Travel report February 2016
20. February
This time we start our trip much more relaxed because we know roughly what to expect.Since there are three of us traveling now, we can take more luggage with us. We make the most of this and have a whopping 90 kilos with us. Again a lot of children's clothes , but this time a stretcher, blood pressure machine or thermometer were also requested. Since the situation is much more relaxed, we are also packing chocolate and Suggus for the children in each of the 32 houses in the village.
21st of February
In Kathmandu we are warmly welcomed again by Narayan and his wife - it is almost like coming home, as we have visited so often in the last six years. The time there is always very intense, we spend all the time together - often in a small space.
February 22nd
The first day in Kathmandu will be used to organize transport to Bhumeshtan. We also want to bring a little present to the school and buy lots of footballs and volleyballs, as well as skipping ropes for the children.
February 23rd
Today we go by jeep to Dhading and from there to the village. The driver is a very kind man who drives extremely considerately - so the journey takes 10 hours, but we arrive safely.Shortly before the village the first children run towards us and as soon as we get to the Lazy Stone we see a large crowd of people. Everyone waves happily. As soon as we got out we were taken to three chairs, we had to sit down and people almost overran us. Everyone puts a tikka on our foreheads, gives us flowers and wants to shake our hands. Almost a bit much for our taste – but extremely touching.
First set up the tent and wash your face, then the first Dal Bhat is served.
The temperatures are very pleasant, more like ours on a fresh summer day. But as soon as it gets dark, the cold comes. We can warm ourselves around the campfire and are served tea.
We are happy sitting around the fire with these people. Everyone is beaming at us – so different from last time.
You can tell that last time we were the strange strangers who promised you something in your emergency that you could hardly believe - and the shock and sadness were still deep.
But since the construction has already begun and everyone gets their share - this time we are friends who helped you in your time of need - and they let us feel that in every possible way. Tired and extremely happy, we move into our next camp, which is a bit small for 3 people.
February 24th
The next morning we crawl out of our tent and the whole village is waiting for us at the Lazy Stone. The news that we had brought something for everyone spread quickly thanks to the bush telephone. We distribute the relief supplies and the chocolates.
Then you want to show us what you have already achieved.
As you walk through the village you can see that a lot has happened since our last visit.
The ruins of the old houses have largely been cleared and the stones have been stacked to form clean walls.
For some houses the material for construction is already ready, others have started digging the foundation. A first house is already completely built and ready to move into. Almost at least - all that's missing is the housewarming ceremony. When a house is completed in Nepal, it is inaugurated according to an old tradition. We are invited to attend the ceremony. A priest leads the family, us and a cow around the house three times with bells ringing.
A hole is then dug in the still slightly wet ground in the house, which becomes the fireplace. The priest opens the first fire and consecrates the house with a long ritual. The family cow would also be present in the kitchen at all times - cows are sacred in Hinduism. The first meal can now be cooked and served. Everyone involved will be fed. We are very happy that we were able to take part in the ceremony - we are also extremely happy that we see a house that was only financed WIR BEWEGEN Well almost, because the wood for the upper floor was recycled from the old collapsed house. The corrugated sheets for the roof come from the emergency shelter where the family lived. We ask why the beautiful old stone roofs are being abandoned - we realize that the fear of another earthquake is huge - it is better to build with light materials and survive another collapse.
We ask how the village handles the construction order.
We realize once again that Bhumesthan is more than a village - it is a community that sticks together and stands up for each other. Due to the need and resources, it is determined who can or is allowed to build and when. Then we actively help. We continue through the village and are impressed by how things work on such a construction site.
There are no machines here, everything is done by manpower. The materials have to be carried from the road by hand, which can be several hundred meters, and Bhumesthan is quite steep on the slope. The holes for the pillars also have to be dug with a pick and shovel. Everyone is happy when we come by - we are offered tea, local coffee and something to eat everywhere. While people were a bit shy on our last trip, this time they are laughing at us wholeheartedly!
We realize how important and meaningful our “work” is here.
When the children come back from school we distribute the Clothes . In the end, 42 children are the proud owners of new clothes - the smile in their eyes is priceless.
We have a leisurely dinner again and spend the last few hours around the campfire. Unfortunately, Nepali is incredibly difficult to learn - but people are happy about every funny sentence we try to say.
February 25th
After breakfast, Dal Bhat, we visit the school. Gopi told us that a Nepalese aid organization, Journey Nepal , is now taking care of the school's reconstruction.
Of course, we are also excited to see what they were able to achieve with our money. When we arrive at the school we meet a friendly Frenchman who is the construction manager on site.
Natural houses are being built, very simple but efficient. When this is finished it will definitely look very nice! We also learn that there is enough money to build the classrooms - so we can stop collecting donations for the school. We give the headmaster the toys, which he is very happy about - sport is very important to him and he would like to promote it more.
With the money from last summer they were able to build temporary classrooms and have furniture made - we would have helped them a lot through the initial period.
A huge thank you to all donors from Switzerland!! Happy after so many positive stories, we stroll back to the village.
Tomorrow we are invited to a wedding.
