings would involve us
helping them with their homework, playing with them, and serving them dinner,
before seeing them off to bed. It’s emotionally and physically draining work
looking after 31 kids, especially when you consider the extremely tragic and
heartbreaking circumstances of most the children, their ages ranging from 3 to
15. You can understand why they crave the love and attention. It’s incredible
to think Ram normally does this single-handedly.
His hospitality to us was unbelievable; he
was always looking out for us and making sure we were comfortable and happy. He
often took us out to explore the charming village of Dhapasi whilst the children
were at school, and took great care of us. It was rewarding to show him our
appreciation for his kindness by helping him with his English - he had such a
determination to learn, and it was a pleasure to help him, as well as the
children with their studies. There were some real bright sparks amongst the
children - their English is surprisingly good, better than I would have thought,
really putting my knowledge of two sentences of Nepali to shame!
It was difficult at times as my energy
levels tended to wane, but I had to keep remembering why I was there and what I
was doing. It was heart-warming seeing them after they got home from school or
after we returned from a days’ outings, watching them pour onto the balcony from
below, waving and shouts of ‘Hello Anisha sister’. Sometimes, your presence
means so much to them: just being there for them and giving them support whilst
teaching them a few basic life skills along the way was appreciated so much.
William, the previous volunteer, had taught the children valuable lessons, such
as always washing their hands before and after a meal, and they took great pride
in holding their soap scented hands to our noses to show that they had
remembered. 
Our last day there was particularly
memorable – we had bought the children a new football to play with, and some
sweets and chocolates. It was fantastic seeing the children sitting patiently
waiting for us to hand them their treats, as opposed to crowding around us
chaotically as we’d experienced when we first arrived. We had showed them how to
be orderly, patient and wait their turn. They also had a lovely leaving ceremony
for us, where we were completely showered with flowers, hugs and kisses, and had
more red powder thrown at us, after having just removed the last remains from
Holi. It was so sad leaving them and saying our goodbyes – as our cab pulled
away they once again poured onto the balcony waving, faces still beaming.
One of the young girls whispered to me as I
left, “Never forget us” – and I never will. Nor will they forget us. It was an
absolutely brilliant and worthwhile experience, and I learnt that although you
might not change their world completely, you can still give them hope for a
better future.
Dimple’s Placement – Street Children
Project, Pokhara
Well where can I start, this has been the
most amazing and unique experience of my life. When I first arrived in
Kathmandu. I was incredibly nervous but those nerves soon went away after
meeting other volunteers. I had so much fun meeting everyone else in my group
and sightseeing. We spent a few days getting used to the culture and the food,
learning Nepali was helpful with my placement. The training village was a major
cultural shock on the first night and I barely slept but the next few days went
by too quickly. I really enjoyed hiking up to see what Pashupati called 'heaven'
and it really was. The views were spectacular and what amazed me even more was
how a single rock kept five volunteers and three kids amused for almost two
hours. Life at the training village was difficult at times, (We didn’t shower
for two days) but it’s the families that make your stay memorable.
After returning from Dhulikhel (and after a
much needed hot shower) we went for dinner (…and drinks) at happy home. We were
out until two in the morning knowing we had a 6 o'clock start the next day. We
spent the next two days rafting and camping. It was a challenge trying to sleep
in a hot tent with scorpions around us but we managed a good two hours. Chitwan
was a lot more luxurious (…we had a bed to sleep on). I will never forget riding
the elephant into the river and bathing it.
After all the activities, I arrived at my
placement in Pokhara only to be down and out with flu. Ramesh my host father was
a great help in looking after me for the next few days. I spent just under three
weeks at my placement at the orphanage. The kids were brilliant and I wish I
were there another month. I was excited when Asim gave us money to decorate the
classroom and it now looks like a place where children can learn. The kids
despite their naughty outbursts were very cute and I did contemplate sneaking
one into my suitcase. We laughed, we played, we had so much fun being creative
with the resources we had. On my last day I had a mixture of emotions, I was
extremely sad to leave but I was happy knowing that I had contributed to the
orphanage in some way.
It has been difficult to say bye to Nepal.
I have shared some unforgettable moments with amazing people and I hope I can
return someday very soon.
Jon and Rachel
Nirmal Pokhari, Pokhara
We spent nearly 2
weeks at the Nimal Pokhari placement. It is about an hour bus ride from Pokhara
in a hilly jungle area. It is a lush area, they grow bananas, coffee, pineapples
and oranges. We helped plant rice when we were there. We stayed with a lovely
family who cooked really great food everyday and invited us to a family wedding.
The placement in
the resource library was fun and very popular with the children. Lots of the
older children can already speak quite good English due to private school
education and especially loved the games we played at the library. The younger
children really seemed to benefit from the extra English.
We also visited
the orphanage in Pokhara for street kids. It is a new project that Info Nepal is
beginning to support and seems to be very worthwhile.
