Monday, July 21,
2014
Today we all awoke to blue skies; the first time
that the sky was really blue and cloudless.
It has not lasted but does make one appreciate the openness of the view.
Mornings here typically start about 5:30. We overlook an area in which shopkeepers lift their metal doors as a beginning of a new and hopefully prosperous day. The caw of the ravens and crows is relentless. Motorbikes tutting along, cows mooing, and ravens and crows overpowering all of them.
Construction is going on across the street and there is no such thing as 9-5. People work late into the night. Saturday is the day off for some and a holy day for Hindus so markets are closed. School is Sunday - Friday. Many schools require uniforms but some do not which makes it easier for those who are poorer to afford to send their children.
Mornings here typically start about 5:30. We overlook an area in which shopkeepers lift their metal doors as a beginning of a new and hopefully prosperous day. The caw of the ravens and crows is relentless. Motorbikes tutting along, cows mooing, and ravens and crows overpowering all of them.
Construction is going on across the street and there is no such thing as 9-5. People work late into the night. Saturday is the day off for some and a holy day for Hindus so markets are closed. School is Sunday - Friday. Many schools require uniforms but some do not which makes it easier for those who are poorer to afford to send their children.
Rhonda and Leanne attempted to make dinner last
night partly to give Chetra, our host, a night off from cooking for all 15 of
us. We attempted to make Vegetarian
Chili as a change of flavour from Dahl Bhat. It took us 3 hours to get things
cut, washed and simmering. The kitchen consists of a long counter and the stove
is 3 small burners that are attached to a propane cylinder. It is hard to cook
in someone else's kitchen. We had no can opener to open cans as they do not use
them here so we had to insert a sharp knife and do this repeatedly until we had
a hole large enough to dispense the beans. We bought the wrong type of chili, spice
as opposed to powder. Chetra had some
powder which was mild but unfortunately to us it was hot chili spice. Needless to say our chili concoction was very
spicy. We also were taught by Chetra how to put together our own curry using
spices such as turmeric, cumin and made a rice salad to go along. We finished this off with peanut butter squares
so overall a great hit.
It was a great experience for all of us as Chetra and her husband Pashpaddy have never tasted any of the dishes which they really enjoyed. Tomorrow we are getting a cooking lesson from Chetra on how to make Momos, which are dumplings filled with vegetables or meat, peak hides which are made from chickpea flour and cut up vegetables and fried. They are all really delicious. We purchased an electric grill for Chetra as it will allow her to cook things like eggs and French toast for large groups and cut down her cooking time. We looked for a slow cooker but they do not exist here. We will show her tomorrow how it works as we do our cooking lesson.
It was another hot humid day today. We managed to put the third coat of enamel on the play house pieces as well as dig out the base where the cement pad is going. We put our heads together to come up with ideas which will change the playhouse into an integrated play area with abacus, trampoline tires, balance tires and parallel bars as well as climbing ropes, touch and sensory learning items.
We are very pleased today as Roshan, who is non-communicative and also has autism issues, allowed us without any fuss to put in his sensory amber necklace. Last Friday he was very upset when we tried to introduce this new item but today he was good. Today he also stood up by himself during story time to pick out a shape puzzle and put it beside himself to do. This step may sound small but this is the first time since being at the school that he has initiated a movement by himself which is a real milestone.
We see the changes in attention with the kids and the progress that has been made in less than a week by introducing different learning materials such as the iPads, puzzles and simple interaction.
Sid, who is a rather tall, large boy and suffers from autism was much more grounded today. He walked over and handed me the sunscreen bottle we had placed upon the shelf and then our water bottles. There was no flapping of arms and attention to what he was doing which was shown with purpose.
We are so hopeful that Anita (who is a special education teacher from Ireland and is here for 6 weeks) will be able to put in place a program that will work with the special needs children. She will be able to structure a program each day and will be able to leave Bunty with a program that works.
Rhonda and Leanne were happy as they were able to use their construction expertise from El Salvador and Peru to mix cement and use a hose as a level. We should be able to finish up most of our project before we leave. Lok, and Bunty's brother Allan, were impressed with our construction expertise and doing concrete "volcanoes" (the how-to of making cement when done manually.) We were impressed as they took our, as women, suggestions seriously. Women in Nepal do not enjoy the same status as those of Tibetan culture. Rhonda and Leanne had to go look for clear tubing to use (with water) in lieu of a level. They went into one store and held up some pink striped tubing as an example but the mana lady at the counter would not even acknowledge their presence, let alone answer their question or serve them.
