Nepal

Sunrise on Annapurna range of Himalayas

“Yes! We found (affordable)tickets! We’ll be in Nepal next week!”

It was a last-minute adventure that turned out just splendidly! I loved it, partly because I love adventures, and we had them from the first! The 6 hour trip to Dhaka (the capital) somehow turned into a 9 hour bus adventure. But I found the first carpet I’ve seen in this country in the hotel we spent that night in! Granted it was a bit hard and dirty, but I would still call it carpet. Turns out being a woman when travelling over here has its advantages! The security line at the airport was SO long and 99% male (Lisa and I were the 1% that didn’t know there was a separate girls line). After a few minutes of waiting, someone official ushers us to a girls ‘line’ which actually wasn’t a line at all because so few women travel over here! After we figured that out we hardly had to wait in any airport lines J

Walking off the plane in Nepal, my first thought was ‘Woah! The air’s so fresh and clean here!’ Later, looking out at some of the mountains from Jenny’s(our friend and fellow WWU SM in Nepal) balcony at the hospital where she’s volunteering, she was telling us how sad it was because the pollution is so bad there you can’t get a good view of the mountains! It was true, there is a haze blocking the mountains almost everywhere you go, but coming from Dhaka, the air seemed crisp and fresh to me! From the hospital there we walked up to a lookout of the surrounding mountains and saw a bit of Nepali village life on our way. Flying in through the mountains earlier I had been surprised at the location of so many of Nepal’s villages; the people have leveled off the top and terraced almost the entire sides of some mountains to live and grow their crops on! Now walking through these villages I was amazed at how many and small some of their terraces were-they terrace seemingly every possible inch of land, even if it only means a few square feet of land to plant.

The next day we set out on a Nepali adventure with Lonely Planet as our guide. We took a bus to Pokara and lucked out letting a taxi driver convince us to go with him to his hotel that had the most honest and helpful owner I’ve met this side of the world! Once he found out we were volunteers he gave us good deals on everything and even helped us arrange our next leg of the trip though he didn’t get anything out of it! In Pokara we were rowed across the lake then left to climb up to a World Peace Pagoda and row ourselves back. The next morning started early with a little drive then hike up to a lookout hill to watch the sunrise come up on the snow-capped Anapurna Range of the Hilmayas; absolutely beautiful. The sun came up and splashed its colors on the pure white snow of the magnificent giants. After a chilly photoshoot of the stunning panorama we descended to eat breakfast on the lakeshore with some water buffalo(in Nepal, everybody has a water buffalo…where do you get them I don’t know…). The rest of the day was spent paddle-boating around the lake, watching the paragliders, walking around the lake, and just trying to wrap my mind around the impressiveness of the huge mountains RIGHT there!

Our next adventure was in Chitwan where the hotel guy was so anxious to sell us his touring packages he started throwing in free night walks and head massages. Like 3 girls would want to go on a walk with this creep in the dark then come back and let him massage our heads because he wants to practice for his future wife? Ha! Their bungalows we were staying in had already turned out to be just a cold little cottage room and their advertised ‘hot’ water really just cool water if there was water at all! We weren’t quite sold on the offers coming from that place….instead we rented bikes, rode past a few camels in the street, visited the elephant breeding center and booked an elephant ride and jeep safari for the next day.

If I had to pick a favorite part of the trip, it would probably be riding the elephant. I’ve dreamed of going to Africa and going on safaris and riding elephants and such, but never had I dreamed of riding an elephant in Nepal! Neither did I imagine the ride would be so bumpy! With every step our elephant took we would all sway back and forth, making pictures on the move quite blurry J Our ‘driver’ led us through the jungle away from the other 15+ elephants also giving rides and found a mother and baby rhino we followed for awhile. That was the highlight of the ride, but we also saw deer, pigs, and a few monkeys J