Sue Thomas' report
- July/Aug 07
Pokhara
After a quick training in Kathmandu,
including excellent Nepali lessons from Rama and a memorable visit to the
training village of Dhulikhel , I was quickly off to Pokhara to work at a new
orphanage for street children for a 14 day placement.
James – my co-volunteer – and I taught
English in the mornings to about 22 children ranging from 5 – 14 yrs.. We also
took them off to play football, and had visits for splashing and washing at a
local "waterfall", and generally got totally involved with life at the
orphanage.
I had brought musical instruments with me
- bells, claves, triangles, drums, a guiro, a slidewhistle, a gazoo – also lots
of scarves ( wish I had brought more) - and my lessons were almost totally music
based – singing, playing. using scarves and dancing – but teaching them English
through this medium. I had the most enormous fun doing this – and the kids
responded with enormous enthusiasm.
This has been the most magical 3 weeks for
me – meeting so many wonderful, friendly Nepali people, living in Pokhara with
probably the most hospitable family(Ramesh and Deeta ) you could ever meet,
and really experiencing Nepali life - and food!The children, who had nothing
but the clothes they stood up in, gave out so much love and friendship and fun –
I will never forget them.
INFO Nepal - Monthly Newsletter
August 2007
New Happy
Home in Kathmandu
Due to the daily rain, the work at the new
Happy Home in Kathmandu is going slowly. The stairs and plastering outside will
soon be finished.
The compound around the home is
finished and the water supply and electricity also finished. The door and
windows are waiting for the glass to be fixed in.
Happy Home in
Chitwan
Dear all,
We have very happy news for this month -
we are heading to Chitwan with 10 Orphanage children very soon to accommodate
them at our Happy Home in Chitwan, Ganganagar. In my last visit there, I found a
good school where all of our children can go and this is just 15 minutes walking
distance from Happy Home. I have found a woman who can provide care
for our children and we are looking for another woman who can help with the cooking and
cleaning. We will be hiring a girl from the village who can teach the children
in the morning and evening and make sure that they are well dressed for school
with all the right books and homework completed. The girl will also help the
children with morning exercise, teaching songs, dance and making them more
sociable.
We are also looking for long term
volunteers (a couple would be good), to look after all the administration and act as
parents for these children. We would like to give a big thanks to those who have
donated money towards this project. There is an attachment on this newsletter with all the details of
expenses for the new Happy Home at Ganganagar, Chitwan.
Thanks to Jim ji and Jenny Frink from UK, Alan from USA,
and Nicky, John, Antja, Merly and Affica from Ireland who have contributed to this project.
Thanks to Nick and
Brian
All the INFO Nepal staff would like to
thank Nick and Brian, the volunteers who have just finished with us. They have
helped us manage our accounts, our incoming volunteers, the host families and
the placements. Nick ji we will miss your support at the office and Brian ji we
will miss your friendliness and your help taking volunteers out to show them the
Nepali way. It was really a great help from Nick and Brian in July as
we had 40 new volunteers coming at that time.
London reunion
To celebrate INFO Nepal's 7th
Anniversary, some of our past volunteers from the UK are going to organise
an INFO Nepal Reunion Day on the 22nd September in London. We are looking at
meeting in Oxford to take advantage of the inexpensive housing during summer
break. Ryan Betters, who has come to join INFO Nepal 7 times,
is going to lead this event. If you are interested in attending this event then please
contact Ryan at rdb2114@columbia.edu. If you want to buy
something from Nepal (pashmina, etc) then please write us an email at
infonepal@mail.com.np so that we can
send the stuff from here - the profit of these sales will go towards our
Happy Home children's recreation activities in Chitwan.
New Projects -
Pokhara Street Children
From this July, we are starting a new
project in Pokhara that is "Street Children Education support" . So far we
now have four projects in Pokhara where we can place 8 volunteers and group
volunteers will be the best way forward for these placements. We have placed volunteers
at the Street Children Shelter home in Pokhara and they have supported children
with their homework
and given extra teaching. Last week we donated blankets and beds for the children.
Soon we are heading there with bunk beds and to set up a classroom inside the
home. There are 27 children aged 7 to 13 years old. We need volunteers who can
teach extra activities, songs, dance and some physical activities.
Donation for
New Happy Home in Chitwan - Marie McIvor, Ireland
Where to begin?! I have had the most
amazing time in Nepal and INFO has been brilliant! This was our (myself and
Aifric, my traveling buddy) first volunteering experience and I am already
planning when I will be able to come back!
Firstly we had training and sightseeing
in Kathmandu, the language training was great fun and Rama, our teacher,S
also told us a bit about the culture and people as well. Everything was
taken care of by INFO and the organization was great! I love this city, so
much to do and so alive, everyone should come to Nepal, it’s like nowhere
else! We had also raised extra money for the charity and it was great that
we were able to have a say in where it went. It went to a new Happy home
for 20 children. With the money we raised we were able to practically
finish the building!
