Project: Clothing for Nepal
Samjhana and me decided to travel to Dolpa and cross the Hunting Reserve of Dhorpatan. Unfortunately we couldn't cross the high passes to Dolpo but we could give clothing at a few very poor and remotely living families.
Another parcel with clothing, shoes, blankets and cuddles arrives in Kathmandu
This week a new parcel with two big packages arrived in Kathmandu, containing:
- clothing for babies, children and adults
- children shoes
- blankets
- cuddles
The weight was 140 kg and costs where 780,- Euro. for both packages. We packed them in my (Pim) apartment in the Netherlands and they where collected there by Fed-Ex for transportation. Samjhana went to the Customs Office at the airport of Kathmandu and after paying 47.000 rupees, about 365,- Euro she could take a transportation van (taxi) for 1.500 rupees, about 10 euro to the house of the familie, where we live and store all the goods.
In the next weeks we will be distributing these materials again in the remote areas. For the next months is planned to visit Gorkha district, Okhaldhunga district, SoluKhumbu district and the Lower Dolpa district.
Giving clothing to street children in the center of Delhi
While planning our flights from and to Kathmandu we found a very cheap flight. Unfortunately it wasn’t a direct flight to Kathmandu but the flight went to Delhi. So we decided to have a stopover in Delhi before going home to Kathmandu and take as much of clothing beside our other personal luggage as we could to give to street children that we would meet living on the street in Delhi. We prepared a package of clothing and cuddles and left for Delhi. See the video below.
The Dutch NGO Micro-Care Nepal giving clothing to street children in Delhi, India. - February 2019
In a small alleyway we found a mother sitting on the street with her two little children. A small metal pot in front of them collect the coins she could get from people passing by. Holding out her hand when people with a piercing sad look on her face was a daily job for her to survive. From where she and her children came and what made them sitting in the streets like this? Some questions couldn’t be answered but sure it was that their life was hard and we where satisfied to give her children a few pair of new clothing for the next months coming.
In the small Kacha Bagh park close to the Chadni Chowk Yellow Line Metro station. We spotted a few mothers with small and bigger children and started asking where they lived. They told us during the day they where mostly in the parks but during they nights they slept on the streets as staying at night in the parks was prohibited.
Arrival of our Parcel in Nepal with: clothing, shoes, schoolbags and First-Aid Materials
We are happy to report that after 3 months in the Netherlands we are back at work in Nepal. Before flying to Nepal we prepared 3 packages with a total weight of 192 kg.
150 kg of clothing containing more then 750 piece of clothing for babies, children and some for adults. 25 kg with more then 50 pairs of children shoes. 15 kg of bandages for first-aid training purposes.
We want to thank all our individual sponsors for clothing and especially the financial donations to make this possible!
We are looking forward to distribute this clothing to hundreds of children and their elders in the next months. We will keep you updates with photos of their smiles at the time they receive a piece of clothing or shoes.
The costs for transportation are € 960, and € 350, for import tax at the customs office in Nepal. This means an average of € 1, per clothing piece. Still it's impossible to buy good quality clothing for this amount in Nepal. Because of these costs we share clothing sponsors to donate € 5, per kg of donated clothing.
Upper Arun Valley Trip Report
Geschreven door vrijwilliger Harper Tromp:
Eén van mijn passies is reizen naar landen met andere culturen. Maar toch is mijn aandacht blijven hangen bij Nepal. In 2012 maakte ik mijn eerste reis naar Nepal. Toen maakte ik al kennis met dit prachtige maar ook erg arme land. Bij terugkomst ervaarde ik het contrast met het hectische, snelle en rijke leven hier in Nederland en wenste ik mij al terug in Nepal.
Maar ik leerde ook dat het niet billijk is Nepal alleen maar te ervaren als een mooi vakantieland. Daarom wilde ik ook mijn verantwoording nemen iets terug te doen en ook een klein beetje bij te dragen aan het welzijn van de mensen in Nepal. Samen met Micro-care Nepal en gesteund door en met vrienden trok in de Arun vallei in in het Noord oosten van Nepal. Met 10 tallen kilos kleding en diverse schoolmaterialen bezochten we de meest afgelegen dorpjes. Duidelijk te merken was dat hier in geen jaren een vrijwilligersorganisatie was geweest. De omstandigheden waren soms schrijnend. En hoewel we veel mensen konden helpen liep ik vaak de volgende dag weer verder met verdriet en schuldgevoel dat we niet meer konden doen. Ik had de mooie tochten en bijzondere ontmoetingen weer nodig om de ellende van mij af te schudden. Terugkijkend is het vooral een hele rijke ervaring en ik prijs mij enorm gelukkig dat ik in die positie mag verkeren. Terug in Nederland Probeer ik dat uit te dragen. En mocht je ook ooit overwegen naar een ver land te reizen kan ik je Nepal sterk aanraden. Maar wees eerlijk en geef ook iets terug. Dat kan door Mico-care Nepal t steunen en mogelijk kan je ook met Micro care Nepal op reis om ook daadwerkelijk aan hulpverlening te kunnen doen.
