Finally recovered enough to write and tell you about the village stay... more on that later....
Over the last few weeks we had heard a lot about the stay in the village and anxiety levels differed between people. I was actually looking forward to it – thought it would be a great experience to have – living with a family.
We had received some lessons on the cultural aspects – how to eat with your right hand (left hand for toileting!) does and don’t of eating etiquette, for example once you have started eating anything you touch with your right hand becomes ‘jhuto’ so no food is shared off the same plate and once you have started eating anything left is only fit for the animals. We also received lessons on washing at the community tap wearing our lungis – I think the boys were more worried about the communal washing than the girls and kept asking how we were going to wash. Going to the toilet was also demonstrated – but we have all been using squat toilets so this was more for our amusement than anything else! We were going to have a session by one of the last intake of volunteers (with photos etc) but I was glad we didn’t – I wanted to go and form my own impressions.
Anyway Monday came and we headed off for the bus and then the ½ hour walk down to the village (Chankhu Besi – meaning people who are too smart in the low village). It has been getting hotter and hotter here and we were pleased to get to the village school. The host families came to meet us and were given a short talk on the idiosyncrasies of us foreigners. We then went off to have tea with our families – only mine was not there L. So I went with one of the other volunteers to his house and had tea and waited all afternoon for my family to come back from the market.
My family turned out to be a lady with a 4 year old daughter living in a house up a very steep and winding dirt path – her husband was working away in the Maldives. It is very common here for men to leave their families to find work abroad and then send money home. Anyway I went and moved into my new room and then spent some time helping the girl with her homework (numbers in English). It seems that all Nepali parents aspire to send their children to private schools and they all teach English. Not long after I was called upstairs for dinner and once I had finished eating was told to go to bed (about 8 o’clock). Next morning I was woken by someone knocking on my door at 5.30am. It was the girl from the family I had spent the afternoon with. She told me I had to pack my bags and leave the house – what a welcome! Still not entirely sure what happened but I think it was something to do with the grandparents being angry that I was staying in the house. Had to go to another house to have my daal bhaat breakfast – well actually it is their lunch but they eat it at 8-9 in the morning – sitting on the floor in the kitchen, cross legged with smoke filling the room as they cook with wood and dried sweetcorn husks, next to the goats sleeping area (there are tigers in the area).
Later we all met to discuss our first night in the village – I think mine was the worst experience and the teachers were very apologetic! We also had stories of fleas in beds, mosquitoes and general shock at how people in the village live. I was found a new family to stay with – that of one of the teachers in the village school. However, the whole family had gone to the market and were not expected back until the evening. It was too hot to venture up the hill to get my bag so I took tea at another family’s house and spent the afternoon hanging around. Later I got my bag and went to my new house but still they were not back. The family in the house I had spent the afternoon at said I should just stay with them and eventually, when it had turned dark and I was ready to collapse, I agreed and they moved my stuff into my friends room. I was just getting comfortable when the other family came to get me. I could have cried I was so tired and miserable at hanging around for 2 days with my backpack! The new family were lovely though and made me very welcome. Unfortunately, no one spoke English and my Nepali has so many holes in it it’s not funny! Still we managed to make some small talk. The house was 2 stories high and newly built. There was a separate area on the ground floor for the cows (3), goats (6) and a store room above it. In the main house the ground floor was where the chickens slept, potatoes and other things were stored and the son and daughter-in-law and baby had a room. My room was on the 1st floor and next to it was the sweetcorn and grain store and the area for making butter. The second floor was where the rest of the family lived – apart from the Father and Mother who had set up bed in the outside kitchen – not sure if that was just because I had taken over one of the rooms or if that was normal! The kitchen was a little shack outside with a thatched roof and tin sides. The utensils were stored on the mud floor and knives etc were stored in the roof.
Dinner was a lonely affair as I was served on my own before the rest of the family ate(apparently this is normal). They were very sweet though and gave me a little stall to use as a table and even offered me a spoon to eat with. I told them that I needed to practice my hand eating skills so declined the spoon. I think they may have regretted that I ate with my hand though as I was even slower than usual at eating and they all sat around waiting!