Our training village was
Dhulikhel and the family we stayed with were wonderful. The mountains were
a breathtaking sight (especially for us islanders who have no national
mountains to speak of!). There were several families living together, lots
of children, and right from the beginning we were made to feel at home.
They welcomed us and we were soon part of the family! We even got treated
as daughters of the house during a festival and were immersed in the family
spirit!
While sightseeing in the area we got
stuck on our way home. It was pouring rain and due to a landslide we
couldn’t walk home, we were forced to take a local bus. Not to be outdone
by the weather Aifric, Pashurpati (our charismatic guide) and I climbed onto
the roof of the bus and held on as we hurtled down the mountainside taking
hairpin bends at great speed and feeling the pelting rain on our faces. It
was over too soon, but it is something I will never forget.
Our placement was in
Sauraha, Chitwan. We lived in the orphanage with the children and I’m at a
loss as to how to describe what our time there was like. There are 14
children in all, ranging in age from 11 to 19 years. They have created a
family for themselves and I have never seen anything like the familial bond
they have with each other. They showed us around, taught us about the area,
entertained us and we in turn helped with homework, held competitions,
corrected English and generally helped wile away their summer holidays. We
also bought things for the orphanage with the money we had raised and took
them on as many outings as we could think of! Aamaa took such great care of
us and the food was wonderful, we even tried to help with the cooking! The
children appreciated everything we did for them and were so loving, it was
easy to forget that we were not all related; I left with 14 new siblings.
During our last week in
Sauraha we also helped out in the local resource centre and library close
by. We taught 5 classes a day, to children ranging from 4 to 17 years. The
children were so eager to come in and learn, it was a joy to see them
everyday. We were also lucky enough to be there for national teacher’s day
(Guru Puja). One of the older classes made us traditional festival food and
we were given tika by the class, talk about feeling appreciated!
In all my traveling I have
never been so sad to leave a place. Our last night was such fun, we threw a
party and despite a power cut at the beginning, had food, presents for all,
music and dancing and a big chat about everything we learned, did and would
miss about our time in Nepal. The stars were out in force and my most fond
memory of my month here is looking up at the clear Chitwan sky, surrounded
by children, and marveling at all I’ve experienced.
Thank you to everyone at
INFO! It has been the most eye opening, fulfilling month of my life. My
only regret is that I will not be able to describe my experiences well
enough to truly show how much the children and my whole experience has meant
to me
Tracy Gaertner,
Canada
Placements in:
Sauraha, Chitwan 1 month
Ganganagar, Chitwan 10 days
Devi's Falls, Pokhara 10 days
I had the chance to work with many
different children during my 2 months volunteering with INFO Nepal, and stayed
with three different families. My first placement in Sauraha, Chitwan, I stayed
for 1 month and was received with true warmth and welcome. My host family was
absolutely amazing, spoiling me with attention and kindness. It was there that
I was fortunate enough to witness firsthand the generosity of the local people.
I worked in the resource centre there 6 days a week, teaching English and
playing games. In all three of my placements, I was met with groups of amazing
children who were eager to learn, play, sing, dance, and share their knowledge.
My experience here was vastly memorable and full of many surprises and
hardships, and I am already looking forward to my return in the future. INFO
Nepal is a wonderful organization that allows volunteers to really be a part of
a community and family while providing many important services throughout Nepal
to those most in need. The staff offer various level of support and guidance
throughout your visit, and were an amazing group to be a part of for a short
while. I wish them all the best, and am ever grateful to my family in Magartole
who let me be a part of their life.
Arthur - Hong Kong
- Ganganagar Health and Sanitation program.
I was born in Hong Kong and have been
living there for 19 years, brought up in a traditional Chinese family, breathing
the air of Chinese culture. It was not until two years ago when I decided to go
to the UK to study medicine that I had my first glimpse of the world outside.
There are so many things to learn from other countries that I started to switch
my mind to focus more on international issues. In medical school, there are a
lot of volunteering opportunities to offer help to people in the third world
countries by offering medical services. Most of my colleagues have done quite a
lot of volunteer work before but I did not have any experience in this field and
because of the heavy workload in medical school, I could not spare extra time
doing those services. To do something to make this world a better place has
always been the reason why I chose medicine as my career. However, I felt that I
lack the skills and the experience to do this.
Finally in this summer 2007, I decided to
come to Nepal to do some volunteering work, gain some new skills and learn more
about my weakness. I went to Ganganagar in Chitwan to work for a local health
post in Patihani VDC. The health post is sort of like primary health care
clinic, mainly dealing with some general health problems such as cut wounds, eye
irritation, fever, inflammation etc. It also deals with specific diseases such
as eczema, fungal infection, TB etc. You may find the place a bit empty on your
first impression as it only has basic medical equipments in place, and the
interior setting of the clinic is a bit disorganized. However, the health post
plays a crucial role in taking care of the health of the people in the village.
