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MICHELLE –
USA I spent a wonderful month and a half in the village of Kaskikot. There I spent quality time at the school, with my host family, and the village. The Village. Kaskikot is located on a hillside, about a one hour bus ride outside of Pokhara, and a half hour passed Sarankot. If I walked about twenty minutes to the top of the hill, one would have a breath-taking view of the Annapurna Himalayan Range.
My family. My host family was quite lovely. My host brother, Durga Giri, was also the teacher I would work with over the next several weeks. He and his wife Sardah have three beautiful daughters aged 11, 9 and 3. The houses itself was a built several ago by Durga and his brothers. I was given my own room, however, was always welcome in the kitchen and common room to watch television. My host family also owned several animals including three goats, one buffalo, and one chicken. I was very eager to participate in the daily routine of village life. Sardah showed me how to properly harvest millet, cut grass, carry water from the local tap and well, plant saag, and even distribute manure in the fields (although I didn’t know that was what I was doing initially). With limited language skills on both sides, we communicated mostly through gestures, simple words, and much laughter. During the time I stayed there, I felt we had become quite close despite our different native tongues. I even learned that Sardah had the same birthday as my sister in the United States! By the end, I felt we had truly become family. The School. I taught alongside Durga at Shree Pragatishil Primary School located less than five minutes away from their home. The school has classes 1-5 with two permanent teachers and two volunteer teachers. Durga and I focused on teaching the basics to classes 3-5. The most effective techniques included games, drawings, and individual one-on-one attention. The school had only been recently built, and many things are still needed such as furniture, a better roof, and additional teaching materials. After much searching and bargaining, Sally, another volunteer, and I, helped fix the class five room with furniture, paint, and a wipe board. However, many things are still needed throughout the school. Additionally, Sally and I helped to develop a website that will hopefully connect the school with the outside world. Special Events. There were so many wonderful events that took place while I was in the village. They included a festival for the new farming season, the school picnic, and a Women’s Picnic. The festival was held at the top of the hill near a temple. It included dancing, food, and a cultural program. The picnic was wonderful as well. The children of the school were given an opportunity to dance, eat fresh goat meat, and play in the fields. Finally, the women gathered for their own celebration, cooking sil roti (deep fried bread) and achaar for nearly five hours. The women laughed and danced. More importantly, they had a day off to celebrate themselves.
I had a
great volunteer experience in Nepal and I hope to continue
my support even when I return to the United States. Thanks
for this wonderful opportunity!
NEIL HORNING - USA I am a volunteer from Berkeley U.S.A. I thought it would be a good idea to go for a 10 day trek between my language training and my placement in order to beat the monsoon. The first 4 days of the trek (from Nayapul to Tatopani) I was in established Maoist Territory. I found it is actually more convenient to trek in the Maoist area’s because there are no police that stop you and ask you for your trekking permit every few hours. When I actually saw the Maoists they were quite busy and seemed uninterested in hassling me in any way. There were two of them squatting over a hand held radio on a rocky overlook. When they spotted me they gave me a little red salute and simply asked where I was coming from, where I was going, and if I was alone. Then they just let me pass. I even asked if they wanted any money, as they are known for extracting 1200RS from tourists in their areas, and they said it wasn’t necessary. When I did go past I actually went the wrong way, and they called after me and pointed me in the right direction. Don’t believe whatever the State Department has on their website about travel in Nepal. It is perfectly safe for Americans, or any other foreigner to be here. Now I can’t wait to start my placement.
ANTOINETTE BRANSON - USA My experience with INFO Nepal has been safe, enlightening, and very enjoyable. Nepal has a very rewarding cultural environment. The initial culture shock is quickly turned into a sense of belonging. I have never once felt anything but at home and completely welcomed. I was placed in the Kathmandu Happy Home with children ranging from six years old up to twelve years old. Although my stay was very short in Nepal I was completely accepted as part of the family. The children are supremely bright and receptive. It came to my attention that they had only been introduced to English 10 months earlier, which was shocking because of their comfort and ability with the language. I will miss their melodious singing, spelling out every word and everything that passed us by on our walks... “L-O-V-E, love.” Never have I known children that are so interested in learning and reading. The training program is very good (ramro chha) even if your length of stay is short. The organization is centered around hands on training. If you are not comfortable with something, they will make the necessary changes, and that is something worth praising. This was my first time traveling outside of America to volunteer and I think that I was very lucky with my experience and placement. I was shown the truly beautiful side of Nepalese culture and geography while helping just a little bit. I feel more confident in traveling to other countries and in bringing my family back to Nepal for trekking and rafting in the future.
