Development and Herbs

Right, I will now get into the nitty gritty. First, the number one topic of developing countries when it comes to the starting point of getting anywhere. You need good roads. Until 10 years ago, you could only get to my village, Pandeli, by ox and cart. The community pooled in some money to widen the tracks and cut new routes on the hillside. It seems to work well with motorcycles, 4wd vehicles and the rickety commuter buses (with really cool horn sounds) but the recent landslides has made some sections impassable during the rainy season. My "host dad", Yam, is secretary of the village community and is overly optimistic that with a good funds drive and donor assistance, the road can be maintained. He is aware that the recent landslides after the monsoon rains have been the worst in 50years. However I had to remind him that there is much more loose earth without any support from trees or structures so any new road developments would need extra planning and extra spending on reinforcements and adequate drainage (I hope not to bore all you non-engineers at this point). It is quite amazing to see the amount of devastation a landslide can do. Whole hillsides are scarred from peak to foot with rubble and the valleys are clogged with loose earth. The river sides have become gulleys (little gorges) in some spots and looking from Sarangkot viewpoint, acres of river fields in the valley look destined to be washed away if the monsoon comes again next year with equal force.

The Pandeli village shares a well. It has been gushing groundwater for centuries but was threatened by the landslides. Luckily, the source was not damaged but the point of collection (concealed rock pools) is now easily contaminated since people wade into the pools to collect water for drinking and also wash themselves and clothes there. Someone told me that an independent consultancy proposed creating an underground tank to collect the groundwater but it would mean sacrificing some community farms so their proposal was rejected by the village committee. Fixing the well is far more important than improving the road as it one abundant life or death source that if compromised would greatly inconvenience villagers who have no alternatives (some areas have piped water) and also mess up irrigation of the fields. For some reason, road projects are more seductive here and improvement of water sources is not well thought out as road projects are an immediate need but the long term needs for well improvement are overlooked by most.

There is a serious issue of continuity of education in this village. Most kids don't get past the secondary school leavers exams. I know of a case of a family that suffered doubly from loss of crop during the monsoon season and also with the dad suffering from cancer. 2 elder children had to stop their college studies and dedicate their time and money to taking care of him and financing his chemotherapy. And as if that was enough, they are in the middle of a land dispute with some guy from the valley. One of the older girls has given up on any other career options and is going to work on becoming a commercial farmer. There is no such thing as a singular career aspiration. What is best when the time is right, and given the circumstances, goes. Some guys beyond college age have become the hustlers of the fields. One guy advertised to me services ranging from paragliding to pimping to herbs (the one that you can roll :-)). Its really weird how tourism can be good and bad for the country at the same time. The viewpoint attracts tourists past the village but the bigger returns of being a middle man tempts the unemployed youth to flog whatever junk the tourists are willing to buy (there are some good curios though).

Speaking of herbs, the Sarangkot hill is the place to buy the illicit ganja. As one local chap told me, as he rolled his own, "no crimes, no police". There is not much crime here so there is no police post on the hill (there is only one army post at the viewpoint but that is strategic: to protect the communications mast and just mooch about). That means the ganja crop can flourish and be harvested without problems. It is obviously cheap because the dealer is the grower. I will show u some photos of a boucay of the skunky stuff I came across at a neighbours house. It is actually not approved of, smoking the stuff, but most who do do so at special occasions so the society is stable enough to not have addiction problems (as far as I know, though I met a few cloudy eyed characters).

ciao!
K.

Rice, the staple

To get you into the scene, some background to the Sarangkot hill is needed. It is a moderately populated series of villages that overlook Phewa Tal, the Pokhara lake and the river that empties into it. Rice paddies extend from the river valley up to the Sarangkot mountain viewpoint. Most of the people here are farmers for subsistence and trade of agricultural products. Extra professions: teaching and shop owning supplement income. I arrived at the time of the rice harvest, which I never knew was so labour intensive. I helped out in a process called "dying rice" at my “host-grandparents” place. This is when the cut rice stalks are removed from a pile and rice grains are extracted by smacking a bunch against a smooth rock and repeating the process until the heap of harvested stalks is no more. Also, to increase the yield, the used up stalks or straw is laid alongside a pole around which a team of oxen are persuaded ( with the gentle prodding of a stick – depending on who is holding the stick) to walk around, to pound the straw and extract more rice. I was not too good at the rice pounding process so I was given straw laying and oxen handling. I also got to chase away the interfering buffaloes who were tempted by the fresh straw. I still can’t believe they are tame here! The African buffalo doesn't stop for anybody!