During my two weeks' stay there, I learnt a lot of things from there, including
getting to know how the health care system works in the area, the public health
data of the area, the local health knowledge and health believes of the people,
and the treatment approaches used by the local health care workers. It was a
good opportunity to compare the local health care system with that of the
western world. My observation skills and my critical thinking skills were
strengthened when I thought of the changes and improvements that could be done
to the clinic. The people working in the clinic are nice and friendly, I felt to
be welcomed and I had a memorable time working with them. The Sitamai area,
which is 15 minutes away from my host family by bike, is a poor area of the
village. The hygiene condition is not appreciating in the area, with people
having lots of health problems; however, they do not have money to go to see the
doctor. I offered help to them by taking some of the children to the health post
to get treatment and medication. 
In my spare time, I spent most of my time
with my host family and the people living nearby. I helped out with rice grain
planting and harvesting, corn harvesting etc. That was my first time being in a
village and I had a good taste of the village life and was totally immersed into
the culture by doing daily routine activities with the people. The village life
of Nepal is simple yet happening. The village people there were very close with
each other and it was fascinating to see heaps of things happening in a small
place in two weeks' time. I love the kids most, they are very free-spirited and
it was fulfilling to spend time with them.
Volunteering is absolutely fulfilling and
rewarding. All you need to do is to open up your hearts to everyone and allow
yourself to interact with people freely and openly. It was a great experience
that I would never ever forget. demonstrate.
Post Placement Report- Devi's Falls
Resource Center, July 5th – July 20th 2007
By: Hans Swenson and
Elise Chalmers
Hello INFO Nepal,
We spent several weeks in
Devi's Falls working at the resource centre. We taught English lessons mixed
with a little geography and social studies and we tried to make it fun as much
as possible by incorporating games into the lessons. The kids were great and
very enthusiastic about learning but some very firm discipline was necessary to
maintain order. If given the opportunity, some of the kids would quarrel, steal
and be dishonest so we had to keep a sharp eye on their behavior. The majority
of the kids however, were a pleasure to work with and once the rules were
understood there was productive learning for everyone there.
The classes were broken up by
age group and in the morning at 6:45 we began with kids aged 11-13 of which
about ten kids usually showed up. At 7:30, the 8-10 year old group came in which
was about the same amount. We taught almost identical lessons to these two
groups because many of the younger kids were more capable in English than the
kids in the older group. Over the course of our time there we taught lessons on
the use of plurals, apostrophes, contractions and basic world geography. We had
them practise writing sentences in their copy books using the things they had
learned from the English lessons. The geography was limited to continents,
oceans, a few key countries in Asia and where volunteers came from since the
kids were always curious about our homes. If everyone cooperated and finished
their assignments quickly we would often finish with a short game. They
absolutely loved the games. Every game we played was enjoyed by the kids.
In the evening at
5:30, we had 5-7 year olds come in for half an hour. This group was usually less
than half a dozen kids and they spoke almost no English. We tried to get them to
speak as much as possible with lessons on basic greetings, how to ask for
things, and some vocabulary like foods, animals and common objects. The lessons
were brief and we always rewarded their efforts with games, songs or coloring.
At 6 pm we let
all ages of kids come in for a fun activity. Sometimes as many as fifty kids
would show up and it was always chaotic. We would organize trivia games,
charades, and bingo. Sometimes we handed out crossword puzzles or word searches
with concepts from the morning lessons. These were great because the kids would
all be fairly quiet and focused for the whole time instead. Bingo was one of the
most chaotic but also the game most requested by the kids.
The lessons
seemed to be pretty successful for the most part but there were always a few
kids who had not learned as much English as the others and they struggled to
follow the activities. We felt that it would be better if we could have
developed a routine way of evaluating each child's English level and then
placing them in groups according these results instead of grouping them by age.
However this would require more time than we had so we just did our best to give
extra attention to the kids who needed it in order for them to understand what
was going on.
As for ourselves,
our accommodations were quite comfortable and the dahl baat was excellent. Since
we only spent about 3 hours a day working with the kids, we had plenty of free
time to explore the local area which was beautiful. It was about a ten minute
walk down to the river where we could swim and go hiking in the country. In 20
minutes we could take the local bus into Lakeside and swim in the lake or go
shopping for whatever we wanted. It was really a great place to be and the
overall experience was wonderful. We would do it again and we recommend it to
others.
Thank you INFO
Nepal for a great time.
Hans Swenson and Elise Chalmers
Namaste! from Aurielle
My time in
Nepal has been absolutely amazing. Every day has been unpredictable, new and
exciting and a big adventure. I taught English at a resource centre near Pokhara.