MICHAEL GARDENER - USA I am currently a first year student at Nottingham University, UK, with a BA Management and Asian studies. I am a first time volunteer with INFO Nepal. Even though I had only a couple of weeks to help at INFO, I have to say it has been a mind blowing experience that has given me so much happiness and a sense of achievement. I found learning the language slightly daunting but after a few solid hours with our guru, Krishna, I was more confident in my abilities. After a few days training 4 of us were sent to a village called Godawari. Godawari is about one hours drive out of the city and the change in scenery was amazing. The village was spread out across the base of a mountain range in the middle of nowhere. This was the real Nepal. My house was very ancient, with cows and goats in the room next to the kitchen. The Dal Bhat was eaten on a mud dried floor. It was a superb time to get away from all the material possessions that I have become so dependent upon back in London. Even if the food did slightly disagree with my stomach. On return to the capital city I went straight into my placement at the Happy Home. I was welcomed by seven smiling faces and seven hugs. I was amazed at the trust and love the children shared with me after knowing me for barely 5 minutes. The basic day was an early rise followed by exercise. The kids had great energy that needed to be utilized. Then came their class with the English teacher. I was able to just sit with the children and provide help with spelling, speech and writing. Dal Bhat came next before heading off to school at ten. When the children were occupied elsewhere I would head into the office to do some paperwork. School ended around 2, a very short day!!!! We would usually have a few games in the afternoon. Such as hide n seek, cycling, drawing and reading. The second time for the english teacher to come was at around half five. I can definitely see the progress they are making which will help them at school. Dal Bhat at 7, followed by more games and the occasional comedy programme on TV. Bedtime was early at 9pm, but remember in Nepal most people are up by round half 5 to 6am. My placement was too short for my liking and I am already planning my second trip in a few years time. My role as older brother and supervisor was demanding but also rewarding at the same time. I recommend voluntary work in Nepal to anyone who is searching for a fantastic opportunity to give something back to the community and come away feeling very fulfilled.
3rd
International Elephant Race
Karina
Puikkonen- USA Teaching at Children's Resource Center in Nirmal Pokhari, PokharaS The day after I arrived in Kathmandu, due to my time and schedule, I went straight to my training village in Duhlikel with another volunteer, Larissa. We spent four days there and were lucky enough to be there for the end of the Tihar festival. We went around with our friend Pashupati and his friends singing at the houses in the village and were able to participate in the tika ceremony as well. It was an amazing and shocking introduction to Nepali culture, I don’t think I knew what to expect. But even by the end of four days it was sad to go as we had become friends with the family and children. Within a day Larissa and I were off to Tibet and trekking for the next two and a half weeks. Asim was kind enough to help organize these trips for us through a friend of his. And it worked out splendidly. The scenery left me wanting to see more! So three weeks after arriving in Nepal I finally went to my village placement. I was happy to go where I was needed but plans changed last minute and the day before leaving we found out that we were going to Pokhara instead of Chitwan. We didn’t know what to expect but were happy to go. The first experience was the city bus from Pokhara to the top of the hill and village of Nirmal Pokhari. We went on the evening bus and it got dark and that road is the most extreme sport you can experience anywhere in the world. I thought we were going to tip over and roll down the hill all the way up! Yet we arrived safely and our host family was absolutely lovely. The only difficulty was the language. Since this was a new placement not many people spoke English and my three 2 hour Nepalese lessons three weeks before wasn’t enough I found. It was difficult as the volunteers before us were there for 6 weeks and got a grasp for it and it felt expected that we should know the language as well. That pressure made it very difficult for me to understand (as they spoke very quickly), learn and speak. I developed the basics at the end of three weeks but definitely needed more time for the language. One highlight was that one of our Nepali sisters got married while we were there and that was something!! It was so different from an American wedding mainly for the fact that the bride has to be very sad and crying the whole time. The happiest day of your life??? But many people were there and the preparation was amazing with the decorations and food and amount of each. It was a night wedding too so we stayed up all night. The teaching at the school needs a lot of work as teachers expected us to just take a class and talk English without any structure or help from them. It was very difficult and I spent all my time there explaining and arguing that we needed a book and teacher for the class as we were there to assist the teachers and not do their job. It will take time but hopefully they will begin learning what we expect. The children there were absolutely little angels from heaven. They just loved the library and us unconditionally from day one. The most enjoyable time was at the library in the mornings and evenings. I had brought some English teaching books and was glad I did as I used those for all my lessons the whole three weeks. The youngest kids were brilliant in that they had excellent memories of spelling and the name of objects. The middle class was the most difficult as they had the least understanding. And the oldest class was great because we could do more complex things with them (nouns, verbs, questions, synonyms, etc) and they were able to get a basic understanding of it. They were all eager to learn and classes went really smoothly until the last few days and then it was all about drawing and playing. We dedicated one hour a day to play time where they could actually play with balls, jump ropes, board games and draw. They loved this time and it was a great release for them at the end of the day. I learned so much from them about appreciating the simple things as well as Nepali “love” where actually a lot of hitting is involved, but it was our inside joke. My two best little buds were the next door kids. Pradip was 12 years old and his brother Jiban was 10 years old. We played with their rubber, they read their English homework to me at night, they made drawings for me and just took the time to talk to us and spend time with us. I will miss them terribly!!! All of the children were great and loved the attention that we could give as volunteers for them. |
The
village is filled with wonderful members, mostly of the
Brahmin and Chettri caste. My “Namaskar” or “Namaste” was
always warmly returned. Many were eager to speak to me with
the English they knew and many were willing to use simple
Nepali so I could understand. I always felt very welcome
wherever I went.