The family consisted of the mother and father (both farmers), 4 daughters, 2 sons, a daughter in law and her little boy, all living in the same house. So I had a big family and was welcomed as the didi (big sister) and that is what they called me - I don’t know if anyone actually knew my name!
The days were filled with language classes in the mornings, hanging out with friends in the afternoons (drinking tea at every house you visited) and spending the evenings with my new family. The only thing that changed was my health. I picked up some stomache bug and was not happy to have to scramble down a little ladder, from my bedroom, and then outside to get to the toilet!
My first attempt at showering (of sorts) at an outside tap was interesting. You are in full public view and go in your lungi. The secret is to have good elastic on your lungi – put your hand inside and scrub and then pour the water down the front and back! On my first attempt my mother was not impressed with my attempts and insisted on giving me a hand. She started by rinsing off my hair and then decided I hadn't scrubbed my back well enough. So she scrubbed away and poured loads more cold water over me, her hand then started going down my lungi and at that point I had to insist that enough was enough!
There is no such as privacy in the houses in the village and we were forewarned that to get any privacy you had to lock your bedroom door (otherwise people just walk in). Unfortunately, I had no door only a curtain; so my family would often just come in and sit down in my room. Was glad I had my dictionary with me to help me communicate and some paper to draw some pictures.
The villagers only eat 2 meals a day, both of which are daal bhat. My family ate at 9 in the morning and 9 at night. One night we had a special treat. Dad killed the big rooster and in the evening we had him for dinner. I had mixed feelings about it - it would be great not to be woken up by the rooster under my room the next morning but the kitchen would not exactly have passed British (or any other) hygeniene standards! Anyway at dinner time I was served and insisted on not having much. Mum had already taken out the best bits (legs and something else). However, when I was not looking Mum slipped a large piece of whatever they thought was special on to my plate - the other half was given to Dad. Of course, since I had already started eating the food was now mine or rubbish so I had to make an attempt. Luckily the electricity went out at this point and we had to eat by mobile phone light, this meant I was saved having to see what bits I was eating. I must admit I can eat most things but I almost threw up trying to force the chicken down and eventually had to apologise and give up.
The next day was mother's day here - or the day you look into your mother's face. I brought my mother some pistachios as a treat, later for it to dawn on me that she had no teeth and so could not eat them! Anyway she seemed pleased and we had a party that night with all the family. They took great delight in having another chicken and then we drank some local, home brewed alcohol - how did it taste? STRONG!! The evening ended with my sisters coming to my room to teach me some dance moves. Great fun.
One day went into Banepa one day to get some goodies for a leaving party, presents for the families. I was still not feeling well and wondering if I would make it up the hill. Just then I saw a truck coming up the dirt path (first vehicle we had seen in the village). Some people were obviously using it as a way to get into town so I ran out and jumped on. Turned out to be a garlic truck and I had to kneel in the back (squashing garlic under my knees) and hold on for dear life as we wound up the bumpy path. The others were very jealous when they found out I had got a lift and spent a couple of hours in a very very nice hotel, where the receptionist made me tea acnd chatted. There was also a movie being filmed there - if I was feeling better I might have asked for a part!
On the last day we went to the school and did some activities with the classes and teachers. Anne and Rikie are both teachers so they were able to show the teachers how to use the books that had been provided before. In the afternoon we had a community sports event that was great fun with balls and skipping ropes and obstacle courses. The kids had a great day I think. The day rounded off with a party for the whole community and then it rained!
Monday morning it was a early climb up the hill back to the main road, after saying goodbye to my family. I gave them a gift of a rechargeable light and they gave me flowers, a mobile phone holder and a mango.
All in all it was a great experience but I was pleased to get back to KTM and have a good shower (in private), put on some clean clothes and have a toilet I could sit on. Went to doctors a week later and discovered I had Giardia. Great for the waistline but I would not recommend it!
