Muda's in Belangi

Today we went to another one of the 7 camps called Belangi and had lunch with a Rufugee Volunteer for the organization World Food Programme, which lets us use their office in Damak for our work. It was quite the experience to actually be served food by a person in the camps and their family was remarkably friendly and caring. They hope to be resettled to the US by early 2009. Sitting in the small bamboo hut's that in their family house 6 people basically living on top of one another, we ate the traditional Nepali Dal Bhaat while beating small hand fans to beat the heat and humidity. These huts have no electricity and very little hawwa (wind) get's through the narrow slits that are used as windows. We were so honored to eat here and be in the company of so many questions coming from her family about life in the US; we finished lunch and went to another WFP volunteer's hut to sit with her family for tea and learn more about her father's craft of building bamboo seats, which he has done since his days in Bhutan, now going on 18 years ago and beyond! He really liked speaking to us, although he could only speak Nepali, so Sushant helped to translate and we attempted to read off questions we have learned from our little Nepali phrase book. We ended up buy two of the bamboo seats which are traditionally known as Muda's, so you will have to see them first hand in our place when we return to SF :)......Back to working on the website which is a few days away now from going live!!

To ILAM and beyond......

Today we went to a village in the southern side (near the norther Indian Border) called Ilam (famous for tea) and saw a tea production factory which was so interesting! Illam is high up in the hills, and the air couldn't have been more enjoyable, even though it slowly rained almost the entire time. A relief from the intense humudity that averages 80% was very enjoyable! Have you ever seen the multi-faceted process of making tea? It's intense! Funny thing is that Ilam is right next to Darjelling, India and they even purchase some of Nepal's excess tea and package is up as if it was their own! Name brands really do rule the world!! We were fortunate to have two of the local Nepali WFP staff escort us up there. Bharti and Tara (a male who is one of the most energetic people we have come accross thus far) was very enthusiastic about showing us how to truly experience Nepal on a Saturday; the only day the entire country takes off for the week! We again drank some Tongba, this time right on the Indian border and also had the chance to visit a cheese factory which although closed was generous enough to let us sample and ever purchase. Their cheese was fantastic soft cow's milk and was about $2 for more than enough to feed 8 people and have leftovers!! We ended the night back in Damak at our guesthouse where we ate the first fish we have had on the entire trip! Tara's father caught 4 river fish (which were Carp) and fried them, and then boiled them for 4 hours with all sorts of Nepali spices and onions and garlic, then fried it again before serving it up to us. I am not exagerating when I say that I can't remember a time where I had better cooked fish in recent times. It was truly sensational!

Going to the Camps....

Going to the camps has been one of the most invigerating experiences of our lives. We have spent the last few days meeting with the leaders of the Bhutanese Refugee Woman's Forum, for whom we are creating the Website for. They have been extremely generous to take time out of their days to meet and help us to better understand the plethora of information on the programs, events, income generating activities, loans, and educational trainings that they conduct throughout the years since their inception in 1995. Amber Singh, the organizations "general director" is working with us hand in hand to diseminate all of this info into a comprehesnsible outline so that we can generate readible and interesting content on the site. Today we purchased brwf.org; their first website in their 13 year history. Every day at the main camp that we work within (Sanishere) we eat in the canteen next to the BRWF office. Oddly enough we have had just about the same meal daily produced by the shop owner, who is a product of the micro-loan project that BRWF organizes, yet it seems to just keep getting better all the time!! After lunch we went to their store of products to take photos of the items available so that we could detail them out in the website. Using the two girls that ran the store as our models, we shot pictures of them wearing the shawls and beaded necklaces that are produced within the camp. At least 50 other members of the camp stood by to watch, as you could imagine, (seeing what is potentially the closest they have ever gotten to a "photo shoot"--word gets around very very quickly).

After the long day at the camp we went back to the office to finish work and then ventured to a party hosted by the WFP director (for her own going away party, as she was heading to Nigeria to visit her family for the next 3 weeks). A few of the other members of the organization cooked everything from Pakora to BBQ Chicken to a Nepali meat stew (as good as any grandmother's 'famous' chicken noodle) and many more Nepali delights including two acholic bev's: Thongba--femented millet grain for a minimum of 1 week and steaming hot water; it might sound strange but this is the new beer for cold days!! and Raksi--the closest thing Nepal has to Tequila, but 100% smoother; truly a nice change from the south of the boarder classic!! We danced to Nepali and Hindi music and really enjoyed the night on the rooftop of their home, while lightning struck for hours in the background, fortunately never producing rain here in Damak--

BRWF: Bhutanese Refugee Women's Forum

Our first day started: We went right to the Sanischare Camp. After a debriefing with the official members from the main office of the BRWF (Bhutanese Refugee Womens Forum) we had a lunch right in the camp. The food was prepared by Refugees that had earned money to fund their "restaurant" through micro-financing loans that are provided based on an application that gets approved in groups of 5 at a time. These funds can be used for any business within the camp once granted and have some of the most successful payback rates among all loans worldwide! After lunch we went into a meeting to figure out what we were going to focus on over the days that we were here. Realizing that there was no website for the BRWF we suggested that we would come up with an initial design that we could then fill in the details for a reference that all could use for the years to come. We agreed that utilizing the information that the BRWF had already created for yearly census would be perfect for us to share on their first website. After leaving the camp we went back to the UN office where we formulated the outline that will become the website. We quickly went to Google Page and purchased the domain "brwf.org" and started hacking away at this Beta site. Very excited to have such a meaningful project to leave them with after our departure......

