COUNTRY: Nepal
PROGRAM: UniBreak - Kathmandu
PROJECT: Health Sciences, Teaching and Health Promotion
WRITTEN BY: Laura Bryant
"Tomorrow I fly back to Australia with a bag full of my shopping, a wallet emptied of money, a mind flooded with memories and a heart filled with love for the people of Nepal"
After all this time, after all the late-night conversations, after all the sleepy-eyed morning breakfasts, after the family UNO games filled with laughter, after all we have given, taken, seen and explored, we have come to my fourth and final blog. It has been quite an adventure and we are all heartbroken that we must soon say goodbye to Nepal, our families, our students and each other. But before that, let me take you back to one week ago, to the adventure that was Pokhara (which is, just quietly, now my favourite place in Nepal).
After half a day of placement we all met at Basundhara with our bags packed and our smiles on, ready for another adventure! We knew it was a long drive ahead (a good 8 hours long!), but believe it or not, our long bus rides have housed some of the best memories for me. Phil, Dani, Isaac and I started a backseat-bus band, smashing out such hits as 'Forever' by Chris Brown, and 'Airplanes' by B.OB. We all swapped stories of our lives at home, asking each other tricky personal questions like 'what do you look for in a partner?', 'what are your deal breakers?' and 'what sort of flirt are you?'. Phil excited everyone with his now infamous “Ping Pong Ball” Story – a 20-minute thrilling adventure about a man. A boy. And 2,454,892 ping pong balls.
We arrived in Pokhara and found ourselves a Western style restaurant for dinner. Don't get us wrong – we love our dal and rice, but after 3 weeks of eating it every morning, noon and night, we were indeed craving something more along the lines of pizza and chips. I unfortunately made the wrong choice and ordered a plate of steamed vegetables in white sauce, which the waiter claimed came with a side of rice. What he actually meant was that I would receive a mountain of rice with a little river of steamed vegetables.
The next day we were given a smorgasbord of activities to feast on, but like all buffets it was filled with some amazing dishes, and some that left a little to be desired. The morning held some great experiences, including joining the locals in a dance at a Hindu temple, experiencing the cooling mist and powerful force of Davi's falls, and descending deep into the earth to visit the spiritual caves of Pokhara. These were all amazing sights that filled us with awe and left us only wanting more. Unfortunately, these awesome experiences was also mixed in with some not so awesome ones, such as when we walked through an understocked museum where we stared at a pot or two for an hour. Still, nothing could mute our excitement for our next adventure: Paragliding!
So there I was, on top of a mountain cliff strapped to a strange Nepali man with a parachute on our backs. He'd previously given me instructions while I nodded and said that I'd understood at the time, but amidst all the adrenaline pumping through my body, the second he told me to run off the cliff, all my power for intelligent thought melted from my mind. “Run! Run! Run!” the man screamed in my ear. So I ran. I ran until the ground peeled away from my feet and we soared off the cliff over the lake. “Sit back!” he said. I pulled my legs in and leaned back, as he had told me too. “Pull yourself up! Pull yourself up! No not those straps! No! These! Pull up! Pull up!”. My Nepali pilot was yelling these instructions in my ear. In these moments, while I was still trying to come to terms with the height, I'd forgotten which straps I was supposed to pull on – everything looked different up here, and I didn't understand what he wanted. But I followed his instructions, pulling myself up until I found that I'd plopped myself into some sort of support system. Oh. I though. Its a seat. Boy, did I feel dumb. That feeling of stupidity only lasted a few seconds before I actually realised – I'm flying over a lake in Nepal! Nearly everyone who paraglided raved over how amazing it was with the views, the wind on your face and exciting flips and swirls of the acrobatic pilots.
Our next activity was the climb to the famous Pokhara Peace Pagoda, but by the end of the afternoon a lot of us were very tired. Half the group went back to the hotel to rest while a small group climbed the 1000 or so steps to get to the Pagoda. Honestly, it was a serious struggle getting up all these stairs. We were puffing, panting and maybe even regretting our choice to come for the climb, but all of that melted away as we pushed past that final step and made it to the top. The second my eyes met the pagoda I literally gasped. I'd never seen anything so majestic and beautiful! The crystal white Peace Pagoda towered over us with rays of sun bursting from behind. The sky shined with a multitude of colours, and we could see the entire city of Pokhara and the lake sitting below us. The others missed out. I mean seriously missed out.