Going through one pile of rice takes a whole morning and needs 4 people at most. At times, depending on the urgency and timing of the harvest (in the Tihar vacation many school kids took part in the harvest) whole families can turnover 4 piles a day. We gained 3 sacks of rice (about 60 kgs) from one heap. I was rewarded by host-grandmas colossal dhal bhat platter the size of a serving plate! Believe me, the hunger generation from a low calorie diet makes you crave for the next serving of lentils, radish curry and rice, smothered with buffalo milk and washed down with water or buffalo milk curd. It might not sound appealing to some, but once I got into the rhythm I found this unique diet very tasty.

This particular farm is called “Eklakat” which means lonely field. It literally stands on its own midway up the hill surrounded by the hillside forest, or The Jungle as it is known here. Some interesting birds and troops of monkeys live here and rumour has it that 1 or 2 tigers roam the forest too. Each son and daughter owns a pile so they are also responsible for hauling the respective sacks to their homes. I accompanied one relative who is about my age, called Lakhsman, up to his home, which is not far from where I am staying. He carried one 20kg bag up steep rocky paths through the forest with me just walking ahead and looking back in astonishment (my job was to help him up from the crouch position once he had the bag strap over his head). He could negotiate the tricky steep steps and loose stones without the aid of his hands, which is hard enough for me without a heavy load! I suggested to him he could join the super-strong Gurkha army but then again, being a pacifist, I told him not to give up his day job! He is a teacher.

Rice growing is an age old tradition here. Also, other crops such as millet, wheat, potatoes, radishes, maize etc. have their own seasons. The fragility of the main staples: rice and millet to the elements makes this living fragile. 2 Fridays ago a hail storm destroyed a lot of crops a few days away from harvesting which made the lives of some of the poorer families really hard. One fellow volunteer, Greg, lives with a family whose banana and lentil crop was destroyed. A lack of dhal (lentil) meant that the buffalo milk was their only source of protein. Without much disposable income it will take a while for them to have regular balanced meals again. But when I visited them it was admirable how they were still able to cook up a storm with a smile and leave me stuffed and ready for bed!

I was supposed to lean into some development issues but I got carried away again! I didn’t even have time to explain a certain other wealth generator that grows well on the high hills here and essentially gets you high (I think you know where I am going with this). Will do in my next entry!!

Ciao,
K.

Tihar

Its been a rollercoaster past few days. They have the Tihar (like Diwali in India), a festival of lights and so schools have been closed and there has been celebrations and feasting. This was coupled with the birthday of Dhiraj, one my host brothers, last Saturday. He turned 6 and his dad splashed out on a nice chocolate cake. The whole Thapa (that's the family name) clan was there plus other friends who brought lots of presents and cash. A pretty loaded 6yr old at the end of the day! The Thapa extended family have so many kids, its almost impossible to remember who is whose sister or brother. And the fact that there is no concept of calling each other a cousin makes things even more complicated.

The Tihar festivities have been going on since last Wednesday. Each day has a theme. Weds: the Crow, Thu: the Dog, Fri: the Cow, Sat:(can't remember), Sun: Brothers and Sisters. I got it all confused. Wikipedia gives a quirkier explanation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tihar:

Tihar Day 1 - Kag Tihar - worshiping of crows - feed them and keep them happy for whole 1 year. Day 2 - Kukur Tihar - worshiping of dogs - the protector of our homes Day 3 - Cow Tika - worshiping of cows Day 3 - Laxmi Puja - worshiping of Fortune Goddess Day 3 - Tihar Songs: Bhailini - girls sing an unique song! Day 4 - Various Puja and Tihar Song: Deusi - boys sing Deusi, a popular Tihar song! Day 4 - Tihar Songs : Deusi - Pujas and singing Tihar's special song Day 5 - Tika Day (Final Day) - tika for a long life!

All the creatures/persons connected to the theme get to wear tikkas (coloured dyes) and garlands so it was pretty comical to see dogs and cows walking around with flowers and red dyes on their furs/hides looking regal but going about their business of browsing and grazing.

Another feature is kids going from house to house singing traditional songs and dancing. They get gifts from the households in the form of sweets or money. Some singing/dancing troupes are so well organised that they carry amplifiers, tapes and speakers with them turning it into a mini concert! I got some pics from this holiday period that I hope to put on the website soonish. Some kids do dirty tricks, especially on touristy routes like the path to the World Peace Pagoda (it overlooks Phewa Tal, the Pokhara lake). They hold hands to barricade the path and demand money from tourists. Its all good natured but I had to bulldoze the kid barrier!

On one of the latter days, the brothers and sisters give gifts to each other so I splashed out on my 3 "sisters" and I got some goodies too. It a very feasty day and I had plenty of goat meat and rice rotis that day (burp!).

Just a quick snippet of the Tihar experience. I hope to write more on the science lab project progress and volleyball tournament, the villagers, some village development issues, my day working in the rice fields and the Sarangkot mountain viewpoint.

Also I shall be doing the Annapurna Base Camp Trek with my friend, Jason, instead of Everest because of time and cost constraints.