Later that night we were invited to dinner at the IOM (International Organization of Migration) Guest House which is the home here in Damak to all of the representatives hired by the US Government, and other countries included in the resettlement effort, to aid in the selection process of the Refugees that will come to these countries upon re-settlement. We heard music like Dylan and Radiohead playing from one of the diner's personnel's Ipod; felt like home, which was very bizarre to say the least in this community so far from home!!!

Damak (Aug 12-20)

August 12 - the team flew from Kathmandu to Biratnager airport in southern Nepal. Were were picked up in a UN World Food Program vehicle and then headed to Damak, our base for the next few days. We made our office in a conference room in the WFP which has air con and wireless internet - nice surprises! After a few hours of work, we headed to our guest house and settled in. The house is clean and house keepers were warm and inviting. We then headed to dinner at a local place with a few Bhutanese/Nepalese from the WFP office.

Kathmandu Uncovered

Returning to Kathmandu was a difficult journey; not getting there, which took about 45 minutes from Bhaktapur, but actually arriving. We have spent the past 7 days touring the country to get a feel for life in Nepal before entering the Refugee Camps, which we are sure to be very difficult conditions. Kathmandu is a mecca for tourism and the most heavily populated city in the country. There are far too many cars based on the current infrastructure and when it rains, especially in Monsoon season (now!) the streets turn into virtual sewers, until the rain subsides and the roads (mostly dirt with many potholes) dry. There is unbelievable history in Kathmandu but it is burried in what is now a heaven for Ex-Pats, trekkers before and after their treks, and Nepali men and women trying to capitalize on what seems to be the "best" place to make street money; as in selling their handicrafts. It is unfortunate on the one hand that so much lies beneath the capital of Nepal's culture, and at the same time has fallen victim to what the intense tourism has created. Good or bad, we leave you to decide.

We stayed in Thamel, the most crowded of places within Kathmandu. Hotel Northfield provided a fairly decent room with AC for about $14/night. That night we met our team--Sushant (coordinater and Wharton student, who worked with these Refugees in the past for roughly one year), Micelle and Michael (Wharton students) and Beverly (who works in re-settlement for Refugees back in Philly)---had a great Nepali dinner to help get us preparred for what was to come and what we should expect once in Damak. The next day we spent sight seeing, doing a bit of shopping; Nepali Style---and getting the final logistics accomplished for our mission to Damak. We left bright and early on the 11th, with Raj (the taxi driver we met randomly during our small time shopping in Kathmandu) taking us directly to the Domestic Terminal where we started our journey when we went to Pokhara. This time we would be heading to "Part Two" of our trip ---

Kathmandu (Aug 9-12)

Bhaktapur (Aug 7-9)

The journey to Bhaktapur was nothing short of Mr. Toads wild ride. Our driver did not speak any English and communicated with his buddies (3) who rode in the back of the jeep with our bags. One buddy paid the “tolls,” the other navigated, and the third got a free (bumpy) ride. After four and a half hours we arrived into the chokingly smoggy Kathmandu Valley with bandanas covering our noses and mouths. Once in Bhaktapur we lugged our heavy bags up a few flights to a room at the Sunny Guest House overlooking Taumadhi Tole Square: home of the tallest temple in Nepal, Nyatapola . This area was probably the oldest central square of Bhaktapur and the seat of the royalty until the late 16^th century. The cobbled stone streets link a string of temples, courtyards, and monumental squares and the side streets are home to shrines, wells and water tanks. Though there are tourists in the day here, many leave in the evening, so around 6pm it was just us and the locals. As we explored on foot we snuck under shelter listening to 9 men play various traditional Hindi instruments (string, drum). We later were told they are practicing for a big parade on the 32^nd of the month – yes, they go by a different calendar here. Begrudgingly, we headed to a hotel for dinner as most of the other places were closed and there are no real local’s restaurants, just a few momo (steamed dumpling) stands which were tempting, but we were a little worried about getting sick.

