Rex has been working really hard to get this video uploaded, so I wanted to be sure to share it. It is a quick photo summary of our first months in Nepal that he created for our final night of training (before all our new and dear friends headed off to other parts of Nepal). It is about 20 minutes long so settle in for some great pictures taken by all the members of VSO Nepal’s November 2008 Volunteers.
Enjoy!
The Beginning of a Life Inspired by Nepal from Rex Turgano on Vimeo.
The finale to our 10 week training has been an exciting foray into the world of Nepali cookery. What was a classroom the day before, was transformed into a make-shift kitchen with the addition of a small table top stove and a large canister of gas. The smells of cumin, red chilies, garlic, ginger, and tumeric permeated the small room quickly as we flavoured the oils with spices.
The first dish, although not Nepali, is easily one of the most available snacks in Nepal – french fries! So many potatoes around and deep frying is a common cooking method, so of course the natural outcome is a french fry, here often curiously called “finger fried” on the menus…never fingers and always potato. The best part was the addition of salt and cumin powder for flavour…delish!
Second was the deep frying of what seemed to be mountains of paneer – once fried this was added to a delectable combination of mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, and peas that had melded with spices into a thick, saucy, and utterly incredible curry. Easily, the best Nepali curry I have tasted since I have been here.
Then came the daal and rice – we have all been craving the traditional daal bhaat since returning from our village stay and were eager to get the tips on pressure cooking lentils and legumes. Topped off with fresh papadums, homemade roti, a potato and broccoli curry and some fresh fruit, and we were all simple stuffed to the gills with good food (dherai ukusmukus bhayo which translates to very, very full and cannot eat another bite).
I am looking forward to having a kitchen where I can begin to experiment a bit with the produce and spices to concoct some other great dishes…recipes posted on the blog if they are tasty!
This week our class visited the holy site of Pashupatinath, which is situated along the Bagmati river on the Eastern edge of the city. This holy site is an incredibly important place for many Hindu Nepalis as it is here that many families come to conduct the cremation ceremonies for family members who have died.
Before arriving I had been preparing myself for what we might encounter – I just wasn’t sure what kind of emotions might present and how the visual images would impact. I have always had a very active imagination. At the risk of sounding childish I will admit that I am still overcome by nightmares of such a vivid and horrific nature that I sometimes wonder whether observing raw and real human suffering is simply a catalyst for such terrors.
But I soon realized, upon arriving, that my worries were unfounded. While the vision of heaps of straw, wood, and smoke surrounding the body, was startling at first, it was also incredibly peaceful and spiritual. It felt very natural and although filled with an urgent sense of grief it looked very much like those families we saw were spiritually letting go -letting the river carry away their sorrow and grief.
There was a family undertaking the rituals of preparing the body before cremation and I watched from atop a hill as the family grieved and laid garlands of marigolds over the body, the golden colour reflective of the god Vishnu, the Protector.
The grey river, clogged with debris, and exceptionally polluted, still worked tirelessly to sweep away the ashes and provide the holy water which would secure the deceased a space in heaven. Caught in the current were some golden orange strands of fabric that clung to a muddy stick and fanned the current along.
I watched this family closely and was reminded that although their grief was still fresh they were following a centuries old tradition that would protect and honour their family member in the after-life and that they too would one day be washed down the river towards a holier and more pure existence. The actions were public, but the emotions were purely private and held solace for the grieving families.
It has been 7 days since we returned from our week in the small village of Chanku Besi – I have sat many times blankly in front of the computer screen wondering where to start. How to appropriately capture the moments, the emotions, the surprises, the faces, the kindness. It is not an easy task, to be sure, but my hesitation is partly a yearning to be accurate with my words and leave unspoiled the vivid images that will live with me. I want to honour the wonderful people whom I met.
The village sat upon a long and incredibly steep set of rice terraces with my house being at the top of the village, shrouded by leafy trees, jungle, and orange trees. The cold was intense. The nights were pierced with winds whistling through the cracks in the mud and beam structure. I had the bedroom to myself while next stoor my new Nepali family (amaa, baa, bhai, and 2 bahinis) cuddled up in one bed. Mornings were spent with dawn hours around the small kitchen fire drinking chiyaa, laughing, and snuggling with the goats who lived downstairs.
From the doorway, the darkness inside fools one into thinking of dampness, dirt, and discomfort. But rather the house was immaculately clean and comfortable. The only discomfort was the blue stinging smoke during hours of cooking – no chimmney desired as the black soot covering the roof beams protect the wood from termites.
We spent a full 5 days living with our families and then abrubtly on the day of our community project we learned that there would be a bandha in the nearby town the next day – it was called for 3 days which meant we wouldn’t be able to get out in time for Christmas. There was concern for our safety and we had to make the difficult decision to leave that afternoon. It was a very difficult way to leave and with such a rush the goodbyes were not at all what we had meant them to be. With garlands of marigolds around our necks and thick red tikas on our foreheads, we departed. Sadly, heavily, and with much regret.
So rather than paint more pictures with words, I will gladly post some images of our brief and exciting stay in the village. My thanks to H-Bone who took all these photos and a whole bunch more, and painstakingly uploaded all of the them so that I was able to steal them 🙂 Photos from Rex and I coming soon too.