Over the last few weeks we had heard a lot about the stay in the village and anxiety levels differed between people. I was actually looking forward to it – thought it would be a great experience to have – living with a family.
We had received some lessons on the cultural aspects – how to eat with your right hand (left hand for toileting!) does and don’t of eating etiquette, for example once you have started eating anything you touch with your right hand becomes ‘jhuto’ so no food is shared off the same plate and once you have started eating anything left is only fit for the animals. We also received lessons on washing at the community tap wearing our lungis – I think the boys were more worried about the communal washing than the girls and kept asking how we were going to wash. Going to the toilet was also demonstrated – but we have all been using squat toilets so this was more for our amusement than anything else! We were going to have a session by one of the last intake of volunteers (with photos etc) but I was glad we didn’t – I wanted to go and form my own impressions.
Anyway Monday came and we headed off for the bus and then the ½ hour walk down to the village (Chankhu Besi – meaning people who are too smart in the low village). It has been getting hotter and hotter here and we were pleased to get to the village school. The host families came to meet us and were given a short talk on the idiosyncrasies of us foreigners. We then went off to have tea with our families – only mine was not there L. So I went with one of the other volunteers to his house and had tea and waited all afternoon for my family to come back from the market.
My family turned out to be a lady with a 4 year old daughter living in a house up a very steep and winding dirt path – her husband was working away in the Maldives. It is very common here for men to leave their families to find work abroad and then send money home. Anyway I went and moved into my new room and then spent some time helping the girl with her homework (numbers in English). It seems that all Nepali parents aspire to send their children to private schools and they all teach English. Not long after I was called upstairs for dinner and once I had finished eating was told to go to bed (about 8 o’clock). Next morning I was woken by someone knocking on my door at 5.30am. It was the girl from the family I had spent the afternoon with. She told me I had to pack my bags and leave the house – what a welcome! Still not entirely sure what happened but I think it was something to do with the grandparents being angry that I was staying in the house. Had to go to another house to have my daal bhaat breakfast – well actually it is their lunch but they eat it at 8-9 in the morning – sitting on the floor in the kitchen, cross legged with smoke filling the room as they cook with wood and dried sweetcorn husks, next to the goats sleeping area (there are tigers in the area).
Later we all met to discuss our first night in the village – I think mine was the worst experience and the teachers were very apologetic! We also had stories of fleas in beds, mosquitoes and general shock at how people in the village live. I was found a new family to stay with – that of one of the teachers in the village school. However, the whole family had gone to the market and were not expected back until the evening. It was too hot to venture up the hill to get my bag so I took tea at another family’s house and spent the afternoon hanging around. Later I got my bag and went to my new house but still they were not back. The family in the house I had spent the afternoon at said I should just stay with them and eventually, when it had turned dark and I was ready to collapse, I agreed and they moved my stuff into my friends room. I was just getting comfortable when the other family came to get me. I could have cried I was so tired and miserable at hanging around for 2 days with my backpack! The new family were lovely though and made me very welcome. Unfortunately, no one spoke English and my Nepali has so many holes in it it’s not funny! Still we managed to make some small talk. The house was 2 stories high and newly built. There was a separate area on the ground floor for the cows (3), goats (6) and a store room above it. In the main house the ground floor was where the chickens slept, potatoes and other things were stored and the son and daughter-in-law and baby had a room. My room was on the 1st floor and next to it was the sweetcorn and grain store and the area for making butter. The second floor was where the rest of the family lived – apart from the Father and Mother who had set up bed in the outside kitchen – not sure if that was just because I had taken over one of the rooms or if that was normal! The kitchen was a little shack outside with a thatched roof and tin sides. The utensils were stored on the mud floor and knives etc were stored in the roof.
Dinner was a lonely affair as I was served on my own before the rest of the family ate(apparently this is normal). They were very sweet though and gave me a little stall to use as a table and even offered me a spoon to eat with. I told them that I needed to practice my hand eating skills so declined the spoon. I think they may have regretted that I ate with my hand though as I was even slower than usual at eating and they all sat around waiting!