Geschreven door vrijwilliger Wilfried van den Boorn:
In november 2017 was het eindelijk zo ver. Al jaren keek ik er naar uit. Telkens ving ik bot wanneer ik naar de mogelijkheid tot een trek in de Upper Arun vallei informeerde. Telkens kreeg ik te horen dat daar geen buitenlanders werden toegelaten. En nu, bij toeval hoorde ik dat het gebied opengesteld was. Pim en Samjhana waren beiden al in Nepal. Harper en ik hadden gepland in november 2017 weer naar Nepal af te reizen om samen met Pim en Samjhana namens de stichting weer een hulpverleningstocht op touw te zetten. Dat leek me nu de uitgelezen gelegenheid om die dan in de Upper Arunvallei te plannen. Gelukkig viel het plan bij alle drie in goede aarde. Een voor mij bijkomend voordeel was ook nog dat deze tocht niet al te hoog zou gaan. Het lichaam begint gebreken te vertonen waar ik niet gelukkig mee ben maar wel rekening mee moet houden.
Ter voorbereiding heb ik met de hulp van vrienden allerlei zaken verzameld. Zo gaat er dit keer in mijn bagage 20 kg. aan goede kinderkleding mee, 4 laptops, 2 tablets, medicijnen en nog wat andere bijkomende zaken. Gelukkig mag ik dit keer van Qatar 40 kg. aan bagage meenemen en op de luchthaven doen ze dan ook weer niet al te moeilijk wanneer het een kilo of 4 meer blijkt te zijn.
Nadat Kathmandu achter de rug is, er nog allerlei materiaal gekocht is voor de te bezoeken schooltjes, vertrekken we met ons vieren, vier dragers en alle bagage. Dat gaat met een soort jeep. Het voert te ver om die reis te beschrijven dus beperk ik me maar tot; we waren bijna over de rand van het ravijn geschoten, ik wist niet dat je met een stuk zeep gaten in een kapotte benzinetank kon repareren en, jammer dat we er drie dagen voor nodig hadden om bij ons startpunt te komen.
Maar op weg zijn we, dat is zeker. Al na een paar dagen blijkt er geen ruimte te zijn om ons oorspronkelijke plan uit te voeren. Dat zou een gedeeltelijke tocht door onbewoond gebied ingehouden hebben om dan bij Taplejung uit te komen.
De dorpen waar we doorheen komen zijn arm, soms zelfs zeer arm. En er is niet alleen nood aan kleding voor de kinderen. Ook materialen om de leraren van, een wat uitgebreider scala aan, lesmateriaal te voorzien. Nee, er blijkt ook nood te zijn aan medische hulp. En voor zover dat in ons vermogen ligt bieden we die hulp. Er is in het tweede dorp dat we aandoen een klein meisje met een ernstige scabiës infectie. Bij toeval zit er een “Health post” in dat dorp. Daar kopen we dan antibacteriële zalf en antibiotica. Samjhana zorgt eerst dat ze gewassen wordt voordat de behandeling een begin krijgt. Een diep triest gezicht al die bultjes over het hele lijfje met als dieptepunt de bloedende massa van de billetjes. Jammer genoeg blijkt in dat dorp weer de laagheid van sommige mensen. De medewerker van de Health post is een oplichter. Hij verkoopt de medicijnen tegen prijzen die vier of vijf keer over de kop gegaan zijn. Dat is verboden, hij moet ze verkopen voor de door de staat vastgestelde prijs. En hij blijkt ook al een keer vastgezeten te hebben voor dit soort praktijken.
We komen in de volgende dagen vaak kleine kinderen met ernstige brandwonden tegen. Bieden dan aan om het ernstigste geval in het ziekenhuis in Dharan te laten behandelen. Dit samen met een jongen die een vuistgroot gezwel midden op de ruggengraat heeft. Bij ieder dorp is het weer afwachten wat je aan zult treffen en wat je zelf op zult kunnen lossen.
Op de schooltjes zijn ze zeker blij met al de spullen die we komen brengen. Een aantal schooltjes heeft zelf al redelijk wat materiaal terwijl andere het met bijna niets moeten doen. Ook bij het verdelen passen we dus gaandeweg aantallen en soort zaken aan.
