I an now in Chitwan inthe south of Nepal. We decided to come yesterday to see Daumaya the lady who has cancer and the four little girls. She phoned us crying as she had no money for her chemo today so she was going to go home. We could not send it as it was a Saturday and today is a strike. We thought if we came we could pay for the chemo and speak with the doctor to find exactly what kind of cancer she has and her prognosis. So this morning we will meet her at the hospital.
We had to take a microbus to get here and it was a bus trip from hell. Four and a half hours of it. I have only taken one other microbus journey before as they are so dangerous. This guy could have qualified to be a NASCAR driver. He drove at breakneck speed constantly passing every vehicle whether safe or not, pulling back in at the last minute. They jam as many passengers in as possible and when we stopped for tea I found it hard to get myself out of the tiny spot as my leg had become so cramped. Back in the van we sped on again, horn beeping contanstly, music blaring and then the old man in front of me started vomiting. The man next to him kept giving him blue plastic bags, even holding them for him, while he vomited and then the bags were thrown out the window. This went on for some time along with so much coughing and sneezing from other passengers that I really hoped my immune system was at its best. It was oppressively hot and when we finally reached our destination my clothes were all stuck to me. When we got off one of the children on the bus immediately started vomiting. Funnily enough the driver looked normal, clean cut standing on the road but behind the wheel he became he became some kind of demon.
Now we were in the town of Naranghat which has more cycle rickshaws than any other town I have seen. We met Daumaya and now the problem was where to stay. We looked at rooms near the hospital but I could not bring myself to stay there after Mann pulled me aside and mentioned bed bugs, lice and any other germ he could think up. The rooms had a bed, dirty sink and no toilet. So we drove half an hour to Saurha where tourists stay next to the wildlife park. I walked in to this hotel grounds full of flowers and birds and felt the stress fall away from me. I even was able to have a hot shower. This morning I am going to have my breakfast on my little verandah and listen to the birds. Today is a strike so I will have to take a tourist bus back to town and worry about the rest of the day later. Daumaya is staying by the hospital and Mann is at a friends so hopefully we can all meet up. Problem is I will not be able to get back here! Next installment tomorrow.
We had to take a microbus to get here and it was a bus trip from hell. Four and a half hours of it. I have only taken one other microbus journey before as they are so dangerous. This guy could have qualified to be a NASCAR driver. He drove at breakneck speed constantly passing every vehicle whether safe or not, pulling back in at the last minute. They jam as many passengers in as possible and when we stopped for tea I found it hard to get myself out of the tiny spot as my leg had become so cramped. Back in the van we sped on again, horn beeping contanstly, music blaring and then the old man in front of me started vomiting. The man next to him kept giving him blue plastic bags, even holding them for him, while he vomited and then the bags were thrown out the window. This went on for some time along with so much coughing and sneezing from other passengers that I really hoped my immune system was at its best. It was oppressively hot and when we finally reached our destination my clothes were all stuck to me. When we got off one of the children on the bus immediately started vomiting. Funnily enough the driver looked normal, clean cut standing on the road but behind the wheel he became he became some kind of demon.
Now we were in the town of Naranghat which has more cycle rickshaws than any other town I have seen. We met Daumaya and now the problem was where to stay. We looked at rooms near the hospital but I could not bring myself to stay there after Mann pulled me aside and mentioned bed bugs, lice and any other germ he could think up. The rooms had a bed, dirty sink and no toilet. So we drove half an hour to Saurha where tourists stay next to the wildlife park. I walked in to this hotel grounds full of flowers and birds and felt the stress fall away from me. I even was able to have a hot shower. This morning I am going to have my breakfast on my little verandah and listen to the birds. Today is a strike so I will have to take a tourist bus back to town and worry about the rest of the day later. Daumaya is staying by the hospital and Mann is at a friends so hopefully we can all meet up. Problem is I will not be able to get back here! Next installment tomorrow.
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