Post from my friend, Helen

Sharing this from my friend, Helen. Please note that yes, traveling in Nepal sometimes means that you aren't near restrooms. But rest assured that cultural norms dictate that men and women go far from each other and - while out in the open - there is a certain sense of "privacy" between the sexes that is insured!

A weekend in Hetauda

September 10, 2010 by Hels

Last weekend I went to Hetauda to stay with my VSO friend Tiffany. Hetauda is small town about 5 hours south of Kathmandu, heading towards the Terai region of Nepal (the hot bit that borders India). As its not quite in the Terai, its lush hills and greenery make it a really beautiful place to be, and I felt like I was on holiday for the weekend!

As Tiffany was in Kathmandu for a meeting we travelled down together on the 7:30am Jeep on Saturday morning. Taking the jeep is about three hours quicker than taking a bus as it follows dirt tracks a lot of the way. With 13 people packed into a jeep, it’s no more or less comfortable than a bus, however it does make for a slightly more scary and bumpy ride, and is definitely not for the faint hearted. Taking public transport is not only a great way to see more of the scenery of Nepal but also gives a great insight into the culture. People live so openly here and as you pass through small towns you really get a brief insight into their daily lives.
We arrived in Hetauda around midday after one tea stop and one amusing toilet stop, in which we were forced to bare all in front of a fellow female passenger who did nothing to hide the fact that she was happily watching us relieve ourselves in a not so concealing bush!

A couple of hours later, after venturing into town to get some food for dinner, we found ourselves at a Teej party. Teej is a three day festival for women which involves singing, dancing, fasting and puja (praying). Women typically dress up in their best red saris, bangles and decorate their hands with mehendi and either pray for the good health and long lives of their husbands, or future husbands.
Not happy to just let us watch, they ushered us in, sat us down, gave us food and much to my dismay, pretty much forced us to dance. Fortunately Tiffany is a fantastic dancer so this took the attention away from my awkward attempt and no one noticed when I slunk back to my chair to watch from the side lines!

On Sunday we headed back into town to buy some material – Tiffany wanted to buy a sari for another Teej party (for this weekend) and I decided to finally get myself a kurta surwal. Apart from the sari (mostly worn by older women), this is the traditional dress for Nepali women and is still worn across Nepal by the majority of women, with only the younger generation opting for western clothes. It is basically brightly coloured cotton baggy trousers worn under a matching or coordinating long top and scarf. It is currently at the tailors being made to fit but I will let you know how it turns out. I’m sure I will feel a bit silly wearing it, mainly as I’m not used to wearing such bright colours but, when in Rome…

I left Hetauda at 6am on Monday morning to make it back to Kathmandu for a meeting. The journey back was great and I spent much of the four hours marveling at the stunning scenery.

I am pretty busy this week preparing for the upcoming international youth exchange. 7 young people from a London based youth organization are coming to Nepal for 10 days. I first initiated this back in February and I can’t quite believe it is actually happening! You can find out more about this group and their visit by reading their blog – http://lic-youthexchange.blogspot.com

Busy yet?

One of the biggest complaints from volunteers who come to Nepal, highly qualified people who have temporarily given up their hectic lifestyles in the West or the Philippines or Africa, is that they come here and don't do anything.

Sometimes people in the organizations they are working with also aren't doing anything. Teachers have been known to leave the classroom and to go shopping for the day here, leaving the students in the classroom to fend for themselves. Others in NGOs can read newspapers for hours on end without beginning work. And it could seem, at times, there are more holidays and strikes than days in the office.

Sometimes volunteers work in organizations who are busy and doing a lot, but they can't quite figure out how to work together. There are certainly lots of people working incredibly hard here, as well. (Especially in the fields, but this is for another post).

I was sitting around so much at the beginning of my placement that I used all my creative energy to find ways to do things and to entertain myself. Which included finding a second NGO to volunteer with in the evenings and weekends. I did whatever I could to feel productive in the office: cleaning, listening, visiting people's workshops.. Reading and research. Connecting with fellow volunteers to see what was working for them. Trying various ways to let my colleagues know that really, I could be helpful if they would just let me in on the decision making processes.

After six months of this in my placement, I started to get worried. I am someone who has no trouble making myself busy usually. So this was an unusual circumstance for me to be working *this* hard to find things to do. And uncomfortable. It also went against my whole idea of the purpose of volunteering: to act, to think, to help create.....here in Nepal. If I'm not needed in Nepal (and there is an argument for this perhaps - to come in another post), then I should go back home, right?

Turns out I needn't have been so worried. I am so busy these days all of the sudden that I can't remember what it was like to have time for yoga in the mornings, to plan dinner while in the office, to write big, long emails to friends.

If I wasn't so exhausted right now, I would have the energy to be excited about this.