En zoals boven al gezegd, het gaat langzaam. Langzaam omdat we toch eerst een inventarisatie willen hebben van wat er nodig is. Er soms kinderen, of volwassenen uit verder afgelegen delen gebracht worden die een probleem hebben. En natuurlijk dienen we een documentatie bij te houden voor onze sponsoren zodat die zien waar hun bijdrage naar toe gaat. En ja, vaak wil het dorp ook als dank een eerbetoon houden. De uitreiking van kata’s vormt altijd wel een onderdeel samen met de bloemenkransen en de tikka. Maar er wordt ook voor ons gedanst door de oudere vrouwen in een dorp. En gelukkig wordt er af en toe ook samen gelachen.
Concluderend kan gezegd worden dat we weer een keer bevestigd hebben gezien, en gevoeld, dat hulp noodzakelijk kan zijn. En weer bleek dat de manier waarop onze kleine organisatie werkt goed is. We verlenen hulp op plaatsen waar de grotere organisaties niet komen omdat er geen wegen zijn. En we komen dichter bij de bevolking omdat Samjhana deel uitmaakt van ons team en dat verkleint de barrière enorm.
Het was goed om weer, in gezelschap van vrienden, terug te zijn in Nepal. En ik ben erg blij dat we hier en daar weer wat verlichting hebben kunnen bieden. Niet genoeg, dat besef ik iedere keer weer, maar iedere daad helpt een beetje en samen komen we dan tot een groter geheel.
12-03-2018
Our trip started in Kathmandu and after a 28 hour jeep ride we reached the start point.
The lower part of the Arun river.
From left. Founders Pim Horvers and Wilfried van den Boorn, Friend and volunteer Harper Tromp.
Crossing the Arun river by this old long scary bridge.
Board member Wilfried getting support by Samjhana to cross one of the many tricky riverbeds.
Samjhana and volunteer Harper Tromp handing over clothing at Ringmu.
Students of the little school in Obak posing with Wilfried and Harper before teachers arrived to receive our school material.
Two female teachers and students of class 5 of the school in Papuwa with handover of the education material.
Students of the school in Papuwa showing the supported school material that we distributed to in total 8 schools.
Leaving early morning at sunrise as the distances to cover in between villages where very long.
A girl with terrible skin infection on her back and bottom that we could treat along the way.
1 Teacher only school in Chemtang
As they had no school material they where amazingly happy to receive our gifts.
Together cutting ingredients for our lunch os there was no such service for ordering dood.
As there where no lodges Samjhana had to prepare our food in local kitchens.
Samjhana and volunteer Harper Tromp handing over clothing at Firfire.
The very small school in Firfire. As the other schools are to far and dangerous to go to for the little students they will study here till class 3.
Lady with child in the very remote jungle village of Obak. Mentioned by the billagers was that we where the first white people to visit their village.
School boy after we treated his wound and finished our first-aid treatment.
The little school in Rapsa.
White khata as a blessing and thanks for our support.
School with a small part of their students in Chepuwa.
Discussing difficulties with the teachers for the at the Tibetan (Chinese) border located school in Ridak.
Part of the students in Ridak school are very happy with the school material we donated.
Hospitality is great in the upper part of the Arun valley. There are no lodges what makes it hard to find places to sleep.
Posing with the local family in Chepuwa where we could stay.
Vlog from the Upper Arun Valley, East Nepal.
Short vlog from the Upper-Arun Vally during the december 2017 support.
Founder Pim Horvers explains about the use of donations for school material and handing over clothing in the remote area of Upper-Arun in Nepal.
More about the support that have been given in the remote area of the Upper-Arun will be represented at the yearly Nepali dinner program that will be take place in the spring of 2018. This year we also have an event planned in the surrounding of Amsterdam!
Vrijwilliger : Harper Tromp
“VRIJWILLIGER HARPER OVER ZIJN VRIJWILLIGERSWERK BIJ MICRO-CARE NEPAL
Distributing Education material and clothing in the Upper-Arun Valley
Eén van mijn passies is reizen naar andere landen en het ontdekken van andere culturen. In 2012 maakte ik mijn eerste reis naar Nepal en hoewel ik op veel mooie plekken geweest ben is mijn aandacht daar blijven hangen! Mijn kennismaking met dit bijzondere land was tweeledig, ik vond het prachtige maar ook een erg arme land. Bij terugkomst ervoer ik daardoor sterk het contrast met het hectische, snelle en rijke leven hier in Nederland en vrijwel meteen wenste ik mij al terug in Nepal.
