Photos and Stories Update

I can't believe how much time has already passed since arriving here in Nepal. This entire week has been packed totally full with orientation at the volunteer house, familiarizing ourselves with the area around us and exploring more of the city as the group gets to know other volunteers on a much better level.

Our group here has been awesome - or should I say 'attiutum'! Nic and I have been taking tons of photos of our adventures which are all posted on PICASA (link below) but here are a few to show off some of the highlights from the past week or so:

On Tuesdaythe guys in the placement went to get fitted for durwall suari's the male equivalent of the Sari. It was really cool having them fit every inch of our body to get just the right fit. And talk about inexpensive! These things cost just NRS 2500 - about $40 CDN. This Friday we are all dressing up in our gear and heading out for a traditional night out in Thamel at a traditional restaurant nearbye.

Afterwards the group went to see Kathmandu Durbar Square. Kathmandu’s Durbar Square is one of three durbar (royal palace) squares in the Kathmandu Valley. It is the site of the Hanuman Dhoka Palace Complex, which was the royal Nepalese residence until the 19th century and where important ceremonies, such as the coronation of the Nepalese monarch, still take place today. The palace is decorated with elaborately-carved wooden windows, panels and houses and is an amazing place to see any time of the year. I however didn't go with the group as I has a sudden 24-hour sickness that got the better of me. I can happily say that all is good and that all cylinders are firing now!

So after taking a hiatus from activities with the group, I was back in action and went with the group to a very historic site on the outskirts of Kathmandu called Pushupatti. The Pashupainath Temple is the most important Hindu shrine for all Hindus in Nepal and also for many Hindus in India and rest of the world. Here families will take the body of the deceased and place them onto a concrete pillar located at specific points within the temple grounds. The location at which the body gets placed will reflect that person's rank within the society. If you're of royalty or government then your body gets placed up river on one side of a dividing bridge.

After visiting the temple, we made our way to Boudinath - the lsecond argest Boudah stupa in the world. We had lunch here and took lots of funny pictures!

Friday was a very full day. Not only was it the last day of our language training with our teacher Sharma G, it was our Amazing Race day and night out wih the volunteers wearing our new Saris & Durwall Suari. The race took us around the city with a three hour time limit. I was paired up with another housemate from Ontario and we took to the streets. First Challenge: hand feed your partner a bowl of dhaal bhat! I totally had to eat from her hand and basically inhale what was given to me. Not a bad start - we got out second.

So after bartering with locals, recording a video of speaking Nepalese with market sellers and making up a catchy song for other racers, Nadia and I finished last...boo! It was a lot of fun and a great way to see more of the city.

With our night out, everyone looked awesome! Nic especially looked amazing and even took the time to pose in a Charlie's Angel stance! You Rock Nic! The dinner was a traditional Nepalese tapa-style meal with authentic music, dancing and entertainment. It was a great was to finish off a week that was packed full of things to do.

This week everyone begins their placement. It should be a great week!!

Check out more photos online at: http://picasaweb.google.ca/home?hl=en&tab=wq

So Far in Nepal...

It's been 17 days here in Nepal so far and my photo collection has grown substantially. Don't worry, no photos from Dashain but here are some of my favourites from the past few weeks:

Our house... Nic and I are staying in a four-floor, updated group guest house with 10 other volunteers. It's pretty fun so far but there's only 1 other guy - hmmm...

Here is a view from the Monkey Temple, one of the highest landmarks in the city. The shot is part of Kathmandu, a much larger city then first anticipated!

The monkeys at the Temple are fierce - loud, in-your-face and love to steal shiny things. I saw a woman get her water bottle taken right from her hand when she wasn't paying attention and the monkey simply sauntered off chirping away...! When Nic and I run up here it's tough to watch everything that goes on around you since there's just so many of them. Hopefully they don't jump out of a tree and latch onto one of our backs for a ride!

So this is a local butcher shop. It's not dirty, it's FILTHY! They simply chop things up right on the street corners then put them into plastic bags and sell away. You can now see why I will ask many more questions as to where and how my meat has been prepared.

Only a few more... So I'm guessing the city was built for those no taller than 5'8. I'm a mere 6' even and walking through some of the alleyways and doorways the need to duck and cover comes into play. This was a shot of one of the very old buildings and I'm not joking when I say I'm almost a story tall! My head almost reaches the second floor window! Pretty cool being a giant out here... Dave... There's no way you would ever survive being 6'7 !!

SO after finally waiting as long as I possibly could for a haircut, I bit the bullet and paid a whole $1.25 CDN for a new doo. There was a big debate with which razor to use, either a #1 or a #5, and I finally said "just do what you want... it's just a haircut!"

After a few knocks to the noggin, a scary shave of the neck and some serious pulling of the scalp, this was my new doo... I am now wearing a hat!

Well, that's it from Nepal for now. Orientation starst today and we're heading out for an afternoon on the town.

Dashain - Nepal's main festival

I've never considered myself to be particularly interested in watching animal sacrifices but since I am here in Nepal and the festival going on this week embraces them, I thought I'd grin and bare it to see what the stir was all about.

During the month of Kartik in the Bikram Sambat calendar (late September and early October), the Nepalese people indulge in the biggest festival of the year, Dashain. Dashain is the longest and the most auspicious festival in the Nepalese annual calendar, celebrated by Nepalese of all caste and creed throughout the country. The fifteen days of celebration occurs during the bright lunar fortnight ending on the day of the full moon. Throughtout the kingdom of Nepal the goddess Durga in all her manifestations are worshiped with innumerable pujas, abundant offerings and thousands of animal sacrifices for the ritual holy bathing, thus drenching the goddess for days in blood.

Today I witnessed two water buffalo get sacrificed by having their heads taken off in one fell swoop from an ancient sword by a man decorated in Nepalese clothing. A very disturbing scene (no details required) and I can honestly say that this will be a once in a life time occurrence as I felt my stomach get VERY queasy! None-the-less, I did it, I saw their ritual and have witnessed a new culture's way of celebrating freedom and life.

One thing is for sure from this point on however... I want to know where and how my meat gets prepared before I sink my teeth into it. There is a very good chance now that I will ask more of these questions and will probably need to pay more for a higher quality cut!