Village Home Stay

Thursday, October 06, 2016
Pokhara, Nepal




Some conflicting reports left the team confused about the actual name of the village we stayed in this past week, but we enjoyed the time we spent there regardless . Before arriving in the village, though, we made a few stops along the way. 

After leaving our beloved Monumental Paradise Hotel we first visited Pashupatinath, a Hindu temple and cremation site where we learned about traditional death rituals. 

Next was an enormous Stupa where we joined the ranks of tourists and Buddhist monks alike walking clockwise around the structure. 

We then did a bit of shopping before grabbing a rooftop lunch and hopping back in the van for a lengthy drive into the mountains, getting chillier and chillier in accordance with our increasing altitude. 

We were greeted by our host families at the impressive school we would be working at for the week and headed to our new homes with them. The team had varied experiences getting to know their new families and living arrangements and found it interesting to compare this home stay to the last one .

This week was, unfortunately, rough on a few team members who felt very sick and had pretty unpleasant things coming out of their bodies for days on end. 

However, everyone rallied like champs and worked together to complete some important projects for the school, including digging and leveling ground to help build a waiting area for parents, paining the walls blue (sometimes with bamboo paintbrush handles), building a garden, repairing the pathway, and painting murals inside a few classrooms.

At the end of our last day of work, rain began to fall in buckets which prompted some team members to break out their shampoo and shower out in the courtyard before they were forced inside by a bit of unprecedented hail. Mere minutes later, however, the skies cleared and our hard work was rewarded with a breathtaking full rainbow.

When the week was out, we were sad to say goodbye to the students we'd been playing with at the school, the beautiful views of the mountains, the clean air, and our gracious and caring host families .

But, we were ready for a final day in Kathmandu before heading to the city of Pokhara.

Tune in next time for updates on what is bound to be a very interesting trek to Anapurna Base Camp!

And, be sure to check out the team Instagram photos (www.instagram.com/yiasia2016) if you haven't already!

Much love, Maddie

PS - From Kathmandu, the team traveled by bus to Pokhara on October 5. Part of this journey was done by raft, along the Trisuli River. -- Thanks to "Adrenaline Rush Nepal" for providing us with the photos of the team's rafting excursion, and for operating a fun and safe day on the river! 


 

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