C u!

K.

Greetings from the lap of the Annapurnas!

Hi all. Its been a week already in a place called Pondeli, halfway up the hill to the Sarangkot view point. From the viewpoint one can see the full glory of the Himalayan ranges of the Annarpurnas and Machhapuchhare. Anyway, the journey from Kathmandu to Pokhara, the last stop before the trip to my residence as a volunteer with my host, was quite eventful. It took an eternity to leave Kathmandu valley. The valley is one of the most enclosed urban sprawls I've ever been to. It's no surprise that back in the 1950's you could only get to Pokhara by mule. The descent into one of the great river gorges of the low areas of Nepal was spectacular. So was the long line of intercity buses and lorries. We went past a section of road that was hit by falling rocks. The bus conductor just had to give me the mortality statistics of the road at that point. Thank you very much, I feel so much better now. The river gorge opens into a wide valley as you go west and at intervals one can see the scary looking steel pedestrian suspension bridges and the occasional cage cable cars that villagers use to cross the river valley. It seems that round here one has to climb stuff to get anywhere. The rivers are so wide and clear, they are great for swimming and just chilling on the river beaches at the bends. Unfortunately I was non-stop with a few refreshment stops.

Let's fast forward to the journey from Pokhara to Sarangkot. (I can talk more about Pokhara later). I was on a "tourist bus" from Kathmandu to Pokhara, but now I was on the real deal. The 25 rupee 'hill winder' (i just baptised it) to Pondeli. It was more than just a hill winding journey. It was the bumpiest freakin' bus journey I have ever been on (beating the famous Kenya potholes hands down). Some of the road literally hangs over the edge. The area suffered from major landslides during this year's monsoon so its a miracle that buses still go up this hill. Just for some background, the hill where my home family lives is mainly soil and slate and so landslides have the added hazard of sharp rocks falling your head. In fact along the bus route some houses were pulled down by landslides and there were fatalities. At the moment it doesn't rain so much so landslides aren't much of a hazard. The scarring is very evident on the landscape. Lots of rice fields were literally wiped out and paths obliterated. Enough of natural disasters.....

I will keep this blog entry short by just introducing my habitat. I live with nice host family with 2 kids - boys. One is 9 yrs old and the other, 6 yrs. My host dad speaks decent English but the low levels of conversational English at my disposal with the other villagers keeps my crappy Nepali in check. Two things are in abundance here: Water and Dhal Bhat (Lentils and Rice)!! Water coz there is a constantly dripping well used by the villagers, and there is so much that the surplus is used for the domestic buffalo bathing pools. Dhal Bhat needs no introduction as that is the staple here to the point that you have to be creative around the dhat bhat. One day with goat meat, the next day a bit of radish curry. Food is basic but tasty once you get used to it. The slow pace and lack of privacy is another thing to get used to. There are so many kids here, every time they say hi, I have to keep asking their names. Don't even ask me the names of the kids I teach! A smart bunch, but I have to write their names down all the time. Im now popular in the primary school as I gave them all sweets. I'm starting a little project in providing some science equipment for a new lab using the money i've raised for the volunteer programme. Also, trying to organise a volleyball tournament. The teachers are very enthusiastic and full of ideas so it will be fun.

That's all folks! Will write more soon.....Hope all is well with you!

K.

Kathmandu - The City

Namaste y'all. In case you don't know what that means: "I bless the divine inside you". A lot of accolades in one word. I can't think of an equivalent. Neither can I about Thamel, the entertainment and tourism hub of Kathmandu (KTH). To my convenience (and constant headaches every time I step out of the door as I avoid getting run over by honking motorbikes), I have been staying at the Kathmandu Peace Guesthouse, which is in the Thamel area, for the past week or so. Thamel the most 3-D place I've ever been to. Choc-a-bloc with tours & travels agencies, souvenir shops, restaurants and bars that have live music. After a few days I noticed that the live acts go from bar to bar in rotation and do the same Bob Marley and Red Hot Chillie Pepper tunes. The place is frequented by the trendy Nepali youth but there is nothing charming about the place. Its a let-your-hair-down, western style kind of place, definitely unforgettable but I dont regret leaving the place ( at least Thamel, the guesthouse environment was really nice though). I'm in Pokhara now.

Actually my stay in KTH has been longer than expected for a number of reasons. In fact, things don't get done on time for a number of reasons round here and where they do occur on time, well, its simply just an anomaly. One volunteer who was supposed to start training with me didn't make it, so the arrangements had to be tweaked. Also, there was a festival going on all week when I arrived, the Dasain, which slowed things down. Schools closed and nobody working for 5 days! My kind of place! You could say it's like Christmas as everybody has family get togethers which tend to be out in the country, so Thamel was relatively quiet. I saw people walking around with big phat red patches on their foreheads called tikas (yep, like the chicken...though I never thought of humans dipped in the stuff whenever I've tucked into one) and straw bits on their heads. I'm probably not the best guy to ask about the religious and cultural significance of this festivity as I am still grappling with the numerous recognised deities here. Anyhow you can have a look at: http://www.info-nepal.com/society/festivals/dashain.html or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dasain.