The family consisted of the mother and father (both farmers), 4 daughters, 2 sons, a daughter in law and her little boy, all living in the same house. So I had a big family and was welcomed as the didi (big sister) and that is what they called me - I don’t know if anyone actually knew my name!
The days were filled with language classes in the mornings, hanging out with friends in the afternoons (drinking tea at every house you visited) and spending the evenings with my new family. The only thing that changed was my health. I picked up some stomache bug and was not happy to have to scramble down a little ladder, from my bedroom, and then outside to get to the toilet!
My first attempt at showering (of sorts) at an outside tap was interesting. You are in full public view and go in your lungi. The secret is to have good elastic on your lungi – put your hand inside and scrub and then pour the water down the front and back! On my first attempt my mother was not impressed with my attempts and insisted on giving me a hand. She started by rinsing off my hair and then decided I hadn't scrubbed my back well enough. So she scrubbed away and poured loads more cold water over me, her hand then started going down my lungi and at that point I had to insist that enough was enough!
There is no such as privacy in the houses in the village and we were forewarned that to get any privacy you had to lock your bedroom door (otherwise people just walk in). Unfortunately, I had no door only a curtain; so my family would often just come in and sit down in my room. Was glad I had my dictionary with me to help me communicate and some paper to draw some pictures.
The villagers only eat 2 meals a day, both of which are daal bhat. My family ate at 9 in the morning and 9 at night. One night we had a special treat. Dad killed the big rooster and in the evening we had him for dinner. I had mixed feelings about it - it would be great not to be woken up by the rooster under my room the next morning but the kitchen would not exactly have passed British (or any other) hygeniene standards! Anyway at dinner time I was served and insisted on not having much. Mum had already taken out the best bits (legs and something else). However, when I was not looking Mum slipped a large piece of whatever they thought was special on to my plate - the other half was given to Dad. Of course, since I had already started eating the food was now mine or rubbish so I had to make an attempt. Luckily the electricity went out at this point and we had to eat by mobile phone light, this meant I was saved having to see what bits I was eating. I must admit I can eat most things but I almost threw up trying to force the chicken down and eventually had to apologise and give up.
The next day was mother's day here - or the day you look into your mother's face. I brought my mother some pistachios as a treat, later for it to dawn on me that she had no teeth and so could not eat them! Anyway she seemed pleased and we had a party that night with all the family. They took great delight in having another chicken and then we drank some local, home brewed alcohol - how did it taste? STRONG!! The evening ended with my sisters coming to my room to teach me some dance moves. Great fun.
One day went into Banepa one day to get some goodies for a leaving party, presents for the families. I was still not feeling well and wondering if I would make it up the hill. Just then I saw a truck coming up the dirt path (first vehicle we had seen in the village). Some people were obviously using it as a way to get into town so I ran out and jumped on. Turned out to be a garlic truck and I had to kneel in the back (squashing garlic under my knees) and hold on for dear life as we wound up the bumpy path. The others were very jealous when they found out I had got a lift and spent a couple of hours in a very very nice hotel, where the receptionist made me tea acnd chatted. There was also a movie being filmed there - if I was feeling better I might have asked for a part!
On the last day we went to the school and did some activities with the classes and teachers. Anne and Rikie are both teachers so they were able to show the teachers how to use the books that had been provided before. In the afternoon we had a community sports event that was great fun with balls and skipping ropes and obstacle courses. The kids had a great day I think. The day rounded off with a party for the whole community and then it rained!
Monday morning it was a early climb up the hill back to the main road, after saying goodbye to my family. I gave them a gift of a rechargeable light and they gave me flowers, a mobile phone holder and a mango.
All in all it was a great experience but I was pleased to get back to KTM and have a good shower (in private), put on some clean clothes and have a toilet I could sit on. Went to doctors a week later and discovered I had Giardia. Great for the waistline but I would not recommend it!
