Namaste from Kathmandu!
And how appropriate is today's prompt!
A short taxi drive, no, let me rephrase that, a short travelling distance, but a longish taxi ride through traffic, that, if you haven't experienced it before, leaves you wondering if you will actually make it to your destination in one piece, without your taxi being dinged, dented, or otherwise marked in some way! I think there are road rules and they seem to be something along the lines of: if you honk the horn loudly and persistently enough, are fearless and can push your way through, or around, whatever is in the way, you get to go in the desired direction. Of course every other driver follows the same rules. Lanes appear to optional but traffic does 'flow' in two directions. Merging traffic - I'm not sure what I can say about that as it really has to be seen (and experienced) to be believed, but it does merge, eventually.Traffic moves quite slowly, which is a good thing. A sense of adventure and humour, and perhaps earplugs, makes being driven around a fun experience. This is one of those times when we're quite happy to leave the driving to those who know best.
We wandered through the streets until we came to Thamal, the main tourist area and pretty much just soaked in the atmosphere. We found a supermarket and stocked up on some goodies for the room and were completely surprised when we found soy milk on sale. We had dinner at a funky little restaurant called Places. Quite a few westerners had set up with their laptops and drinks etc as wireless internet was free. Being vegetarian in Nepal is much easier then in Europe and the food was delicious. The food prices are mind-boggling low by Australian Standards and the service is fantastic. Such wonderful welcoming people. A few brown outs as electricity was being shed but the generators kicked in quickly. Back to the hotel for an early night as our body clocks were quite out of whack.
Monday was Steve's orientation day at the Scheer Memorial Hospital in Banepa (an Adventist hospital) where he will be volunteering. We went down to breakfast early as his pick up was at 7:00am. Unbeknownst to me I was expected to be part of the orientation process, so that was a change in my plans for the day. We were driven out to Banepa by our host Bijuli and went to his house where we met his wife, Sunita and their son, Phillip. Their daughter is currently studying in Australia. We had no idea what was actually planned for the day, so we were very much in Bijuli's hands.
We had a look around the Scheer hospital and then joined in the welcoming address to a large contingent of Japanese medical personnel who had come to Banepa to operate on children with cleft palates. This particular program has been going for 18 years and is organised by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency of Japan. We visited a school for the deaf and were introduced to the children as well as some young adults who are deaf and doing handicraft work for fundraising. We walked around the town while Bijuli explained many aspects of Nepalese life and culture and answered our questions. After lunch we caught a local bus up to another hospital where Steve had a chance to speak with the Emergency Consultant about various aspects of emergency care in the area.
Bijuli and his family have been hosting volunteers in their home since 2001. The volunteers come from all over the world; many are young people who want the chance to volunteer, and to experience another culture, another way of life. Some are much older. Some stay for a week, while others stay for 6 months. The volunteers have a variety of professional backgrounds, yet the common thread is the desire to volunteer and to help the people of developing countries, such as Nepal. At the moment Bijuli's family have six people staying with them. Four are from Australia. There is a high school maths teacher, a medical student, a physiotherapist and a young girl who has just completed a Diploma of Justice. Next week I will spend my time volunteering in one of the schools.