The kids were so full of energy, and so much fun to teach, I fell in in love with
every one of them! There was a river in the village where we went swimming, the
kids eagerly showing us the best diving spots! We played a massive game of red
rover in the village, with all of the kids; Nepali kids are so much more violent
and tough than kids back home; it made for a very interesting game!
It takes a while to
get used to the constant staring from the Nepali locals, but they are so
welcoming and warm and don’t mean anything by it, it's all just good banter!
Haggling in Thamel can actually be a lot of fun; I spent a very nice 30 minutes
haggling over a pashmina with a cup of tea and friendly, though false,
chit-chat!
My highlight would
have to be doing the bungee jump with the last resort. I still can't believe I
did it, but it was so much fun, definitely worth doing! We went trekking but saw
very little of the views due to the clouds. Still it was good fun being so high
that we were actually walking in clouds! I'd say don’t come in monsoon season, I
will definitely be back in spring one of these days to see Nepal at its best.
Pokhara is my
favorite place that I've been to. The views across the lake are beautiful and
it's so much more peaceful than Kathmandu.
Sharing my
room with cockroaches, spiders and rats was… an experience, and eating only dhal
baat everyday for 2 weeks a challenge. These are probably the only 2 things I
will be happy to leave behind.
In all other
respects I will miss Nepal and the friends I made here very much.
Thank you
INFO!
Placement Report
Name:
Argentina Hung
Country:
United Kingdom
Location: Parbatipur, Chitwan
Program:
Teach English
Placement: Resource Centre
(Library/Community Centre)
Duration: 4 weeks (July 2007)
I arrived
in Nepal at the beginning of July 2007. The first week in Nepal consisted of
mainly training and sightseeing. All volunteers had to undergo Nepal language
lessons to assist in the language barrier and culture difference. This also
included spending two days in a village called Dhulikhel, which is located just
outside Kathmandu (also known as the "training village"). I stayed with a local
"host family" in Dhulikhel and was treated with the greatest kindness. The time
I spent in Dhulikhel (although it was only two days) was memorable by the
kindness of all the people that lived in the village. I was welcomed with open
arms and made part of the village community as soon as I arrived. The children
in the village were adorable.
The second
week in Nepal was spent on two different activities. The first activity was a
visit to Chitwan Jungle Safari for three days. This meant a long 5-hour bus
ride from Kathmandu to Chitwan. The second activity was four days trekking in
Pokhara, again, a long 5-hour bus journey from Chitwan to Pokhara. Both
activities were worthwhile.
In terms of
placement, I did not have a preference in location. As a result, I was placed
at a Resource Centre (alternatively known as a Library/Community Centre) in
Parbatipur, Chitwan. This is where I spent the remainder of my time in Nepal.
I stayed with a host family located right next door to the Resource Centre! The
host family were very kind and welcoming. I spent a considerable amount of time
playing cards with the children at the host family and managed to teach them a
few new games to remember!
The
Resource Centre is simply a place where the children can go before and after
school as they wish. It is not compulsory and extremely laid back! I was able
to teach them more or less anything I wanted! This is because the Resource
Centre is not a school, hence there was no need to follow a rigid curriculum.
The
Resource Centre was open from 7-9am and 4-6pm everyday (except Saturday). Since
my placement was in July, the majority of the children were off on school
holidays, hence the Resource Centre was open longer each day. I also wanted to
teach English at a local school, but due to the school holidays, this was not
possible. The children that attended the Resource Centre aged from as little as
3 years old to 13 years old. Some children even came twice each day!
Activities in the Resource Centre included reading, drawing, coloring, playing
number and word games, singing and playing outside.
Overall,
the placement in Parbatipur was a great experience. In addition, the two days
spent in Dhulikhel was a memorable experience. I am very grateful for the warm
welcome I received from both host families and will always remember the people I
met.
INFO Nepal - Monthly Newsletter
July, 2007
Alan
Heaton’s Everest Report
A
couple of years ago I spent two months volunteering in an orphanage in Thankot,
Kathmandu. The experience was an overwhelming mix of emotions. I was instantly
taken back by the children's smiles and kindness. Many people after visiting
label the people of Nepal as 'emotional millionaires'. The poverty within Nepal
and the horrendous living conditions the orphan children have to endure on a
daily basis left me feeling helpless. Knowing my time in Nepal was very short
lived and the support I gave to the children only barely scraped the surface, I
realized that I wanted to help far more. I wanted to give the children a more
sustainable future, a chance to improve their community and live a happier life.
With this thought in mind I decided to start my own charity to raise money to go
towards sponsoring children at the Happy Home in Chitwan, with the goal of all
the money donated reaching the cause it was intended for. I decided that my
first fundraising endeavors was to be running the Everest Marathon on May the
29th 2007.