“NEPAL IS MEER DAN EEN VAKANTIELAND”
Ik realiseerde me al heel snel dat Nepal voor mij veel meer is dan alleen een mooi vakantieland. Daarom wilde ik ook mijn verantwoordelijkheid nemen door iets terug te doen en ook een klein beetje bij te dragen aan het welzijn van de mensen in Nepal. Om te helpen waar het echt nodig is besloot ik de handen ineen te slaan met Stichting Micro-Care Nepal. Samen met Micro-care Nepal en gesteund door en met vrienden trok ik enkele jaren na die bijzondere eerste ontmoeting met Nepal de Arun vallei in, in het Noord-Oosten van Nepal.
LANGDURIGE, DUURZAME HULPVERLENING
Met tientallen kilos kleding en diverse schoolmaterialen bezochten we de meest afgelegen dorpjes. Het was heel duidelijk te merken dat hier in geen jaren een vrijwilligersorganisatie geweest was. De omstandigheden waren soms schrijnend en hoewel we veel mensen konden helpen, liep ik vaak de volgende dag weer verder met verdriet en schuldgevoel dat we niet meer voor hen konden doen. Gelukkig weet ik dat Micro-Care Nepal langdurig hulpverleent in deze gebieden en dus ook nog lang na mijn trip actief is in deze gebieden om de mensen zo veel mogelijk te helpen.
Harper posing with a group of students that also recieved our gifts to their school with great pleasure.
RIJKE ERVARING!
Dankzij de mooie tochten en vele bijzondere ontmoetingen tijdens deze trip hield ik toch een heel positief gevoel over aan mijn reis. Terugkijkend is het daarom vooral een hele rijke ervaring geweest en ik prijs mij enorm gelukkig dat ik dit mocht meemaken. Terug in Nederland probeer ik dat natuurlijk uit te dragen.
OOK EEN BIJDRAGE LEVEREN?
Mocht je ook overwegen om naar een ver land te reizen, dan kan ik je Nepal echt aanraden. Je zult zien dat ook jij na een bezoek aan dit magische land waarschijnlijk niets anders kunt en wil dan iets teruggeven voor alle rijkdom die je daar hebt opgedaan. Wil je graag vrijwilligerswerk doen in een land dat het echt heel goed kan gebruiken? Meld je dan aan als vrijwilliger bij Micro-Care Nepal. Dan garandeer ik je echt een unieke reis en ervaar je het land bijna als een local. Dat is zo bijzonder, daar kan echt helemaal niets tegenop!
“MELD JE ook aan ALS VRIJWILLIGER
en stuur en bericht op de contact pagina!”
Harper (in the red jacket) and a group of young students with in the backside the little and very primitive school.
Vrijwilliger Wilfried van den Boorn over zijn ervaringen tijdens een missie naar de afgelegen Upper-Arun Vallei
Distributing Education material and clothing in the Upper-Arun Valley
In november 2017 was het eindelijk zo ver. Al jaren keek ik er naar uit. Telkens ving ik bot wanneer ik naar de mogelijkheid tot een trek in de Upper Arun vallei informeerde. Telkens kreeg ik te horen dat daar geen buitenlanders werden toegelaten. En nu, bij toeval hoorde ik dat het gebied opengesteld was.
On to the most remote village of Gorkha district, our biggest distribution trip
Today we left on the biggest distribution trip for Micro-Care Nepal untill now. Providing the people of the most remote villages in Gorkha district with clothing, educational materials and greenhouses. 200 kg of relief materials, including 50 kg of clothing and shoes, 12 greenhouse plastics and 50 kg of school materials. Our team includes 2 volunteers, 5 porters and 2 board members.
Gert, Bhupu, Samjhana, Pim
During our 10 day trip we will establish more collaborations with local schools to develop their government education. Together with the teachers from each school we will make a 10 x 5 meter greenhouse and handover farming and nutrition guidance.
Waiting on our bus at our storage depot we got confronted with a big problem. Our head or porter group, who was inside of the bus, didn't told the bus driver on time to stop the bus to pick us up. The bus passed us and 5 minutes later it wanted to wait for us but not return. Quickly we had to find another vehicle to take all our luggage. After a while we could find a jeep driver with a foreigner. After packing all luggage on the rooftop the driver got confused with our story and told us he was thinking we where his clients that he supposed to pickup. We had to take all luggage of again and start over. It took us another 10 minutes to find a local van for our luggage and a taxi to transport us to the bus that was luckily still waiting for us. We reached soon to put all our materials on the rooftop of the bus and take off. A stressful start of the morning. We have to catch another bus and keep later this day to reach Soti Khola. Hopefully the rest of the day will be at least a bit according to plan....