Later that same afternoon we went on a jeep safari in the hopes of seeing a tiger. It was a very cold, overcast day so many animals were not as active. However, days like that are better for seeing tigers because that’s when they like to come out(or so our guide says).  Not far into the safari the driver spotted a tiger footprint from the night before! How he recognized a footprint on the side of the path while he was driving I have no idea! We also spotted a few monkeys, a very distant rhino, and a crocodile! Sadly only one jeep that day spotted the tiger and it wasn’t ours L But it was ok, I was still on a safari(very exciting), and we had cute little British kids  along to listen toJ

The rest of our time in Nepal was spent doing a little tourist shopping in Khatmandu, finding a pretty decent Arizona-style Mexican restaurant(look up the Lazy Gringo if you’re ever in Nepal!), and playing soccer and card games with Jenny’s friends which are THE most awesome group of middle-school boys—considerate, polite and absolutely hilarious! I wish I could’ve taken the back with me, but I don’t think Jenny would ever have let me J I had a ton of fun with them, rode an elephant, saw rhinos and monkeys and a tiger footprint, and even saw Everest from the plane on the way out. It will be hard trip to top J

Take it out! Take it out, take it out, remove it.

My 1st dental patient :)

Giving flouride treatments

Just after Christmas a medical/dental team arrived from America to do a few clinics around the area. Having had a few months to adjust to this culture already myself, it was interesting watching others from my own culture be shocked and attempt to adjust to the culture here. Life changed quite a bit for the few days they were staying here! Once they arrived we got right to work, first giving each of the orphanage kids a quick check-up and fluoride treatment (foam we would spread on their teeth then let them spit out in a bowl). Then we let the villagers pressing against our gate begin to come through. I had the privilege of working with an AWESOME dentist….seriously, 90 yrs old and full of fun! If anyone came complaining of tooth pain, the only way he could help was to take the tooth out. Surprisingly there were quite a few too scared to do that and just wanted medicine! Sorry guys, we don’t have magic pills that will cure your rotting teeth. Those brave enough to be helped would quickly be numbed(injected) then he’d get their teeth out like no big deal! So I guess after 90 yrs of pulling teeth it may not be such a big deal, but if it were one of my teeth coming out…it’d be a big deal.

Another awesome thing about my 90 yr old dentist friend; he seems to believe anyone can be a dentist….in a matter of minutes. He started talking about us pulling out teeth and I thought he was joking because he does have a good sense of humor. But after watching him pull a few he hands me the pliers! I felt nowhere near qualified to pull out teeth, but since when have SM’s felt qualified to do the things they do? So not even a minute later I’d pulled out my first tooth! Then I was told if I pulled 3 I’d be treated with more respect…D.(1) D.(2) S.(3) so of course that was a must! The medical part of the team was busy busy busy and I got a lot of practice taking blood pressure, but the dental side was, surprisingly, the most fun for me! I say surprisingly because I would much rather go to a doctor than a dentist at home, especially because now I know what it’s like to be the one pulling the teeth! Strangely, despite the grossing thought of pulling rotting teeth out of mouths the reek, there is an odd addictive element in the experience. By the end of their trip I’d pulled 8 teeth and even given two injections! So if any of you need any teeth pulled, don’t bother with the bills. I’ll be home in March and I won’t charge you a thing. Why would you be worried? I’m qualified now, a D.D.S. J

Happy Big Day!

A very ‘Shubo Boro Din’ (literally ‘happy big day’) or Merry Christmas came to our little compound. A hot pink bamboo lighted star was hung from our roof, several small trees adorned with lights, and the front of the cafe filled with a few precious decorations and strands of lights. The festivities started a few days before Christmas when we took the kids caroling. Door to door all over campus we sang a few English carols and read Christmas bible verses. Apparently when you sing at people’s doors, instead of giving you something tasty, here they’ll give you taka(money)! So with all the taka the kids got we bought them little sweets(like super wet donut holes) and ice cream J