In the morning we awoke to a religious experience, literally. Drums beating, bells clanging, and the murmur of elder Nepali men and women praying before their morning work were all the ritualistic sounds, happening just outside our window. Rabin, Rabin, Rabin, a persistent fellow who “sought us,” in his words, to be our guide for the days’ exploration of the city. Venturing around the historical sights, we became exhausted with tourist scene and headed off the main road. Rabin helped us debrief and focus on the centuries-old tradition of craftsmanship – potters, woodcarvers and weavers. We meandered in and out of narrow streets and courtyards where local’s dried rice out in the sun, collected water from local wells, women washed under the communal taps, and children pounded grain. The smells were pungent and came in waves - sometimes urine and sewer down the back alleys, other times inviting aromas of an evening meal to come, or hot brewing Nepali Chia (milk tea with sugar). In our last few hours we put our negotiation skills to the test with the instrument maker, Thangkas artists, woodcarver’s bother, and paper maker. Just before the rain broke, we jumped into a cab and headed to Kathmandu . . .

Bandipur (Aug 6-7)

After negotiating with a local driver, we hitched a ride to the quaint village of Bandipur (about 2.5 hours from Pokhara) ‘ban-DI-pur’. The road was in good condition in most places, save a few pot holes and some landslides from the rains. Drivers here are quite daring though, and weaving in and out of cows, buffalos, chickens, dogs and people is not uncommon. Taking the main highway that leads from Pokhara to Kathmandu, we turned off and winded up and up and up to the preserved Newari village – a true living museum. Greeted by half a dozen Nepalese and Roman, a fiery young man from the Chitwan region, we were escorted to the Bandipur Inn (a current restoration by a team comprised of locals and a British entrepreneur – all tourism dollars are put back into restoring temples and houses through the Bandipur Social Development Committee.)

With Roman, we hiked and saw some amazing landscapes. He mentioned several of these places were his favorite “date spots,” we laughed. And he’s right, with slight views of the Himalayas from Tundikel (5 fig trees marked the place) and after meandering through fields of corn and millet up to Gadhi where we took a rest under the Tibetan flags – it was indeed a nice date!

Speaking of which, our inn included a traditional Nepali dinner of: daal (lentils), bhaat (rice), aloo tareko (fried potatoes with turmeric, cumin and chili powder), chatamari (rice-flour pancake topped with buffalo aka buff, egg), gundruk (traditional Nepali sour soup with veggies), chasi kho ledo (lamb curry), mis mas tarkari (vegetables), anchar (spicy pickle), dahi (curd) along with a nice cold, Tourborg (locally brewed). We happened to be the only people staying at the inn and sat by candle light (due to the power outage for the majority of the evening). The rain continued from late that evening ‘till early afternoon departure when we headed on yet another adventure in a 4x4 jeep on route to Bhaktapur.

Pokhara (Aug 4-6)

After 5 long flights and two sleepless nights, Mike arrives in time to meet Stephanie for the final connection from Bangkok to Kathmandu. Landing on time, we paid $40 US for each 30-d visa and quickly scurried from the “international” terminal to the “domestic” pushing our trolley filled with baggage up a small hill, past eager taxis and hundreds of onlookers.

Our 20 minute flight to Pokhara on Yeti Airlines (no yeti spotted on the flight), was visually sensational to say the least. Passing village after village tucked away in the Himalayan mountains, we knew we were destined to experience Nepalese culture away from the hustle and bustle of fast paced life of Kathmandu.

Arriving in Pokhara, met our driver (and his co-captain) who work for the 3 Sisters Guest House that we were staying at. He quickly darted through the small town to our destination. As you can see in the picture, our ten room guest house overlooked the Phewa Lake, the largest natural lake in Nepal. In the evening, we walked to a small Newari restaurant and tried our first “Everest Beer” and Nepalese food. Sitting upstairs in an unfinished balcony we watched 40 kids playing soccer and volleyball until the sun went down.

In the morning we awoke to the rooster’s crow after a peaceful night listening to the pounding of our first monsoon rain experience in Nepal. 3 Sisters offers female guides to its guests and we were happy to have Nema take us up to Sarangkot. Passing through small farming villages we saw children heading to school wearing blue and white uniforms, women bent-over tending to rice patties, “unknown” regional plants growing plentifully wild, and water buffalo roaming (or soaking in a muddy hole). The hillsides were s tunning, but we were quite tired walking uphill about 3 hours in some of the most humid and hottest weather we had experienced. Approaching Sarangot, we bought a ticket to the viewpoint and if it were another season (ie not monsoon) we would have had a perfect view of the Annapurna range. Instead, we caught just a glimpse….of our next trip?

Bangkok to Nepal August 4, 2008

We met at the ThaiAirways gate in Bangkok and headed to the lounge to enjoy lemongrass tea and some Rose-something drink with papya before our flight. Mike had come via Singapore stranded in Narita from a cancelled United flight to Bangkok. Apparenbtly some problems with pilots. But....we made it!

Met a wise, elderly German man who makes 2 trips per year to Nepal who advised us to GO SLOW! Do not "see" Nepal feel it. He encouraged us to remember that we'd be back and to do each place deeply and thoroughly versus rush to tick some things off.