Micro-Care Nepal continues projects in SoluKhumbu district
5 November 2016
After finishing the greenhouse with the teachers of the school in Goiri.
Text by Pim Horvers:
The first week of work back in Nepal is finished. Together with volunteer Gert Groenewoud we donated school materials to 6 schools in SoluKhumbu district.
- We visited two dalit communities to handover clothing.
- We donated a greenhouse to a small undeveloped school. Together with the teachers we made the greenhouse and handed over a course book and seeds.
It was a tight schedule with finishing our days walking in dark to reach our destination and achieve our goals.
Handing over clothing to the lower cast (Dalits) in a Necha-Batase.
Also ladies join the físycal work with full dedication.
The head of the school, Prem Shrestha.
Text by volunteer Gert Groenewoud:
At the beginning of 2016 I started to make the plans to join Micro-Care Nepal.
Micro-Care Nepal is a NGO that was started April 2015 directly after the eathquake that hit the Nepali in the heart. During and after this earthquake around 8000 people got killed. Any people lost their houses. Now still people are living in tents trying to make the best of what is left in their life. Some children lost both of their parents and still they keep going on. We believe that we can not change the world just by ourselves but we believe in small projects with that can have a big impact in people's lives. Our projects should make more development possible also in the future and even without us.
"I am proud to be part of this team. In my first week we were able to help 6 schools in the SoluKhumbu district with educational material. We made a collaboration between the local communities and schools. Together we build greenhouses and distributed clothing for the lower cast (Dalits)."
"This first week of work for Micro-Cer Nepal really struck me!"
Joined forces. Gert and me attaching the sides of the greenhouse.
Applying the plastics on top of the bamboo greenhouse frame.
The firsts plastic got on top of the 10 x 5 meter greenhouse. With these plastics it will be able to fully close this greenhouse during the cold evenings in this mountain village.
Next week Micro-Care Nepal will continue his projects in Gorkha district, visiting Muchu Khola, Uiya, Korla, Korla besi, Singla and Laprak. We will distribute clothing and support schools. Our goal is to improving education, introduce waste management which is one of the overal problems in Nepal, we will talk about the nutrition and the necessity of eating more varieties of food.
Small projects, but we strongly believe small projects can have juge impact on the lives of people. If we can motivate and guide them to development then they will continue and pass things on to the people surrounding them.
Verkenning en Hulpverlening in de Manaslu vallei
Tilburg, januari 2016.
Door: Wilfried van den Boorn, Voorzitter Micro-Care Nepal.
In december 2015 maakte ik op uitnodiging van vrienden gezamenlijk een reis naar Nepal. Doel van de reis was enerzijds het maken van een trek rondom de Manaslu gecombineerd met de Chumvallei. Anderzijds hadden we besloten daar waar nodig hulp te bieden in de vorm van warme kleding en schoeisel. Aan kleding en schoenen hadden we tussen de 50 kg. en 60 kg. ingezameld. Verder had Frank via een sponsoractie onder collega’s een mooi bedrag opgehaald dat aangevuld was door het houden van een actie waarbij kata’s, eventueel voorzien van een eigen tekst verkocht werden. Deze zijn door ons meegenomen om gezegend te worden door een lama in het klooster bij Bhoudhanath waarna ze door Frank op het hoogste punt van onze trek opgehangen werden (Larke La 5160 m.). Ook hadden we nog een voorraad medicijnen gekregen welke in verschillende “health posts” afgegeven werden. Het sponsorgeld werd aangewend om in diverse dorpen ook financiële ondersteuning te kunnen geven.
Voor mij was dit een uitgelezen mogelijkheid om me persoonlijk op de hoogte te kunnen stellen van de huidige situatie in het gebied daar ik deze regio in 2010 samen met Pim Horvers, oprichter van de stichting, ook al bezocht had. Nu zou ik enerzijds de impact die de aardbevingen op het gebied gehad hebben kunnen zien maar ook de ontwikkeling die de regio doorgemaakt heeft als gevolg van het toegenomen toerisme.