The
Tenzing Hillary Everest Marathon is considered by many high-altitude running
lovers as the ultimate race or the ultimate challenge of this form of extreme
sport . Runners endure the harsh weather and even digest altitude sickness to
participate in this Highest Marathon Racing.
I landed in Nepal early in
May after training hard and raising over $4000 back home. I spent several days
reviewing the construction work on the New Orphanage in Chitwan and met several
INFO Nepal volunteers and staff in Kathmandu. I was impressed with the
outstanding work they were doing for the children of Nepal. All that was left
was to complete my first marathon. I remember waking up at Base Camp on the day
of the event, shivering and waiting for the sun to rise above the ridge, with
Everest towering in the background. I knew even with the endless hours I put
into training in South America and England, this was going to be the hardest run
I have ever done. Starting on a moving glacier, running over boulders, down
cliffs, over rivers, across suspension bridges and then back up a mountain
finishing in Namche Bazaar. The event was a great personal achievement and one
of my proudest moments to date. I collapsed over the finishing line in 6 hours,
6 minutes and 15 seconds, finishing second in the foreign category. The biggest
winners, however, are the children, and I look to carry on fundraising for Happy
Homes for many years to come.
For more information
please visit my official website at
www.starfishpromise.com
IMPORTANT NOTICE!
We are organizing a
reunion on the 22nd of September around London for previous INFO
volunteers. Please contact us here at INFO if you would be interested in
attending, the festivities will not be something to be missed.
Balaju Children Home -
After getting admission all the children of
Birendra Peace home are very happy. We would like to give a big thanks to David
and Margaret's friends who have been sponsoring these 13 children for their
Education. Our friend Lisa is here now staying with the children who been
supporting for lodging and food for the children. A big thanks goes to Lisa
arranging a good house for these children.
Asim’s Report - My 2nd
visit to UK - June 2007
It
was not that much of a cultural shock for me this time while visiting the UK.
After having a good rest for two days I started having meetings with our friends
and volunteers. A couple of meetings went very well with our partner
organizations and we are looking forward to having more volunteers in the coming
days. The 2nd week I spent in the UK was the most memorable time in
my life. Going to Lancashire and learning all about English history was amazing
– it was hard for me at first to understand the development that took place
hundreds of years ago. I have only ever heard and read about the Industrial
Revolution in England but after seeing all the technology and engineering I
understood everything much better.
The countryside I like the
most. The people were very friendly, co-operative and helpful and I can say I
felt as thought I were home in my village. Thanks a lot to Jim-ji for making me
feel at home. The waterfalls at Worcestershire National Park was not as big as
ones I’ve seen in Nepal but people look at them the same way, to make themselves
happy and find a good mood. The people were also very serious and give a lot
more time and energy to save the environment and to preserve the animals of the
National Park. All in all it was lovely to visit the National Park although I
was disappointed not to see any one-horn rhinoceroses or tigers!
Maggie and her friends
drove me to Scotland to go sailing. The drive from Yorkshire to Glasgow was
fantastic and the scenery was a gift. The city was very beautiful and I did not
find it that hard to understand the accent. This was the first time that I have
seen a sea and gone sailing. The weather was not very happy with us at the start
of our sailing expedition but later on in the late afternoon it was fantastic
and sunny and I was able to come out and see all the blue sea for the first time
in my life, long and long, far and far, just water….The first night we stayed in
a small See luck of Mull Island which was a great experience for me.
The 2nd
night we stayed in Iona which was very exciting. It was a very peaceful village
and full of greenery. The house made out of coloured stones was a very new thing
for me. This is a place that you really need to visit once in your life. The 3rd
day sailing from Iona to Toreador was another big challenge for us as the wind
was not blowing in a good direction. We had to sail around 60 miles on that day
and after everything we made it. The maximum speed of our sailing was 9.05 miles
per hours on that day and this was while I was driving the ship. I was lucky to
have seen the see for first time in my life and also to have learned how to sail
a ship. It is very hard work but a lot of fun too. All the ropes, cables and the
challenge of nature made for quite an adventure. Anyway, I was very happy that I
didn’t get seasick.
Going to Lamington Spa and
meeting Margaret and David's family was very important as we had discuss a lot
about our organization and our sponsorship program. Thanks a lot for David and
Margaret's friends contributing to the education of Nepali children. Now
Birendra Peace Home's children have regular educational support. The meeting
with Dan and Cheryl in Worcester was a great time and I am waiting to see a
picture of their boat when it is ready so I can move there.
Again, I have never seen a
sea and to see the tide was a huge surprise for me. Anna's home is just in front
of the see in West Cliff. Meeting Emily and Anna's family made me feel like I
was at Happy Home with our volunteers.
I would like to give a big
thanks to all of our volunteers that supported me for being wonderful hosts and
making me feel at home. I am looking forward to my next trip with my wife
Namrata in the future.