Tomorrow our small but dedicated group of volunteers moves along to a small village 1/2 hour outside of Dhulikhel (find a map of Nepal and look east of Kathmandu, east of Banepa, and you will find Dhulikhel). We will be living with a small (or in Rex’s case large – 11 people to be exact!) family for one week to gain a better understanding of rural life in Nepal. This is an absolutely incredible oppportunity to embrace all that life in Nepal can be and challenge ourselves to live without some of the comforts we consider to be essential but that are actually quite unnecessary – everyday hot showers, 3-4 meals a day including snacks, power at all times of the day, and indoor plumbing. We assume that life without these things is impossible or so diffult to be completely unenjoyable. But, in fact, my sense is that we will suprise ourselves and flourish in such a warm and hospitable environment. And we all have tucked away into our bags some small comforts – myself I have grabbed photos of family, a book, and some small sweet treats – those are the comforts I needed.
The families are just as excited to meet us as we are to meet them. My family has mother, father, one son, and two daughters, very much a mirror of my own family. I will be back in Kathmandu on Christmas Eve and have plans to make loads of phone calls on Christmas day to wish friends and family well. Until then, consider me off the grid and soaking in the essence of Nepali culture, language, and spirit.
A special hello to my Mom (Monika), Dad (Randy), Sister (Emmie), Brother-In-Law (Blaine), Brother (Alfred), Nephews (Cole and Isaac) and 2 Nieces (Elise and Natalie), whom I am missing very much during the holidays. I will think of you all often over the next week as I introduce you all through pictures to my new host family. Love you all so much and miss you tons. And Mom, your package has arrived this week…we will be able to open it on Christmas which will be such a wonderful treat…thank you!
Lots of love to all – namaste!
Ackk! We have been experiencing regular efforts to decrease power consumption in Nepal which means peak hours without power…which means few entries to my blog 🙁 So, consider this a chance for you to load shed yourself…read only once a week instead of once a day 🙂 And, sadly, with an overwhelming number of spam comments, I have changed the settings to require approval from me…not ideal but will prevent all of us from having to read about the latest casino offerings!
We are currently in a moderately-sized town called Banepa taking intensive language classes during the day and then climbing into cold sparse rooms to catch some sleep at night. Much like camping but with the added smells of pit toilets in your room…quaint 🙂 However, the people have made it so much more pleasant than it sounds. We have a fantastic teacher, Krishna-ji who is incredibly patient as our mouths struggle with complex reflexive and palative sounds. And the other volunteers are just so interesting. We are a true complex patchwork of experiences, cultures, and personalities. Tossed together into a fairly intense experience has meant that everyone connected fairly quickly. We have 3 folks from India (Varanasi, Delhi, and Bangalore), 2 Dutch, 1 American, 1 Brit, 2 Filipinos, one other Canadian and 1 Ugandan.
So while I am here in what feels like volunteer residence mixed with a pretty rough summer camp, I send everyone lots of love and good wishes.
Namaste!
Firstly, thank you to everyone for the comments – they bring me many smiles (especially since I am usually sleepily checking my email at 7am…we wake up super duper early here). A special hello to all my friends at UBC and family around Canada – miss you all very very much. Also a special congratulations to J&J on their wedding….so wish I could have been there to celebrate with you.
Bistarai, bistaarai is the phrase I referred to in my last post which means “slowly, slowly” and it couldn’t feel more like a mantra. Everything is moving slowly for me – time passes slowly, life passes slowly, culture shock is passing slowly.
Mero deshko naam Canada ho. Mero ghar Vancouver ho.
My name is Tlell. I am from Canada. My home is in Vancouver. The first day of language classes have been going great – small groups of 3 students and lots of repition and drilling for practice. I can also say banana (keraa), pomegranate (anaar), and orange (suntala). And I can count to 10. There is a phrase here that seems very applicable to my learning whihc translates to “slowly, slowly”. Everything in Nepal is “slowly, slowly” including my language skills.
We hve successfully arrived and had our first night in Kathmandu. It was a smooth and rather uneventful trip, aside of course from the anticipation and excitement that built as we got closer. Had no difficulty getting our visas sorted out and arrived in Kathmandu with a group of 6 other volunteers. In traditional Nepali fashion we were all given a marigold chain necklace and small Nepali purse (for the ladies) or traditional hat (for the men). The scent of the marigolds was just delicious – they were a vivid and bright reminder that our arrival was exciting not just for us but for the VSO Nepal office staff who worked so hard to get us here.
Last night we stayed at the Pacific Guest house where we will remain for 9 days after which we move about an hour outside of Kathmandu for the rest of our training (in all a total of 6 weeks), mostly spent on langauge training.
This morning we awoke to a 6:30am badminton game in the square outside the guest house…brilliant 🙂 A short jaunt around the neighbourhood gave us some good tests in traffic navigation (assertive and confident is best) but I must admit that I love the chaos – the bustle, the noise, the sensory overload…just exactly what I was hoping for. We have arrived.
I will be spending the next 4 days in my final Canadian training session which is focussed on skills for working in development. Today we discussed what our meaning of community might be…which raised a question for me. Is community optional? Is the idea of community predicated upon opting into the community or can you belong to a community without wanting or choosing too?