Zoals we al gevreesd hadden was de situatie na de aardbevingen ernstig. Een aantal van de dorpen die we bezochten was op grote schaal beschadigd. Ontluisterend was ook de constatering dat de Nepalese overheid hoegenaamd niets ondernomen had om de situatie voor de dorpelingen te verbeteren. Herhaaldelijk vertelde men ons dat de enige hulp die men van de overheid gekregen had bestond uit een aantal golfplaten. Men was en is dus aangewezen op zelfredzaamheid en de hulp van derden. Onderweg werd duidelijk dat het World Food Program gezorgd heeft dat ieder dorp wel over een voorraad rijst beschikt. Belangrijk was ook te zien dat het World Food Program samen met andere hulporganisaties het herstel van de paden gesteund heeft. Deze paden vormen de levensaderen van een regio en maken de aanvoer van alle noodzakelijke levensbehoeften mogelijk. Hier en daar werd door de opdruk op de zeilen duidelijk dat ook Oxfam een bijdrage geleverd had aan de noodvoorzieningen.
Aangezien het afgeraden werd verder dan Chhokang Faro de Chum vallei in te trekken kon ik wat de situatie hogerop betreft alleen afgaan op de mededelingen van de bewoners. De toestand van de paden was als gevolg van de aardbevingen en de landverschuivingen slecht en er waren nog niet voldoende herstelwerkzaamheden uitgevoerd om normaal verkeer mogelijk te maken. Het gebied boven Mo Gompa was helemaal afgesloten.
In de Chumvallei hebben we Ripchet bezocht dat zwaar geleden heeft tijdens de aardbevingen. Hier waren nauwelijks herstelwerkzaamheden gaande en een gedeelte van de inwoners verbleef nog steeds in provisorische onderkomens of in de ruines van hun huizen. De watervoorziening is beschadigd met als gevolg dat drinkwater nu uit een stroompje, vrij toegankelijk voor loslopend vee en honden, gehaald moet worden. Hierdoor liggen ziektes op de loer. Voor de situatie in Chhokang Faro geldt min of meer hetzelfde alhoewel daar de watervoorziening nog functioneert. Hulpverlening in dit gebied is er nauwelijks daar de dorpen afgelegen liggen en slechts te voet bereikbaar zijn.
In de Budhi Gandaki vallei waren de lagergelegen dorpen vaak ernstig beschadigd door de aardbevingen. Machhakhola bleek grotendeels onbewoonbaar geworden en veel mensen woonden in onderkomens gemaakt van zeilen, golfplaten en ander noodmateriaal.
Al met al waren we blij dat we hier en daar iets van de nood konden lenigen. In sommige plaatsen werd een deel van de kleding uitgedeeld en een donatie gedaan. Op andere plaatsen konden we medicijnen afgeven en een donatie aan de “health post”doen.
De reis heeft duidelijk gemaakt dat we met onze stichting ook in dit gebied nog veel werk kunnen verzetten.
In de jaren na 2010 heeft de regio zich sterk kunnen ontwikkelen als gevolg van het toegenomen toerisme. Het Manaslu circuit geldt nu als de vervanging van het Annapurna circuit dat aan populariteit ingeboet heeft door de aanleg van de berijdbare weg.
In plaatsen waar in 2010 nog nauwelijks primitieve overnachtingsmogelijkheden waren zijn deze dorpen tegenwoordig veranderd in pleisterplaatsen waar in normale omstandigheden de vermoeide trekker een comfortabel bed en warme douche tegemoet kan zien.
Het is jammer dat deze ontwikkeling door de gevolgen van de aardbevingen hapert. De groeiende stroom toeristen is in 2015 opgedroogd met als gevolg uitblijvende inkomsten.
Bij elkaar opgeteld vrees ik dat het nog jaren zal duren eer deze regio hersteld zal zijn. Voor het moment is het wachten op de Nepalese regering om eindelijk werk te maken met het verlenen van hulp bij de wederopbouw zodat men over kan gaan tot de dagdagelijkse regelmaat wetende dat men een solide dak boven het hoofd heeft.
Epicenter of Rashuwa district: visiting Gathlang and Tamang Heritage Trail.
People of Gathlang with one poor toerist..
During the last part of my trip I went to Rashuwa district. I got company from Sanjana who in the past did some work for NGO's. In this area, thats also one of the epicenter of the earthquake, we also visited Gathlang village. Gathlang turned out to be also badly affected by the earthquake. We where told the Dalit where, also here, living separate from the other people of the village. Here we searched for the Dalit (low cast and poor people) people. We found them just before the village and where shocked by their housing conditions. Also their clothes were ripped so we were very happy to have brought some clothing with us.
Sanjana with the Dalit people of Gathlang.
Below you can see the other images taken during the trip in Rashuwa district and at Tamang Heritage Trail. An amazing experience with finding again different parts in their culture like with for instance their beautiful traditional clothing.