Melinda’s Report – Devis
Falls
I arrived in Kathmandu on
the 14th of May for my volunteer project with INFO Nepal.
Despite
having a few issues getting here due to delayed flights, INFO head office were
totally understanding and very flexible with my arrival date. So, when I finally
arrived in Kathmandu I was greeted at the airport by Bicky – a welcomed sight at
such a chaotic airport. A great guy who works tirelessly to ensure that all new
volunteers are comfortable and well looked after (along with everyone else in
the office I might add).
The first
week of training far exceeded my expectations. The language classes were
comprehensive, the cultural training very informative and the sightseeing was an
added bonus! Staying at the Happy Home gave all the volunteers and opportunity
to get to know each other and makes you feel less like a tourist and more like a
volunteer. After returning from my 2 day stay at the training village (in
Dhulikhel) I chose to head straight to my placement in Devis Falls, Pokhara.
Arriving at Pokhara bus
station was an experience. Mobbed by taxi drivers before you even get off
the bus! My bus had arrived late so ‘Uncle’ from my host family wasn’t there to
pick me up as planned. After a phone call to Bicky it was all sorted. I
just had to fend off the 20 or so taxi drivers that decided to set up camp
around me until Uncle got there. Eventually I was on my way to my host family.
As a suggestion, perhaps a brief ‘fact sheet’ including phone numbers and
addresses could be created so that if a volunteer is stranded, they can get
themselves to the host family as phone service isn’t always available to call
the INFO office for help. (editor’s note: a fact sheet has since been created,
and all new volunteers receive a list of crucial contact numbers, instructions
and placement specific directions to help in the event of a mishap or an
emergency).
Arriving at the host
family home was both a relief and a bit unnerving. Unlike most of the
dilapidated houses in the area, the house was a newer brick house with clean
modern facilities. Unfortunately Uncle didn’t speak much English at all and my
Nepali wasn’t the best, so he wasn’t able to tell me much about the resource
centre, or where Aama and Buba were. I felt like a fish out of water…. I was
hoping that someone at some stage would be able to shed some light for me as I
hadn’t been given any information on the resource centre and what to expect.
That night, I met Buba, Aama and their two sons. The family was so welcoming and
the food was amazing. One of Aama’s sons who spoke English gave me a bit
of information about the resource centre or the ‘school’ as the locals had named
it. The school had been closed for a week since the departure of the last
volunteers so he’d have to put the word out that it was re-opening.
My first class at the
school was a bit of a shock. Kids between the ages of 5 and 13 came, some who
knew how to speak English and others who couldn’t speak a word. It was
going to be hard to tailor classes to deal with such varying degrees of language
skills. Luckily a few of the previous volunteers had kept a classroom register
with notes on what they had taught which made it a lot easier to determine what
to teach, what the kids liked and how to structure the classes. Something like
this should be maintained to help all future volunteers who arrive, especially
if they are on their own. Anyway, the kids were wild! They’d all bustle
into the classroom – almost spilling out the doors there were so many children.
A few days later, Kate,
one of the previous volunteers returned as her second placement was cancelled
due to teacher strikes in her area. Her arrival was such a relief. With as
many as 50 children or more attending some of the classes, the extra pair of
hands was really needed. Also, as Kate had taught at this school previously, she
was able to do a bit of an induction which was really helpful.
The local community at
Devis Falls didn’t appear to be as poor as some of the more remote locations of
Nepal that I had seen on my journey to the area, however, the social and
cultural issues in the community were still very real. Drugs, abuse and
alcoholism are devastating this community and the resource centre in this area
provides a safe haven for the children to come to instead of playing in the
streets. The local families were certainly appreciative of our work there
and would often come and sit outside to watch us teach the kids.
To say that my time at the
placement was smooth running from the start would be a lie. Sure, at times
we had hurdles to jump but these were equaled if not exceeded by triumphs. Being
here with these children isn’t just about teaching them English… it’s more than
that. From showing them that discipline doesn’t necessary come in the form of a
stick, teaching them about respecting the property of the school and of each
other, and encouraging them to follow their dreams and more, in the short 4
weeks I was there I could see all our hard work paying off.
Well, sadly my time here
in Nepal has come to an end. I look forward to returning some day to see all the
great work INFO Nepal has done and the positive results they have managed to
achieve. Volunteering with INFO Nepal has been an absolute pleasure – a
professional organization with such a bright future ahead of it. INFO Nepal
gives the opportunity for both volunteers to touch the lives of those less
fortunate, and for those less fortunate to touch our lives in return.
Alex’s Report – Prabatipur
When I first got to the
library in Prabatipur, the first thing I had to do was clear out the birds-nest
perched in one of the windows. Over the next two weeks I would have a running
battle with my sparrow nemesis, but I did not yet know that.
After the sparrows came
the children, in what appeared to my untutored eye to be hundreds, but was in
fact only about 20.