That night lets just say that the beers and cocktails were plentiful. After a delicious meal- and a few creamy piña coladas- we all headed to Amsterdam Bar where a live band played and we were able to let loose. We danced, we chatted, we laughed and we played a few seriously intense games of pool. Amidst all the fun I suddenly remembered something. This was our last night out together. This is all going to be gone soon.
Time Laura went to sleep: 1.30am
Time Laura had to wake up: 4.30am
It's not surprising that that morning I was a little worse for wear. We were all going to watch the sunrise over Pokhara Lake from a high mountain. The sunrise was somewhat mediocre due to excessive cloud coverage, but the Himalayas were a sight to behold. When the sky began to clear on that brisk early morning we could see the snow-topped mountains shining in the distance. I couldn't believe it – even in the middle of summer those mountains remain topped with snow. It was a crazy sight to see, and it was a great way to say goodbye to Pokhara.
We got home late, and woke up early ready to begin a whole new project – Health Promotion Week. We would be going round to different schools and orphanages giving presentations on various aspects of health. The groups were as follows:
Casey, Sam and I gave presentations on 'Healthy Eating'. This included discussions of the food pyramid, sanitary preparation, as well as a song reminding students to brush their teeth. Some classes were lovely, but others were a bit of a struggle. The hardest part was just getting them to shut up! We found the best way to control behaviour was with a point system and prizes. Every class was rewarded with bubble blowers, stickers, bouncing balls and little Australian clip on Koalas. Since so many students are incredibly poor, they would not have many opportunities to obtain prizes like this, and they went absolutely psycho for them! Some students played for these prizes like their lives depended on it. After a while it wasn't the chatting we had to control, it was their enthusiasm!
Aaron, Alexander and Lucy gave their presentations on 'Clean Drinking Water'. The group said this was a challenging topic as a lot of the basic content was already well known by the students, and the more complex content really demanded a higher level of English competency. Nonetheless, they had plenty of very successful presentations thanks to a song written by Aaron called 'Diarrhoea'. It was a poignant ballad which included such lines as: 'If you're riding on the bus, and your bum it starts to slush- Diarrhoea, Diarrhoea.'
Skye, Alexandra and Gretel gave their presentation on 'germs' with a focus on washing your hands. The girls also employed their singing skills with songs like 'If you're happy and you know it, wash your hands!'
Danielle, Chelsea and Gemma gave their presentation on 'First Aid'. This topic is particularly important, as wounds are commonly left untreated in Nepal and can quickly lead to infections. The girls said that they used a lot of role-play and acting scenes in which the students needed to show their understanding of First Aid. They reported that a lot of kids were really enthusiastic about it, and they felt that they could really make a difference.
Last but not least, Isaac, Phil and Emily gave their presentation on 'exercise', and the kids went absolutely crazy for it. As well as providing useful information on the benefits of exercise, the groups organised a number of games including running relays and dodgeball. Not only will the exercise promote the students' health, but it also created a great atmosphere based on teamwork and spirited cheering. The only downside was that the students cheered so loud that the other groups could barely hear anything in their own classes!
On Thursday night we had our farewell 'potluck' dinner in which everybody cooked and brought a dish, including foods like salads, pizza, momos, mash potato and these amazing little Oreo cheese balls. The night included speeches, dancing, drinks, hugs, laughs and photos. Lots of photos.
And now, sadly, its time to say goodbye. My trip to Nepal has been a completely life-changing experience. I am truly happy for all I have been able to give, and all I have learned. Now I've said goodbye to some friends, my Nepali family and Rajesh. Tomorrow I fly back to Australia with a bag full of my shopping, a wallet emptied of money, a mind flooded with memories and a heart filled with love for the people of Nepal
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