Definitely do! Iv had as awesome wknd! We experienced some of Thamel's (tourist hotspot)famous night life last night and it was good! But why oh why is there always an Irish bar anywhere u go? No it was good fun, and then we had a really nice meal (where i ordered waaay to much!) and then we went to a shisha bar with a live band which was awesome there was dancing on tables and all sorts! Then today we went for lazy but expensive breakfeast in a very western style cafe- it was yum! Then us girls took to the streets for shopping and i have officially cleared myself out! I got some wikid stuff though...so no buyers remorse for me!
Its definitely getting hotter here now but the nights and mornings (specifically the nights) are still pretty cold! It doesnt snow in Nepal unless your in the Himalayas! Which i can see right now whilst writing to you- Ganesh Himalaya to be precise! The work is going well and the group dynamic is good- especially after being able to let our hair down last night- Lamatar and Sirutar should not be let loose together (we are the two groups of volunteers in nepal)!!
On wednesday i got up at 5:30am and went to temple (3 to be precise) with my host sister, it was soo worth getting up early- i love going to temple but it doesnt have a patch on Skanda Vale! But i still have alot of temples to visit...but being white im at a disadvantage (some say Hindus only and the definition of Hindu that is most prominant here is if your Asian looking u can go in for darshan and aarti- if your not your not coming in! But not all temples are like this i went to an awesome one last week and actually got to go into the inner sanctum, kneel and light candles it was lovely! And there is a temple near by in the hillside up loooooads of steps and i think im going tomorrow im very excited cos its a Maha Kali temple hehehe!!!
Our supervisor i abit of a turd in sheeps clothing but he alrite i guess just abit power mad at times! I think the morale at work will be good after our fun filled wknd! And tomorrow is only a half day anyway and we are starting to get tan woop woop! I do enjoy the work- although somtimes it does just feel like we are moving soil/clay stuff from one place to another but its slowly coming together! The local kids are awesome they already know my name and say HIII ALLLLY every morning and afternoon and its great- i cant wait to teach next week cos the kids are on holiday at the mo!
One thing that i have found hard here is the treatment of animals- there is complete disreguard for animals apart from the cow- its brutal! Iv started shouting at people i see abusing animals. One day coming back from temple in the morning before work i saw a guy lob half a brick at a small defensless cat and when i went over to check if the cat was ok its eye was full of blood and later the cat dies- this is just one of the tragic things we see on a regular basis here in Nepal- also the street children, the slums, the litter/polution, the hard lives of ppl here- especially the women they work there arses off, the struggle for more freedom and the lack of government stability among other things. However people still soldior on and they are happy- in my opinion because of their faith. It amazing to see between 5 and 7am all the women (its always the women) walking to the local shrine (after they have worshipped at home) with their puja plates which hold water, flowers, kum kum powder, sandlewood paste and insence- its a beautiful sight.
Im going for chai in the sun now and il go and enjoy my purchases a little later by candle light as there will be no power in about 40 minutes untill nearly 10pm!
Pheri betula (see you later) x x x
Saturday 23 January 2010
Wednesday 13 January 2010
The heart of Nepal is in the villages...
The heart of Nepal truley is in the villages and so is mine! The peeple are so nice and friendly and the kids are amazing- the views and beauty are/is immense! I feel so at home! When we first arrived we were staying in Kathmandu and although cool is doesnt have a patch on Sirutar- except all the cool temples but iv only been to one Buddhist temple as of yet but it was lovely and full of monkeys! It was really cool to see Tibetan Buddhism being practised! The hotel we stayed in wasnt great but it did for what we needed- my homestay is sooo much better and warmer but it is fricken freezing at night and in the early morning! My host family are soooo lovely i love them- the mum doesnt speak english but thats ok we still get on really well and communicate ok and shes so sweet always looking after me and the food is yummy and im being stuffed till i cant eat anymore! Im going to come back with rice belly!
My host sister and brother are really cool and easy to talk to i really like them and my dads cool and nice and funny although he doesnt speak much english either! The load shedding is rubbish- its where they cut the electricity for about 10 hours a day! So we spent most of last night in the dark but i had a torch so its cool! I was chatting to my host brother for about 2 hours and we went up on to the roof and where looking at the stars because they are sooo beautiful and clear here! And i have an amazing view of the Himalayas its sooo stunning it looks like a painting- on the one side there are snow capped mountains and on the other side are lush green rolling hills!
Im ok with the cold bucket baths at the minute cos my host mummy is sooo sweet and gets it all ready for me...im mollycoddled i swear! I get my meals cooked, my water collected for me its great! But the work is hard man its all manual labour carry heaving things across pretty far distances and my hands and feet are callused...but its ok cos im 'arrrrd!!! lol! Il be tough and stong when i come back hopefully! But the rewards are amazing i cant wait to start teaching!
We will prob go into Kathmandu and around the Kathmandu Valley on our day off (fri night and sat day) which is where i want to go and see lots of temples and do some shopping etc!! I have a Nepali name now and its Puja- which is the Hindu form of worship- i think its because i know abit about hinduism and sort of practice it but- but they havent explained it to me fully yet so il let you know the reason they have called me this soon! I have made some lovely friends here too, the group are really nice and we all get on really well and support eachother as much as possible!
I better go now but if you have any questions comment or facebook me cos i would love to hear from everyone!!
Namaste (Hi and Bye) x x x
My host sister and brother are really cool and easy to talk to i really like them and my dads cool and nice and funny although he doesnt speak much english either! The load shedding is rubbish- its where they cut the electricity for about 10 hours a day! So we spent most of last night in the dark but i had a torch so its cool! I was chatting to my host brother for about 2 hours and we went up on to the roof and where looking at the stars because they are sooo beautiful and clear here! And i have an amazing view of the Himalayas its sooo stunning it looks like a painting- on the one side there are snow capped mountains and on the other side are lush green rolling hills!
Im ok with the cold bucket baths at the minute cos my host mummy is sooo sweet and gets it all ready for me...im mollycoddled i swear! I get my meals cooked, my water collected for me its great! But the work is hard man its all manual labour carry heaving things across pretty far distances and my hands and feet are callused...but its ok cos im 'arrrrd!!! lol! Il be tough and stong when i come back hopefully! But the rewards are amazing i cant wait to start teaching!
We will prob go into Kathmandu and around the Kathmandu Valley on our day off (fri night and sat day) which is where i want to go and see lots of temples and do some shopping etc!! I have a Nepali name now and its Puja- which is the Hindu form of worship- i think its because i know abit about hinduism and sort of practice it but- but they havent explained it to me fully yet so il let you know the reason they have called me this soon! I have made some lovely friends here too, the group are really nice and we all get on really well and support eachother as much as possible!
I better go now but if you have any questions comment or facebook me cos i would love to hear from everyone!!
Namaste (Hi and Bye) x x x
Tuesday 5 January 2010
Pre- departure verbal splurge
Oh my im off to Sirutar, Nepal on Thursday!! Ahh! Im sooo excited but a little nervous! Its just going to be amazing- even the bad times, like the the freezing bucket baths and squatty toilets when iv got the poops! But alas its all experience and thats what counts! I have only met one person that i will be going with but im sure they are all lovely- iv spoke to a couple of them abit on facebook! Im so excited about being immersed into another culture and workin my arse off and visiting all the temples!! I still have things to buy, things to pack and a research project to do...oops!! It wouldnt be right if i wasnt rushing around just before iv got to leave going s**t im not reeeeeady! But hey ho it will all come together as it always does! I just cant wait now! But im going to miss everyone at home! Il blog as much as possible etc x x x
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