My time at the library
consisted of two shifts. One in the morning before the kids went to school and
one in the afternoon once they'd finished. In the mornings it was mostly the
younger kids, and the afternoon the older ones. The time was filled up with
reading, games, conversational classes, and (to the disgust of some) grammar
classes with the older ones. Although the classes were occasionally tiring on
their own, it was more the heat that was killing me, I walked around most of the
time looking like I'd just got out the bath.
The schedule left my days
free for…well…free for reading really. Here I tip my mental hat to those past
volunteers that who kindly left behind their novels. The novel section will soon
rival the more educational sections of the library!
I also started taking some
more formal English classes at the local schools (one government and one
private). As someone who has never done any teaching before it was quite
an experience, and while it's perhaps not something I would like to do for a
living, it's definitely something that I enjoyed for the time that I was there.
Throughout the time my
host family was fantastic giving the experience a feeling of stability that I
wouldn't associate with travel normally. All in all it was a great experience.
Good food, great family, great students (most of the time)
Jon and Rachel’s Report –
Gatlang
After a busy first week of
training which included sightseeing in Kathmandu, language classes, staying in
Happy Home, a short stay in Dhulikhel and a Nepali wedding we found out we would
be placed in Gatlang village in the Langtang region. We met Durga Tamang the
INFO host father from Gatlang who we took the bus with as far as Bon Dada (10-11
hours) before the road turns off to Goljung, then a two hour walk and we were at
Gatlang village and Durga’s house, where we met the rest of our family; Saki,
Durga’s wife, and Rasila and Pemba, their 2 small children.
The school building was
undergoing some construction work, which meant there was no fixed abode for the
INFO Nepal library and for the first while we would carry books, paper and pens
from the house to school and back. The classrooms are not locked and are used as
a general play area out of school hours so nothing could be left there. We
worked in the library from 7-9am then at the school from 10 until about 1pm then
at the library again from 4-6pm.
Being surrounded by such
beautiful scenery is constantly inspiring and Gatlang feels like a very special
place up in the mountains. Looking out at Langtang everyday made us want to trek
so we decided to go with Durga (who is a trekking guide) on a hike to Gosaikund,
then Langtang, and down via the Heritage Trail. It was awesome and we had
perfect weather. All the time we were trekking there was no school as the
teachers were on strike.
The school principal gave
us a lock for one of the old classrooms to keep the library in and soon we had a
regular group turning up (10-30 children at a time). Lots of the children coming
to the library sessions are quite young and mostly speak Tamang but they still
managed to pick up new English vocab. The children loved the chance to do some
drawing and colouring and soon our room was decorated with their art work. We
tried to vary the ages by making a time table but the same children kept coming
which was sometimes a little chaotic. At school the teaching was a lot more
structured for us as we taught the older classes every day and saw some real
improvement.
Overall our placement in
Gatlang was a great experience. Gatlang is a Tamang community, mostly Buddhist
and Christian with lots of interesting traditional dress. The area and culture
are fascinating and our family were lovely.
INFO Nepal - Monthly Newsletter
June, 2007
Asim’s Report
- From London
It is great again to come to
the UK and meet all of our past volunteers and partner Organizations. After
talking about our past relations and work, we had now a better idea of how to
improve our program in the future. Sailing in Scotland was a great experience
for me to see more about the culture and the nature. Thanks a lot to Maggie for
arranging this opportunity for me. The Iona is beautiful and the people are
lovely. All the Mull Islands were very beautiful. After 3 days sailing I went to
visit our Scottish co-ordinator, Liam ji. Visiting Jim ji’s place in Lancashire
was another great lesson for me in learning about the British development over
the past 200 years ago. The canals were a great idea. I was a bit surprised to
see the Boat coming from the low level up to the high level. In the country side
the people are very friendly and open. We are hoping to have more volunteers
coming to INFO Nepal in the coming days.
Ryan Betters
– Acting Director INFO-Nepal.
While Asim
has been away in the UK, Ryan Betters (long-term volunteer with INFO-Nepal), has
contributed his time and efforts to running the INFO-Nepal office in Kathmandu –
and he has been doing a fantastic job. Besides responding to volunteer’s emails
and coordinating volunteer’s placements, Mr. Betters has brought new meaning to
the term “sightseeing” in Kathmandu. Wining, dining and dancing in Thamel has
been a welcome relief for new volunteers nervous to begin their programs and old
volunteers eager to complete their time in Nepal with a bang. Ryan is in Monaco
at the moment but will be back in about one week’s time to keep offering his
much appreciated assistance and friendly face for a few more months…Ryan, we
hope you enjoy your trip and we’ll be seeing you soon!
Alan Heaton
and new Happy Home in Chitwan.
Alan first traveled to Nepal
in 2006. His volunteering experience then was a true eye opener; working in
squalid conditions with children who received little to no attention - medical
or otherwise - from the organizat