Two days before Christmas I REALLY went caroling. I was surprised at how hard-core Bengalis are about their caroling! First, you should know that Bengali carols are about 3 or 4 times as long as English carols. Secondly, Bengalis love to dance with their carols. So, the leader is in the middle with a harmonium or drum singing phrase after phrase of these long songs and we are dancing around him in a circle echoing the phrases. We start off down the path just outside our compound and in about 5 mins we reach our first destination. Singing/dancing 2 or 3 carols here it is nearly 20 mins before we move on to our next destination!  The 2^nd place is where we encountered a Hindu man doing his own worship; while we were caroling and dancing around the circle he was walking around behind us burning incense and muttering things under his breath…maybe he was worried one of his gods wouldn’t like our songs? Or maybe it was just his way of joining in with us. 20 mins later we left our incense man for one of our village schools. By the time we were done there it’d been about an hour and the puffed rice we got there tasted good J I thought now we’d been caroling for a bit, collected a bit of taka, ate a little puffed rice, we might be headed back? Apparently we had just begun! We went through village after village stopping in every courtyard and open space we could fit to dance a few songs before moving to the next group of mud huts. In this culture there doesn’t seem to be any curfew courtesy….11 o’clock at night they are still pounding on tin doors until sleepy faces finally emerge to watch us sing and give a few taka! After several hours of walking and dancing in the cold, many were complaining of sore feet but nothing was going to stop our leader until we had sang for every hut in every village near our campus! It wasn’t until 4 hours later we finally returned home and scurried to our warm beds to enjoy a little rest. These people took caroling to a whole new level for me!

Christmas eve day we gave out blankets and jackets to some of the surrounding villagers that really needed it(it actually gets cold here and the villagers suffer so much with no blankets or jackets). Then our kids all got a special Christmas Eve treat, a puffed rice and molasses ball(modified rice krispy treat) which they enjoyed thoroughly! As a special vespers that night the kids did a Christmas play we’d been working on with them, it was cute J Then, as hard-core as ever, the Bengalis went caroling AGAIN! Collecting still more taka and dancing at every hut around. I enjoyed my one and only packet of hot cider to celebrate this unique Christmas Eve J

Our Charlie Brown christmas tree :)

Issac's puffed rice molasses ball(Christmas Eve treat)

Then it was Christmas Morning, the happiest morning of the year! The kids knew it and couldn’t help showing it through all their huge smiles and sparkling eyes. It was an extremely unique Sabbath, not only being Christmas day, but also my first Christmas spent on the other side of the world with my Bangla Hope family. Special treats for all, extra treats for the kids, and priceless faces of the children when they received or gave a little gift. Christmas night we had a program with several special numbers; 3 guys singing ‘We Three Kings’, an English carol by the older kids, a Bengali carol by some staff, and an impromptu Silent Night by all the foreigners present! They turned the lights off, handed us candles, then in the middle of the song began spraying foam snow on us!  I was so surprised I finished the song half-laughing! There is no snow in Bangladesh, so the kids were quite perplexed when this foam landed on them and everyone was telling them it was snow J Grammy and Mr. Waid, who dressed as Santa Clause, handed out gifts for EVERYBODY, staff and kids alike. From clothes to cars and dolls and purses and pens, the kids could not contain their excitement, “Kelsey teacher! Look at! Look at what Grammy gave!” then they would pull out everything from their ziplock bag and show each treasure one-by-one. The excitement was contagious and I found myself having one my happiest Christmas experiences right there with those kids, marveling alongside them at the joy such simple things can bring. In a world with such advanced and complicated gadgets and ideas, it does not seem often enough we’re able to experience such pure joy from the beautiful simplicities God created. This Christmas has reminded me that true happiness often comes from the simplest things of life.

Picnic to Flames!!!!!!!!

Bengali firemen with their little firetruck (red pick-up)

FireWOMEN of the day

Remains of the 12 ft. haystack

Whitest firefighters in the country!

School picnic was off to a great start with little girls and boys reciting Bangla rhymes and songs. Hair pieces and belts were given out to celebrate the end of the school year and special snacks were shared while watching a little cartoon-what a treat! After lichiis, ballons, and special egg curry for lunch, the kids went to their rooms to take their afternoon naps.

