The Scenery, The People, The Lifestyle

Today’s adventure began with a visit to the office of One Heart Worldwide – another Together Women Rise grantee organization.  (We will do a site visit in remote Nepal tomorrow.)

Today we are just learning about this amazing program that works to provide women in remote area of Nepal access to prenatal and postnatal care, and birthing centers with trained healthcare workers.

The Executive Director shared very powerful data highlighting the effectiveness of their work.

 

Once again, we are blown away by the efforts and work of these folks to focus on the under-served people.  Awe-inspiring.

 

And yes, the staff also provided tea and treats as part of our visit.  (If anyone goes home hungry on this trip, it was a personal decision.)

 

And a giant marigold and lovely scarf and hat I have been living in since then … 

 

Once our visit concludes we gather for the standard group shot and then board the bus to our next destination – Dhulikhel (and the promised amazing vista of the Himalayas – weather permitting.)

 

On the way we passed through the city of Bhaktapur and got stuck in a traffic jam for a bit.  Couldn’t have been a more serendipitous jam.  We had the good fortune to see a wedding party.  The bride was gorgeous decked out in traditional wedding dress!

They saw us taking pictures from the bus … first they waved, and then they came over.  We opened the bus door and they said they actually live in Boston – OMG-  and were here for the wedding since the bride is from Nepal. What a hoot!

 

Driving through the villages it is not uncommon to see women drying the rice.

 

Lunch in Bhaktapur at a lovely hotel/restaurant. 

 The yogurt for dessert (very common) was THE MOST amazing yogurt I have ever eaten.  It was plain.  I have mentioned before about how good the yogurt is in Nepal, especially Bhaktapur, but this one was over the top.  I was RAVING about it.  I would eat it instead of ice cream for dessert – no exaggeration.  All of a sudden ice cream sounded far too sweet.

Yogurt on left - I didn’t even touch the “regular”dessert. 

Nepal has a most unusual and beautiful flag.

 

Along our continued route to Dhulikhel we started passing terraced rice fields.  

And then out of nowhere was this giant statue …

                               Kailashnath Mahadev Statue - a Hindu deity.

                              The second tallest Shiva statue in the world. 

We arrive in Dulikel.  It turned out to be a super fun stop at you will see…

 

Many of the villages greet you with a gate.

Love this one❣️

Many townspeople were gathered in the square – very common – but what was unexpected was this giant swing.

 

Nepali word - ping.

 

They build one every year for the two major holidays.  Kids were swinging; adults took turns,  and even Jen, in our group, hopped on.

Sidenote: We are in Nepal during the major festival season - they have their two main festivals very close together.  (Kind of like our Thanksgiving - Christmas time.)

 

Kids, kids, everywhere kids. They are so lucky that they can just run around outside and play.  Not a sight I am accustomed to seeing.

I notice lots of popsicle eating 

throughout many villages. 

Back in the coach towards the final destination for the evening -Dulakel Mountain Resport.  Fingers crossed for clear skies so we can fully enjoy the panoramic views of the Himalayas.

We are not disappointed. 

Truly awe-inspiring to be standing with the Himalayas spanning one edge of the sky to the next.

 

ALL of us were just stunned to silence.  It was fascinating how instantly we got vey quiet and if we talked, it was in a hushed tone.  We were just soaking in the glory.

 

The rooms had picture windows so as to enjoy the views whether inside or out.

 

Another lovely dinner with more delicious vegetables.  Somehow I forgot to snap pcics of the food but the Cucumber Salad was mouth-watering as were the beets.  Remember, they eat seasonally and locally so their produce is far superior to ours.

 

I LOVE how much vegetables are included in their diet, especially vegetables that were prepared so nicely.  This was unexpected prior to my arrival in Nepal.  

 

________________________________________

Next Day ... 

Rose early for a sunrise, and while the sunset had been more colorful, the sunrise offered a different, yet equally fascinating experience.  Mist/dew/clouds/fog (who knows) settled in pockets and almost created a sense of islands of hilltops.  Very serene.

Now we are off to the remote region to visit a birthing center with One Heart Worldwide.  It was a bumpy (some parts were VERY bumpy)  1 ½ hour drive in an SUV.  Beautiful scenery along the way and a new picture emerges of life in the hills in remote Nepal.

 

Remnants of recent landslides from a partiucaly long monsoon.

 

Fabulous views of huge swaths 

of terrace farming of rice.

 

Very common sight of farmers carrying a load of fodder for goats.

 

 

This is when the “I want to feel sorry for them,” kicks in. Walking and walking up and down hills carrying large loads on their back.  I resist and we talk to our leader, Anita, about this.  She reinforces what we are continuing to learn - Do not feel sorry for them. This is just their way of life.  If they were unhappy, they wouldn’t smile as we passed.

 

In a small town along the way … so cute!  

I kept waving and they kept waving back and then they posed. 

 

I also never knew corn is such an integral part of their life.  They call it maize. They do eat corn but this is the dried corn for animals.

 

 

 

We arrive at the birthing center.  Well, not really.  We arrive at the place to stop and park the cars and then we walk up the narrow path to the birthing center.  (To think all the construction materials had to be hand carried up this same path.) OMG.

 

 

Yet again, we are greeted with a line of smiling faces and Namastes and receive a tika and a beautiful garland of marigold and purple flowers.

 

(We all notice the tika is much larger than in other places. Don’t know why but we suspect it’s regional/cultural.)

Valerie - another new friend. She lives in Thailand. (Fun fact: she has an amazing Barbie collection. She even makes some clothes and then poses the Barbies so they look like the right scale. So fun!)

 

And of course, FOOD! After a long, leisurely meal we are taken into the Birthing Center.  

Apples were delicious!

 This small area is a health complex with three buildings, one of which is the Birthing Center which we specifically came to see.

 

Hi Vicky! 

The women in blue are trained to assist. They are not on salary but are paid a per diem when they assist. They walk hours to help. 🥰

One Heart Worldwide has a very smart business model. They partner with local government 50/50.  They want local community buy-in. 

To encourage women to take advantage of the services at the birthing center the women are paid some money, and they are provided these blankets when the baby is born.

❤️❤️❤️

 

This darling girl was with her mother and baby brother.  

I kept waving to her and I could tell she was intrigued but shy.  

All of a sudden, she popped up right next to me and said, “Hello.”

 

 

 We get back on the mega-bumpy, remote roads and head back to our lodge in Dhulikhel.  Enjoying the scenery along the way, of course.

 

 

Time to bring the goats home!

I may have said this before, 

but I noticed lots of kids wearing this big style of watch.

We arrive back at the lodge and I realize once again how fortunate we are ❤️