But after 6 days of training followed by 17 days of research in villages straight to meetings, meetings, and more meetings in Kathmandu....I am signing myself up for a massage tomorrow.

There is this place I know that hires and trains Dalit women in massage. The Dalit caste is traditionally considered the "untouchable" caste. Some Nepalis I know still refuse to eat at the same table as someone who is Dalit - not so rare, in fact. Untouchable, because if you touch a Dalit, you are then also considered "polluted" and then have to go through extensive purification.

Tomorrow's plan, then, social activism and massage in one fell sweep: yes!!!

I thought I could get away with my first full day off from work. I've been holding this day sacred for myself - mentally, at least - for the last couple of weeks. But alas, turns out there is a concept paper due tomorrow evening, and I was pleaded with to come into the office and help in the afternoon. Bargaining chip: extra day off on Monday. I'll believe it when I see it!

Now, I'm not complaining about all this work. This is GOOD you see. And there are so many volunteers who are very jealous of how much my organization is engaging me. I am lucky. I know I am really lucky. Really. But...I am now striving for a bit more balance between the two extremes.

Turns out that working in villages for 17 days is really, really tough work that I am still, apparently, recovering from. My eye infection is almost gone, and my energy is starting to come back again. I lost several pounds which I have gained right back now that I am in Kathmandu and around brownies and banana pancakes and lattes again.

The trash in Kathmandu is piled high - the garbage companies are on strike again. Not coincidentally, I think, almost everyone I know is sick. Fevers, bronchial coughs...not good stuff. While this doesn't fit into the I've-been-working-too-much category, it is mentally taxing to experience. It takes a fair amount of energy to a) sidestep the trash and b) mentally tune it out at the same time as much as possible.

Would I change any of it? No. Being in the field and all this work I'm engaged in is fabulous. I am learning a lot. It's pushing my comfort zones in many ways, and I'm experiencing things that travelers coming through Nepal could never experience.


Once I get a chance first to relax.....I will post some stories and thoughts from my fieldwork and time in the villages near Hetauda.

For now, I have a banana pancake on the way....

From the field

Came home today to do some planning work for a leadership training and to start writing two grants - work I can only do at a computer. And to also have a short break from all the walking and the heat in the middle of our field work. I head back out to Hatiya VDC (Village Development Community) tomorrow, however...

A couple of pictures to share (above).

And a couple of words that sum up a bit of the experience:

Corn. Everywhere.

Rice paddies. Everywhere.

Fresh guava.

Rain storms at any time. Hide under your backpack -or on whoever's front porch you happen to be near when the rain comes. There is a strong possibility that - not only will they share their porch and home and water with you - but also tea, snacks. And will offer a meal and a place to stay for the night if you need one.

People working. Hard. So hard that they really don't have more than a couple of moments to share with us. Everyone. This is the season to plant, plow, grow, prepare...

Our work is not easy. Lots of walking. The sun is hot. Our workload is high and time is short.

But the people I am getting to meet, what I am learning, the amazing land and views, the opportunity to be outside all day instead of in the office....I couldn't be happier.

More when I return for good.

New Project!

These days I am very happily busy participating in the starting up of a big, new program here in our district. The project title is, “Empowerment of Excluded Rural Women in Nepal”. A five year program with impressive and comprehensive goals such as (1) increasing the women in local government from 5% to 33%, (2) decreasing infant mortality rates and access to health care in general (3) insuring girls in rural areas have consistent access to education, and (4) increasing the income generation ability of rural women.

Yesterday I facilitated a workshop on gender that sparked much interest and discussion amongst the staff. They haven’t received any training like this in the past – gender roles in more rural areas are largely not contested - and are hugely curious to learn more.

Today and tomorrow staff are learning about how to conduct baseline surveys in the community. Then, we head in groups “to the field” for 15 days to implement the actual survey. This means that there will be groups of 4 of us (inclusive of at least one community health worker and one woman minimum) who will go into areas that are quite remote, and new to COSAN’s working area.

Staff will draw maps of villages (54 maps total): every road, house, temple, public building. Then will conduct surveys on resources (and lack of resources) in communities, individual and group interviews, and very comprehensive health questionnaires.

I have been asked to lead one of the teams. While I feel excited to be involved and very comfortable with what we have to do and how to lead the team, I am a bit overwhelmed by the language barrier I face still. I have been promised at least one person on my team who speaks really good English to help translate when necessary, however. Tomorrow I will remind my counterpart that I also need boiled water and hopefully a place to sleep without too many mice. My first village stay during my in-country-training program left me a bit scared about mice in village homes….and I really do need to sleep *some* in 15 days…

So, I likely will be off-line for a bit. But surely will have some interesting stories to share when I return.