Speaking of religion, I never knew that Buddhism and Hinduism blends so well in general. In fact here the two faiths morph together so many times when you visit the temples. I started my training last Friday, which entailed Nepali language and culture classes, as well as sightseeing, which lasted until Tuesday this week. The first sightseeing was at Swayambunath, a primarily Buddhist site on the nearest hill overlooking the city. See http://www.sacred-destinations.com/nepal/kathmandu-swayabunath-stupa.htm. It is otherwise known as the "Monkey temple" after the colony of monkeys that have lived there for thousands of years and seem to terrorise anybody that brings food. I saw some kids getting pounced on as we walked up the long steps to the temple. They snatched a pack of crisps and a juice packet. It's no use resisting as they are a persistent troop. They are the biggest monkeys I've ever seen and I've no idea why they are not baboons! The main features are a super-chilled looking buddhist stupa with sedate peaceful eyes and a gleaming gold plated top, Hindu shrines and a Budhist monastery. I got some pics of the place incl. a live Buddhist prayer by monks in session (will share pics soon). Apart from those pesky monkeys, typical features are flags with 5 colours of the Buddhist elements (Earth, Wind, Fire....not the band....Water, Ether...s'thing like this, I probably got s'thing wrong). I could go on...

Another place we went to was Pashupatinath. See:http://www.sacred-destinations.com/nepal/kathmandu-pashupatinath.htm. It is a full-on Hindu site, probably one of the most important in the country as it is a major cremation site, with a royal cremation spot ( which was probably pretty busy around the time of the royal massacre a few years back if you remember). I witnessed 2 cremations on the go. The ashes end up in the Bagmati river. This river meets the Ganges in India before emptying in the Bay of Bengal. One cool thing about the place is the caves where Sadhus (holy hermit men in the Hindu religion) stay and pray. The reality was thus: a young "hippy" sadhu in one cave smoking something kinda hazy, with the rest of the orange robed chaps hanging around the hindu shrines posing for pictures with tourists for tips. My guide told me that there are not that many real Sadhus left. It seems that most religions have issues with phonies. Some quirky things about the place: on some steps one can try walking eyes closed with one arm outstretched trying to get it in some holy hole. If it goes in you get good luck ( I cant remember exactly what luck it is...probably the usual most wished for thing in this part of the world, the ideal bride or bridegroom). Also a religious mural painted by an Italian!

My favourite spot in Boudanath. http://www.sacred-destinations.com/nepal/kathmandu-boudhanath-bodnath-stupa.htm. Also on the eastside (....like Pashupatinath), u need to know where to turn in order to find it despite it being one of the largest Buddhist stupas in the world. A lot buildings circle the place, including a monastery and lots of shops selling stuff from Tibetan paintings to statues of Buddhas in his many contemplative posey poses ( not enough fat Buddhas I thought...maybe when obesity becomes a problem here there will be more). The stupas has so many places to sit and reflect on life or just watch the monks circle the place clockwise until you get dizzy. Its probably the only spot in the city where you cannot spit onto the ground. In Kathmandu phlegm clearing and spitting on the street is a common occurrence. I don't blame them as the pollution here is terrible: dust, exhaust fumes and smog in the summer. Not to mention contamination of the rivers with sewage and uncleared rubbish. It didn't really want to go into this here but I just remembered the journey back to the hostel on this particular day. A demonstration was taking place in protest of a hike in fuel prices so we made a detour along one the city rivers (we were on a motorbike) and I've never experienced such funk in the air. More funky smells than the Nairobi river after the Globe cinema roundabout (some of you know what I mean). Nepal is a poor country with shaky politics but a promising future. Tourism is very developed here (more than India I think) and there is a lot of agricultural produce. The politics is forcing a lot of young people to look for opportunities abroad which is disappointing as it won't help the gaps in education, and the less educated tend to be easily exploited. It starts with the caste system, which is slowly becoming outlawed but I will leave that issue for another day.

Let me finish off. Another sightsee spot was Patan. This is the place to go to if you want to see an ancient Newari town. The Newars are the original inhabitants of Kathmandu Valley. I shall let u know how I'm getting on with my command of the Nepali language. Its not that hard but one has to be careful with pronunciations, like with Chinese (Chris Tucker in Rush Hour style....but Nepali is written in a Sanskrit style, so its not close to the Chinese language) as people might get the wrong end of the stick. I start my volunteer work tmrw.

Speak to you soon!
K.