Narayan's niece, his eldest brother's daughter, is getting married. The day before the wedding, everything is prepared for the ceremony - actually, the preparation itself is a ceremony.
The temporary “altar” that is built must consist of certain types of trees as well as a complete banana tree. Many villagers are there too, everyone helps.
Be it to prepare food or otherwise offer help. Around 300 guests are expected - but there is no catering or anything like that - the family buys the food, the village organizes the festival. Every child who has free time also helps out, even 3-year-olds wash dishes or sweep the place. On the way back, Narayan's second eldest brother shows us the small hydroelectric power plant he built.
A small turbine is operated from a small storage pond via a pipe. Unfortunately, the line broke during the earthquake, so a new, smaller and makeshift solution had to be installed. This turbine can generate a good kW of electricity with approx. 220 volts.
This is enough to provide light for a few households in the evening. The inventor himself can even operate a small television to watch the news. During the rainy season there is enough water to run the turbine all day. But most of the year, water has to be collected in the storage basin during the day in order to be able to generate a few hours of electricity in the evening. We are very impressed. In the evening we meet with the construction committee - they calculate everything for us again in detail - Narayan also tells everyone again what he has received from us and what is already in the village.
A further 9,000 CHF, which was still in his account, will be handed over in order to be able to settle the payments for the material. It's great to see how transparently everything is discussed in the committee. We ask if anything else is needed. The wish is loud that it would be very nice if instead of the thin corrugated sheets, beautiful blue corrugated sheets could be used as a roof. These would be more stable and would not dazzle when the sun shines on them. Maybe some more paint to be able to lovingly paint the concrete houses.
We promise we will try to raise the money needed.
February 26th
Wedding day. We're happy to not be the center of attention for once.We go back to the wedding house with our best Clothes that we have with us - everyone is already busy preparing in a harvested field nearby. Potatoes are peeled and chilies are cut. Currys, rice and of course meat sizzle in large pots over the fire.
We go to the house and wait for the groom to arrive. He walks from his village, about three hours on foot, with all his guests to Bhumesthan. As soon as he arrives, the ceremony begins. We are asked to sit first with our cameras. An incredible number of people are gathered - there is a huge crowd on the small forecourt in front of the house.
The ceremony lasts many hours. In between we go and see what is going on in the large field - the food is served there and we are asked to take a seat. A wonderful rice with dates and almonds is served, the curry is super spicy but very tasty. We don't eat meat because everything is eaten here - brains, hearts, liver and even the skin end up in the pot - for us it's almost impossible to eat.
After the meal we can present our gift to the bride and groom, which of course cannot be done without the tikka. We're not particularly skilled at it, but the bride and groom are happy that we're there.
There is also music and dancing in the family garden. We should too, but since only one person is dancing and everyone else is watching, we are too shy.
The ceremony continues for many more hours. Even the cow that is given as a gift is still consecrated. But she doesn't find it funny at all and defends herself vehemently. But that's part of it too.
In the end, Narayan's family hands over the bride to the new family. The whole company now makes its way home – another three hours.
We feel honored to be part of such a traditional wedding. Everyone is extremely friendly to us, even people who are not from Bhumesthan and don't know us show us great respect and gratitude for what we do here.
27th of February
Today we are invited to Gopi's for a late breakfast - there are wonderful spring rolls with French fries - a treat after 4 days of Dal Bhat.
We explain to him that we call such a late breakfast – a “meal between breakfast and lunch” – brunch. He likes that very much. And yet an hour later he gives us another Dal Bhat. We're almost bursting with so much food. On the way back we see how the residents are busy building their houses.
Some of them don't have enough gravel, but if you're a man, you simply cut small gravel out of large stones. A truckload of material arrives in the afternoon.
It's extreme - in order for all the houses to be completed, over 100 trucks have to drive into the village. Of course, tea is served everywhere again - everyone wants to invite us and is very happy when we accept the invitation
February 28th +++
Today we continue to Lumbini.
After having been to Nepal so many times, we now want to admire this historical place. We sadly pack the tent in the morning. Many people are standing there again, everyone wants to honor us.
We have to promise you that we will come back when everything is ready. Then we'll have a big party!
The days in Nepal were once again very impressive.
This visit was even more impressive because people opened up to us more - wanted to talk to us, recognized us as friends.
We already miss these special faces marked by life!
During our last visit, a construction committee of five people was appointed to coordinate the work.
This has now been expanded to include an examination committee of three people. Every order and every action is checked in detail. Each family receives the same amount of materials. They explain to us that with our money it was possible to buy two truckloads of sand, one truckload of gravel and 25 packages of cement for every house in the village, as well as enough reinforcing iron to cover two rooms or six pillars. Thanks to the building materials that WIR BEWEGEN was able to pay for, every family can build a house with two rooms. Families who contribute some of their own money can afford a slightly larger and more “luxurious” house with three rooms. Three generations with six or even more people often live in these houses. Luxury is defined differently there than here. Most people don't have any furniture either - a straw mat is rolled out and the bed is ready.
The donations made it possible to ensure that the social gap in the village does not become too great, which makes us very happy.