            Normally, Lisa and I will only eat a late breakfast and early dinner here because they feed us so well we can’t handle any more! But today, all the teachers were called to eat a delicious curry lunch together to end the picnic. God must have known we needed the extra caloric energy for what was coming.

            Just minutes after we come up to our room after lunch, Lisa looks out the window to investigate why the children are making so much noise during their nap time. She finds all the kids being taken from their rooms and ushered onto the grass in front. Woah! She spots the smoke and follows it to flames behind the cow stalls of our small campus. “Kelsey! Their trash-burning fire has gotten out of hand!” We race down the stairs and comfort the kids for a few minutes before running to join other staff at the scene. The once 12 ft haystack right beside the cow stall is now going up in flames. Immediately we begin running back and forth carrying bucket after bucket of water and sand to throw on the flames. In the smoky chaos our lungs burn and at times we cannot even see, but still we throw sand and water at the haystack, relentlessly fighting the flames licking around the edges. After about an hour of this a few firemen show up. By this time we had some control of it, but we were glad for the hoses the firemen had in the back of their little red pick-up. With the firemen spraying all the water, our job became removing all the hay from the haystack. With water, soot and ash flying everywhere, we reach again and again for smoldering hay bundles and fling them behind us.  Though some are quite warm, they do not burn us.

            By the time we finish strewing the 12 ft haystack all over the ground, we are covered head to foot in ash, soot, and hay and reek like a….firefighter I guess! We must have been quite unrecognizable as the kids wouldn’t even come near us and one little girl screamed when I looked over at her! Shati(our amazing cook)was so worried about all of us working out there she sent us all tea as we left the site of such great misfortune. Two showers later we still reek, though we fare better than our clothes! Four times we have washed them now yet still they smell as bad as the smoldering haystack behind the cow stall.

            Walking through the burnt remains this morning I am again filled with gratitude for how closely God was watching over our little campus yesterday. He fed us so we’d have the energy to fight, he let the kitchen lady hear the distressed cows and alert everyone of the fire, he kept the flames from spreading across our campus or to any of the electrical lines nearby, and he brought the man to work on the antenna because he turned out to be the only one on campus who had the fire department number! After all the scares and uncertainties, the only thing we ended up losing was the cow food. And, we gained an unforgettable bonding experience with the people here…good common trauma J

Independence Day

Decorated courtyard

"Pakistani fighters"

Freedom fighters(Bangladesh) are victorious

Music and decorations appear well before 8 a.m. today. It is not only the first day of Christmas vacation, but Bangladesh’s Independence Day and we are celebrating by having a sports day with all the kids; the first sports day they’ve ever experienced!

The event begins in the courtyard with all the children standing at attention in the grass facing a flag atop a bamboo pole.  The compound is filled with 100 little voices belting out their national anthem. Then the honorable guests present (the founders and board chairman of the orphanage) together cut the ribbon and the event officially begins! Children scatter to the four corners of the courtyard and gather around their team flags. Their excited anticipation is beaming from their faces as they squirm on the wall eagerly awaiting the first event. Being the oldest kids of the orphanage, the 1^st and 2^nd graders get to start the first event, a simple race across the courtyard. Then my beloved KG class and finally the two youngest groups race. After each race, the 1^st 2^nd and 3^rd place winners are ushered over to some bricks arranged as a podium to salute their achievement. Then the caregivers, teachers, and even the Waids got to race!

Next I witnessed 100 kids play their first game ever of musical chairs! It’s such an exciting game to win, but all the elimination makes lots of  ‘losers’ of the game as well….there were a lot of tears with that game L However, the tears were soon dried with the following frog race. With their hands on the back of their thighs, 100 cute little ‘frogs’ hopped across the grass as fast as their little legs could bounce them! Then their hands were tied behind their backs for the final event and they raced to tear a candy off a string with their mouths. With the string hanging just above their heads, they jumped and jumped until they grasped the candy firmly in their mouth or fell and couldn’t get up because their little hands were tied! Even Shuniti was wheeled over in her new chair to play the candy game alongside the other children.

