Commenced on the 20 Jan 2012.
Jaimase (Praise the Lord) is the common greeting between Nepalise Christians rather than the common greeting of Nameste.
Over the last two nights I have had the honour and the privilege of being invited to some of my adult students places for dinner. It was an opportunity for me to meet their families, share stories, and share a meal with them.
Let me share with you the contrast of both these environments. The first home I visited consisted of Mum who was too ill to cook, her two daughters and a son. They were all Christians. There Father was away working in Qatar as a kitchen hand to pay off loans and the older daughter worked at the CCS1 as a teacher and her salary went to support the basic daily living. They lived in two rooms. One room was set up with a basic kitchen with very simplistic furniture and the other room served as a bedroom with a thin mat on the floor and a single bed. There were no wardrobes to hang clothes. In the corner was a small box that contained the clothing for 4 people. There were no chairs or a table. Nepalise people often roll their blankets at the end of the bed. I only saw one rolled blanket. Covering on the concrete floor was virtually none existent and the room was icy cold. Everyone sat in the house with shawls and hats to try and keep warm.
They used a communal wash area and toilet. I was not sure how many people in the building shared these areas.
I was totally moved by the experience, there total gratitude of me coming to visit. I was humbled. I doubt there would be many western visitors. I was so made to feel so very welcomed. With the little they had, they shared with me.
Now commenced writing this when I was still in Nepal but unfortunately was not able to edit this blog via the Ipad. There has gotten to be a simpler way to updating the blog...
So let me continue.
My second visit was to a family where two of the young men were Christians and not the parents. In saying that the parents seem to have a great respect for their sons despite them not following their Buddhist beliefs. Their family home consisted of 4 rooms, 2 bedrooms, a prayer room and the kitchen. They were blessed that they had their own bathroom. There home was simply furnished with storage space for clothing. None of the children had to sleep on the floor. One of the bedrooms also became the living area. The two sons of this family were working in Dubai. The other son whom I had gotten to know very well is a teacher at CCS1. He supports the family with the day to day living expenses. There father though only 57 yrs was a trekker who cooked for foreigners and locals on tekking trips. He is now retired. His mother kept house. Every family member contributes.
Even though my Nepali is not that good I found I could still communicate with family members. I had a wonderful meal of the traditional dahl baht with a very spicy archar sauce, chicken and pickles. I am fortunate as I do love the Nepalise food. It can be known to be rather bland. I felt very much part of the family.
Time to go...and talk again soon
Jaimase (Praise the Lord) is the common greeting between Nepalise Christians rather than the common greeting of Nameste.
Over the last two nights I have had the honour and the privilege of being invited to some of my adult students places for dinner. It was an opportunity for me to meet their families, share stories, and share a meal with them.
Let me share with you the contrast of both these environments. The first home I visited consisted of Mum who was too ill to cook, her two daughters and a son. They were all Christians. There Father was away working in Qatar as a kitchen hand to pay off loans and the older daughter worked at the CCS1 as a teacher and her salary went to support the basic daily living. They lived in two rooms. One room was set up with a basic kitchen with very simplistic furniture and the other room served as a bedroom with a thin mat on the floor and a single bed. There were no wardrobes to hang clothes. In the corner was a small box that contained the clothing for 4 people. There were no chairs or a table. Nepalise people often roll their blankets at the end of the bed. I only saw one rolled blanket. Covering on the concrete floor was virtually none existent and the room was icy cold. Everyone sat in the house with shawls and hats to try and keep warm.
They used a communal wash area and toilet. I was not sure how many people in the building shared these areas.
I was totally moved by the experience, there total gratitude of me coming to visit. I was humbled. I doubt there would be many western visitors. I was so made to feel so very welcomed. With the little they had, they shared with me.
Now commenced writing this when I was still in Nepal but unfortunately was not able to edit this blog via the Ipad. There has gotten to be a simpler way to updating the blog...
So let me continue.
My second visit was to a family where two of the young men were Christians and not the parents. In saying that the parents seem to have a great respect for their sons despite them not following their Buddhist beliefs. Their family home consisted of 4 rooms, 2 bedrooms, a prayer room and the kitchen. They were blessed that they had their own bathroom. There home was simply furnished with storage space for clothing. None of the children had to sleep on the floor. One of the bedrooms also became the living area. The two sons of this family were working in Dubai. The other son whom I had gotten to know very well is a teacher at CCS1. He supports the family with the day to day living expenses. There father though only 57 yrs was a trekker who cooked for foreigners and locals on tekking trips. He is now retired. His mother kept house. Every family member contributes.
Even though my Nepali is not that good I found I could still communicate with family members. I had a wonderful meal of the traditional dahl baht with a very spicy archar sauce, chicken and pickles. I am fortunate as I do love the Nepalise food. It can be known to be rather bland. I felt very much part of the family.
Time to go...and talk again soon
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