Morning view from Rohit’s uncle's house. Morning mist is slowly moving up the mountainside after a night of heavy rain.
Rohit’s uncle measuring up for a new greenhouse.
2015/08/10
Today we were happy to start preparing the land for a greenhouse at Rohit’s uncle’s house. Built with the support of Micro-Care Nepal Foundation this will be a completely organic greenhouse which will grow lots of varieties of vegetables. In the rainy season it will house plants which do not like too much water and in winter, plants that otherwise would not grow in the cold weather. We made measurements, set borders with lines, divided the land from the rice field with a sand wall and harvested potatoes and young, fresh pumpkin leaves (which are used in a type of curry). Later the land was ploughed using an ox.
Rohit and his aunty taking the potatoes from the ground and preparing the land for the greenhouse.
Boy from a poor family living nearby happy to try on his new shirt.
Fitting a new t-shirt. Very shy and a bit surprised by the presence of this white foreigner!
Shy but very happy with her new clothing.
Little girl wearing her new t-shirt and now trying on new trousers.
Both proudly posing with their new clothing.
Preparing the land with the help of a team of oxen before planting rice.
This afternoon we were invited at a wedding. On the way we stopped at several houses to meet family and friends. We also met a few teachers who teach in a small local school. I visited this school in 2014 and I made a donation because it is one of the poorest in the village. With Rohit translating we discussed Micro-Care Nepal Foundation’s projects. It was good to hear how positive the teachers were and they invited us for a community meeting at 7am the next morning.
Taking the new rice plants from the field where they sprouted, ready to plant them in a bigger rice field with more space in between so they will grow in to big plants.
Boy with a big smile while trying on his new shirt.
Posing with his new shirt in one of the temporary shelters made from bamboo with plastic sheeting for a roof.
Rohit’s aunty gave us some meat from a freshly slaughtered goat. We could not leave without eating some! Rohit made a stick for me and prepared it like a bbq.
Group of children with their grandmother wearing new clothes provided by Micro-Care Nepal Foundation.
Mother who we gave a used telephone provided by Dutch contacts. Now she could also communicate with family and friends.
Boy posing with his new sports vest.
We climbed up the hill to the house of Rohit’s wife's family. There we gave clothing to the family and also to a very poor family living next door. Their clothing was ripped in many places and had been worn so many times it was impossible to clean anymore. They were all very happy, this was easy to see. I had taken some photos of their family in Kathmandu with me. They were especially happy to see these pictures of their daughters and grandchild.
Grandmother of the family wanted to pose, wearing her new shirt, with her ox.
From a poor family, this father is carrying old corn plants which will be fed to the family’s animals.
Happy.
Shy.
Proud.
Me with a poor family from Necha. The family is wearing clothing donated by Dutch people and distributed by Micro-Care Nepal Foundation.
We visited the wedding next door to give our best wishes to the new couple. This wasn't a marriage arranged by the couple’s parents but a love marriage (where the couple chose to marry each other themselves).This is becoming more and more common in the cities but in the traditional villages arranged marriages are still very much the norm. Some of the younger generation are still very happy that their parents make the decision to choose their life partners. They trust their parents will make the best choice; better than they would make themselves.
Rohit's sister in law. Transformed with new clothes from a poor village girl to a business women.
Rohit's mother in law.
Their goats are their biggest friends, until they are killed to provide meat to feed the family.
One of the more colourfully dressed women.