It was a great experience for all of us as Chetra and her husband Pashpaddy have never tasted any of the dishes which they really enjoyed. Tomorrow we are getting a cooking lesson from Chetra on how to make Momos, which are dumplings filled with vegetables or meat, peak hides which are made from chickpea flour and cut up vegetables and fried. They are all really delicious. We purchased an electric grill for Chetra as it will allow her to cook things like eggs and French toast for large groups and cut down her cooking time. We looked for a slow cooker but they do not exist here. We will show her tomorrow how it works as we do our cooking lesson.
It was another hot humid day today. We managed to put the third coat of enamel on the play house pieces as well as dig out the base where the cement pad is going. We put our heads together to come up with ideas which will change the playhouse into an integrated play area with abacus, trampoline tires, balance tires and parallel bars as well as climbing ropes, touch and sensory learning items.
We are very pleased today as Roshan, who is non-communicative and also has autism issues, allowed us without any fuss to put in his sensory amber necklace. Last Friday he was very upset when we tried to introduce this new item but today he was good. Today he also stood up by himself during story time to pick out a shape puzzle and put it beside himself to do. This step may sound small but this is the first time since being at the school that he has initiated a movement by himself which is a real milestone.
We see the changes in attention with the kids and the progress that has been made in less than a week by introducing different learning materials such as the iPads, puzzles and simple interaction.
Sid, who is a rather tall, large boy and suffers from autism was much more grounded today. He walked over and handed me the sunscreen bottle we had placed upon the shelf and then our water bottles. There was no flapping of arms and attention to what he was doing which was shown with purpose.
We are so hopeful that Anita (who is a special education teacher from Ireland and is here for 6 weeks) will be able to put in place a program that will work with the special needs children. She will be able to structure a program each day and will be able to leave Bunty with a program that works.
Rhonda and Leanne were happy as they were able to use their construction expertise from El Salvador and Peru to mix cement and use a hose as a level. We should be able to finish up most of our project before we leave. Lok, and Bunty's brother Allan, were impressed with our construction expertise and doing concrete "volcanoes" (the how-to of making cement when done manually.) We were impressed as they took our, as women, suggestions seriously. Women in Nepal do not enjoy the same status as those of Tibetan culture. Rhonda and Leanne had to go look for clear tubing to use (with water) in lieu of a level. They went into one store and held up some pink striped tubing as an example but the mana lady at the counter would not even acknowledge their presence, let alone answer their question or serve them.
Anita met and
worked with Ayush and Arsen today and was as smitten with their gentleness and
level of engagement as the rest of us. The children at Children's Paradise
School are absolutely wonderful to work with and they touch your heart
immediately.
Leanne, Shauna, Rhonda and David, a lovely young physio from the UK, took the bus home from school and for the first time were asked for more fare than for the man. David protested but it was Shauna who put the "fare collector" in his place by saying, "Don't you call me Ma'am.” He wanted to charge us 10 rupees more for a fare that should only cost $25.00.
This was also the first time we were privy to see transactions between bus drivers, fare collectors and beggars. There is a man who has come onto our bus on other occasions. He is a street beggar. His body is quite twisted with one leg almost 1 foot shorter then the other and one foot going in the opposite direction. His hand has been burnt and so he only has stubs for fingers. We each gave him something as we do not know his circumstances or how he got where he is. Once he gets off, the bus driver and fare collector see what he has and then he gives them a cut of what he has received. It was quite sad really.
We have seen many inspiring things here and hope to keep what we have learned close to our hearts.
Leanne, Shauna, Rhonda and David, a lovely young physio from the UK, took the bus home from school and for the first time were asked for more fare than for the man. David protested but it was Shauna who put the "fare collector" in his place by saying, "Don't you call me Ma'am.” He wanted to charge us 10 rupees more for a fare that should only cost $25.00.
This was also the first time we were privy to see transactions between bus drivers, fare collectors and beggars. There is a man who has come onto our bus on other occasions. He is a street beggar. His body is quite twisted with one leg almost 1 foot shorter then the other and one foot going in the opposite direction. His hand has been burnt and so he only has stubs for fingers. We each gave him something as we do not know his circumstances or how he got where he is. Once he gets off, the bus driver and fare collector see what he has and then he gives them a cut of what he has received. It was quite sad really.
We have seen many inspiring things here and hope to keep what we have learned close to our hearts.
Bunty “Peace”
Plastering