First Sari for Mrs. BK

This lady had never owed a sari which seemed unbelievable for a Nepali woman. She is extremely poor as her husband left her with four daughters because she could not have a son. This was a gift from her sponsor and what a thrill it was for her. I got a lump in my throat just watching her pick it out. I love this photo of her and Kamal, as she first sees herself with it draped around her, she needed help as she had no experience of how to put one on.

Mann, Our New Helper

Mann has now joined our team and has been coming around with me meeting the families. He will take over the Simpani, Pokhara area from Moti who is no longer with us. He is very happy to help and this week will come to all the families in Katmandu with us so he knows each student's location and school. We welcome him and are very thankful to have his help.

Photo of Mann and Sujan in Pokhara.

Beautiful mountain child. Her family lives very remotely under a bamboo shelter beside the river. I mentioned them in my last blog. Yesterday I visited an organization that helps poor families with disabilities. Her brother is lame in one leg and cannot go to school so I am referring them to see if they can get help. It was an excellent organization called International Nepal Fellowship. They have a training program that trains individuals in radio repair, watch repair and many craft making skills as well has animal husbandary etc. They also had a hospital that specialises in leprosy, club feet, polio etc. I was very impressed. So I am hoping this family can get some help although there is a long waiting list.

I am still working in Simpani, last day today before I return to Kathmandu tomorrow. I had a great day yesterday working on my own. Took about 9 children shopping with a grandmother and a mother. Had to use my Nepali language skills and although not very good I managed. We laughed a lot and although it took 3 hours I really enjoyed it. For those new sponsors who I have not emailed yet with photos please be patient as it is very difficult. This photo took 10 minutes to download and internet in Pokhara is expensive.

Back from the Mountains

I arrived back in Pokhara yesterday. It was a very memorable time in the mountains visiting Kamal's village in a very remote area. here there are no other trekkers, no tea houses or lodges. The village is called Chimkhola, meaning dark river, and was perched on the side of the mountain. It was a very steep and rugged climb to get there and took about 7 hours. We stayed on the way up at a Nepali home and reached the village in the morning. I visited the school and enjoyed a night of dancing and music that they put on for me and it was great fun. The school was a bit of a diaster with many broken desks. I had a donation from a lady so decided to repair 20 desks with her money and they made her a nice certificate and asked me for her photo to put in the office. The people of the village were quite amazing but I really got to see how the caste system works in remote areas. After we left the village Mann, Kamal's brother, and I trekked deeper into the valley and came back on the other side of the river. He took me to see a very poor family who live in a bamboo shelter with their animals. The children were extemely beautiful with green eyes which I have never seen before here. They invited us in and gave us bowls of fresh cow's milk. This was creamy and lumpy but good. I usually am given buffalo milk which is creamy and slightly sweet. The family was very low caste and the five year old will not go to school because he was beaten by the other children because of his caste. The oldest girl though was in class 8 at a local school. We stayed in another poor home on the way back and I slept in a room with a mother and child while Mann slept on the floor. It is a time I will always remember and now cannot stop thinking about it. The family that made me so welcome. In fact I began to wonder whether I could do anything for myself. Funny their own women do so much hard work and I was allowed to do nothing. I did try grinding corn into flour with an ancient milling stone which was extremely hard and they thought it was very funny as I struggled with it.
Mann is now working in the charity and I will put his photo here when I can. We got off the bus in Simpani and I showed him all the families. I will go back there tomorrow to help the kids with thank you letters and do some more school uniforms.
The weather is extremely hot and sunny. I will try some photos later, very slow here.

Simpani, Pokhara

We have spent two long days here. Registering children took some hours and then getting school uniforms shoes etc many more.
Susmita, who I picked from the government school last year, to go to private school turns out to be a brilliant little girl. She has 100 per cent in every subject and now will skip a grade. Raju Pun is 2nd in his class. All the children are doing well and improving. The lady with the burns, Mrs Jalari, looks great, she is so improved in her health. She will require a couple more operations sometime later to enable to lift her arms but it is too early yet. Her husband has made their room bigger and brighter for her as the doctor said she needed this. I love this family, the father is very dedicated and the mother keeps the room spotless. They are also very grateful.
One lady, when told that I was putting her three children in school, sat and cried. She has no husband as he left her for another woman. We sponsored one tiny girl from a family of nine who live on the proceeds from the family cow. I gave her some shoes and a coat yesterday and this morning when I went there she was still playing with them and would not take the coat off today even though it was very hot.
Taking them all for the uniforms was quite an outing and they received so much joy from their new things. This area is one of my favourites and tonight we had a meeting with all the parents and they all expressed their gratitude and I told them about their sponsors and the countries that they came from. I will back here next week to carry on. Now I am going into the mountains for a few days.
Some good news is that I have sponsor for the blind girl Sabitra and I cannot wait to tell her. She will be very happy.

Off to Pokhara

Tomorrow morning I am leaving on the bus for Pokhara. I will update from there after visiting the schools and children. This is always a nice change as it is a cleaner city with some fresh air. It is also easier working here as all our children are contained in one area other than about four which are on the way. It has taken some time to download these photos so until later.

While I am havng success a couple more

Left Samjhana with her new hat, made by a lady in Duncan, and Barbie doll. Middle Sarjit and Bijay. Sarjit will be our second college student later this year. Children giving me flowers as their way of saying thanks and wearing flower mala given by the mothers. This a traditional way of honouring a guest in Nepal and they say the mala is to be worn for a little while but not too long and if you wear it for too long they say you are showing off. It is hard to know the right length of time because if you take it off too early you offend.