FROM BALUWA TO THE EARTHQUAKE EPICENTRE IN BARPAK
This lady had fallen over and injured her face just a few days earlier. As there is no proper healthcare her injuries are not recovering well.
Lady who showed me the way from Baluwa to Barpak.
Waterfall on the way.
On my way to Barpak I stopped in Mandre (close to Tilidana and Tunsighang). Here every house had been destroyed. While having tea there a man from the village described to me what happened when the earthquake struck. They were close to the house when the ground started shaking. Fortunately most of the people were not inside. The stone walls of their houses starting to dance when the earthquake started. After some time all the walls and then the roofs collapsed. All the houses were destroyed.
The village of Mandre has been completely destroyed.
Earthquake proof temporary shelters in Mandre.
He explained that he found some people completely buried under piles of stone. Others were screaming because they had been injured by falling stones and wood. There is no hospital or medical support in these villages. People died during the following days as result of their untreated crush injuries. Most of the roads and the trails were destroyed so it was very dangerous to try and go to other villages in search of support. The lost not only their houses but also their food stores and in many cases their water supplies too.
Group of porters carrying cement up to slowly start reconstructing their houses.
Lady taking corn leaves from the field to feed their cattle.
This porter was my companion on the way up to Barpak.
In the days following the earthquake the villagers shared food, water and shelter amongst themselves. After a few days they went down to other villages to find food and materials to create safer shelters to protect themselves from the strong sun and heavy monsoon rains. They carried materials up by hand. Still no support had come from outside.
Handing over clothing to a surprised group of Dalit (Untouchable) people in Barpak.
Together with the Dalit (Untouchable) and low caste people of Barpak. They have to live separately from the rest of the village and high caste people should not touch them or come close to them..
Dalit lady.
One week after the earthquake NGO's began arriving to bring food, help with water supplies and wood and iron sheeting to make stronger, safer shelters. The man said that all this time there was no sign of the Nepali government. Nepalis in the past have never had much trust in the government but now in the aftermath of the earthquake they trust it even less. Most of the people I spoke to think that they will get no government support in the future and hope that NGOs will help them to rebuild their houses.
Remains of Barpak.
The gate is the only part left of this house.
Most people in this area now realize that stone buildings with stone roofs in not the safest building style for the future. Unfortunately this means that their beautiful traditional houses will be hard to find in this area, changing the scenery forever. In the past there was a lot of tourism in this area because of the strong cultural traditions and the picturesque stone houses high up in the mountains. Tourists may not be so eager to trek through this harsh and unforgiving environment if they are to be greeted with stronger and safer yet less aesthetically pleasing modern buildings. It will be a sad thing if the tourism does not recover: bringing these people doubly bad luck.
Barpak and all the plastic shelters.
Last clothing to families in Necha
Two families: Micro-Care Nepal was able to give clothing to almost all these children.
2015/08/16
The first thing I did was to go with Rohit’s uncle to give the last of the clothing to some disadvantaged families living further downhill. You could see these families were really poor. Their reaction to receiving the clothes was really nice to see. Unfortunately there were more boys than girls in these 3 families so we couldn't provide all the children with new clothes. I should be satisfied and I was for the most part but wished I could have given something to every child. After breakfast I collected my things, packed my bag and went up to the market. I visited the butchers’ quarters and they were pleased to have their photos taken.
Two little sisters.
Happy with her Jip and Janneke t-shirt.
Mother and her daughter with a new shirt.
At the market there was a display from a big foundation from the United States. They had posters about hygiene, family planning, contraception and nutrition. There was also a speaker who explained the programme and encouraged people to come, see and listen. I talked to one of the people from the foundation who was managing the event. He told me that this programme was being run in 41 of Nepal’s 75 districts. I was enthusiastic about their project but could see that a lot of people were just passing by without taking much notice.
There was no interaction with the people other than presenting the information and hoping that they would adopt and apply it. I realized that Micro-Care Nepal Foundation should create an active and interactive way of raising these issues.
Father showing his son’s damaged clothing. I think these families are the really worthy recipients of Micro-Care Nepal’s clothing.
Mother and her 4 year old child who has just received a new t-shirt.
These 3 children all received new clothes from Micro-Care Nepal.
Handing over bandages, syringes and needles given by Dutch donors to the Necha Community Hospital.
After visiting the market the walk started from Necha to Okhaldunga.
Village blacksmith.
Family going to shop for fruit and vegetables.
Girl selling onions, ginger and tobacco leaves.
Butchers proud to pose with their meat.
This husband and wife work every Thursday, butchering animals that are sold in the market.
Weighing meat for a customer.