To finish the events, the boys were dressed in costume and emerged with sticks and painted moustaches, representing the freedom fighters who fought against Pakistan for Bangladesh’s independence. A role-play of the fighting and Bangladesh’s triumph ended in an excited victory parade circling the courtyard.

After a mid-day break, a frozen banana, and a last-minute dance preparation, the awards ceremony was held. Once our dance was over we were able to enjoy Bangla rhymes, songs, and dances presented by cute 5-8 yr old girls. Finally, the winners of the morning received their awards; hairclips for the girls, wind up planes for the boys and other special treats. Then we got our special treat—eggplant and potatoe curry for dinner! MMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!

A visit to the freedom fighter(a friend of the Waids and veteran of Bangladesh’s independence war) was such an appropriate end to the holiday. Well celebrated and thoroughly enjoyed by all was this country’s 39^th birthday! 

It chills and it thrills

I sit on my bed still snuggled under my sheet and blanket. A cool morning breeze coming in through the window keeps me chilly after a cold shower. I am thankful for the thin sweater I bought in Dhaka for $1.50 and the socks I never thought I’d use. After days with a misery index of 118 F, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever feel anything but hot and humid here. December has brought cooler weather with it and though it is chilling, the new feeling is also thrilling! 

Along with the chills come the thrills of warm clothes! Hour after hour has been spent finding long pants and jackets for each child here. It has been long but rewarding work as their faces just beam when they are handed their new ‘wardrobe’ for winter. One night while saying goodnight to the kids we discovered even the caregivers had been given new pajamas for the cooler weather. One mother was wearing her new pj’s and others must have been watching as we marveled at how nice they were because pretty soon there was a whole group of them crowding around eager to model their new pj’s! The sheer thrill of wearing their new knit pajamas was beaming from their faces. 

The night of the kangaroos was my favorite. December has actually brought some ‘American cold’ weather, and the kids weren’t warm enough with their regular pajamas. So, all the younger ones were given kangaroos (the cute pajama one-sies).  We came to kiss them all goodnight the first night they had them and we were greeted with the cutest sight! They all run in their new kangaroos towards the gate as we approach yelling, “Kelsey Lisa Teacher! Kangaroo! Kangaroo!” I have never seen so many kids in one-sies in one place before! Jumping around, tugging at our clothes just absolutely thrilled to show us their new pajamas, they made the cutest kangaroos I’ve ever seen 

Rice Paddies

When I think of hard-core missionaries out in the “mission field,” one thing I picture them doing is working with the locals in the fields for their mere survival.  I sometimes imagine myself as that hard-core missionary, and I absolutely love the experiences that make me feel anywhere close to it! So when I heard the day was actually coming when we would get to help harvest the rice, I was stoked!

It is morning and we all gather around and pick out a sickle for the job. Even the older kids gather to help carry out the rice we will cut. Then single file we carefully wander around a maze of rice fields until we get to our own. I have no idea how they know which field is whose-they all look the same to me! We tie our ornas (scarves) in a more practical, working style and begin watching and learning. Grab the rice paddy about 8 inches from the ground and cut it somewhere below your hand. Each person takes about 4 rows of paddies and works across the field, leaving the cut rice in neat piles to be bundled and carried back to the orphanage. Looking around at the 30+ other laborers in the fields with us, I cannot believe what I am doing. I am cutting rice, out in a field with the locals, in Bangladesh, harvesting their staple food for the year, just like in bible times! Though the sun makes the sweat drip, I am absolutely loving it. They probably think I’m crazy having so much fun with their work! We continue to cut field after field until I am called to breakfast. I don’t want to leave! In a culture where it’s rude to refuse food though, I must go. Before we leave one girl shows us how to tie a bundle of rice together and carry it on our heads.

             It was only a small taste of the harvesting life, but it was something I had dreamed of doing for years so I am just ecstatic I had the opportunity to experience it! And for those of you that have seen my klutzy side….I did NOT cut any fingers with my sickel J