PRESENTING A LAPTOP TO A SCHOOL IN NECHA.
2015/08/11
After breakfast we left Rohit’s wife’s family house. At 7 we were expected to meet at a nearby school which has pupils from the poorest families in Necha. I made a donation to this school when I visited in 2014 and now I was returning to handover a 17 inch laptop that was donated by the family of a good friend in the Netherlands. We downloaded educational videos about nutrition, first aid, hygiene and natural history and the environment on the laptop. We also added an English to Nepali and Nepali to English dictionary.
The school committee and staff organised a ceremony to explain the laptop and demonstrate its use to the community. Rohit and I were given many red tika (red paint marks) on our foreheads and faces and white and yellow scarves, the traditional Nepali way to say thank you. Rohit’s help has been invaluable and without his imagination, enthusiasm and hard work Micro-Care Nepal Foundation would not have been able to achieve all it has.
We got a official letter to say thanks for our support.
After the ceremony our faces were completely covered with red powder; a symbol of gratitude in Nepali culture.
After the ceremony we gave out clothing to those who needed it and took photos of them and group photos with all teachers. We then looked at the old school building which was completely destroyed by the earthquake. It was a sad thing to see but luckily the Himalayan Foundation of Sir Edmund Hillary (who with Tensing Norgay first climbed Mount Everest) had provided two new temporary wooden buildings.
For almost all we had some clothing.
And they all liked it.
What will the future hold for these poor boys? I was glad to help but more needs to be done for them.
Finally we discussed supporting the school by donating rubbish bins and teaching the children not to litter their environment. We made an agreement that the school would buy wooden rubbish containers and that Micro-Care Nepal Foundation would refund the costs after the next field trip, when there is evidence that they are being used.
You can from their expressions how surprised they are.
Rohit after the school ceremony with a child to whom we gave a nice jacket.
Delighted with his new red t-shirt.
Recipients of new clothing. Sadly we didn’t have any clothes to fit the poor boy standing in the middle but we were pleased about the helping the rest of them. More can be done later.
Posing together in front of the old school building. Only the facade is still standing. The next picture shows the view from the other side. Rohit and I are standing in the middle of the back row.
Seeing the collapsed school made me sad. Later the Government of Nepal will provide funding to rebuild this school…At least that's what the community has applied and is hoping for. In the meantime the "Helping Hand Foundation" has built 2 temporary cottages for teaching and one solid building for the school so for the time being the children can continue to receive an education. Micro-Care Nepal Foundation will support the 16 schools in Necha with educational materials and assistance to expand the curriculum to include programmes covering nutrition, hygiene and first-aid.
This is what their school looks like from above after the earthquakes...
Same lady and towel as in the previous photo but both a year older.
Before she posed with her sister.
Rohit handing over a telephone to local man who couldn't afford to buy one. Now he can keep contact with his family and friends in the city or in other remote parts of Nepal.
We gave another phone to an old lady in the same area of Necha.
In the evening we gathered with a few teachers and locals and talked about education and the challenges schools are facing.
In these photos you can see....
How proud people are to pose with their animals.
STARTING OUR GREENHOUSE PROJECT AND GIVING CLOTHES TO POOR FAMILIES
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.
First day: visiting the local market in Necha
Caring mother proudly posing with her child. She was one of Rohit’s neighbours when he was living in this remote mountain village.
2015/07/09
Today it was market day and we took a selection of the photos I made in Necha last year to present to the people who are in the pictures. We were stopped many times on the way and invited to eat some fruit or potatoes or to drink some curd. The market was full of people. Some recognized me and greeted me. Others stared at me strangely or started laughing really loudly. After traveling for a few years in Asia I have become used to these reactions to me and handle them much more easily now than I did to begin with.
At the market day I gave a lot of prints of the photos I took one year ago to the people.
The headmaster of the poor Lower Primary School in Necha and his family posing with a photo taken at their school one year before. This school was almost completely destroyed in the earthquake.
We got in contact with few of the teachers in Necha. We briefly discussed the creation of Micro-Care Nepal Foundation and explained our projects to them. As expected they were very positive and invited us to visit their school later. In the middle of the picture above you can see one of the teachers from the poorest school in Necha. We made a visit to his family on the first day after visiting the market.
In the fields the women were working hard harvesting corn and planting rice…But as always they found time for a picture.
Woman cleaning grain by using a nanglo to toss it, separating grit and soil from the grain.
Children posing close to the fields where they were working with their parents.
A boy proudly posing with his family’s ox. This animal is considered very valuable because it can do an incredible amount of work in the fields. At the end of its working life, it will provide the family with a lot of meat too.
