Maosits Causing Mayhem

It's been a couple of days since I have done a blog entry so I thought I had better get some stuff written down before I forget. It is worth noting that we have had to be very flexible here in Kathmandu due to the political instability. The Maoist party is causing all sorts of problems throughout Nepal with rolling strikes pretty much since I have been here. The Maoist party are bombing vans that are operating when there is a strike and when they don't do that, they either pull the drivers out of their vehicle to beat them or 'sticker' their car (literally covering the vehicle in un-removable stickers). As a result, there is a lot of military around the place wielding machine guns as well as the United Nations making their presence felt (to ensure fair elections). The school we have come here to work with has not been open at all since we have come as they have apparently had bomb threats in the past. If their bus is seen picking up children for school they become a target. The Year 10 class has remained at the school as they live on campus.

Grammar games with Class 10

On Wednesday we began with teaching the older children at the Mitrataa Hostel; we have been focusing on debating skills with the topic of "Nepal should spend more money on Tourism".  As it has been the first type of teaching I have done here I have found it a little difficult with the language differences. The students all speak Nepali as their native language however, it is a rule that they must speak English. It has meant that I have to listen very carefully to understand them and it also means that I have to speak slower for them to understand me. I am not saying at all that this is a bad thing as it is teaching me a great deal about patience and understanding plus the students have been enjoying teaching us some Nepali words such as 'TaChina' which means I do not understand or my new favourite saying; 'ke-ga-nay' which means 'what will be will be'.

Myself and three others visited the Class 10 students at Riviera in the afternoon; I helped teach Social Studies which was really great. They are a very enthusiastic bunch of teenagers with a passion for learning more. They are also fiercely patriotic which I discovered on Thursday when we talked about modern day slavery of Nepali people in the Middle East. We read this article about how Nepali people are being tricked in to working in Qatar and the terrible conditions they face when they go (which includes their passports being taken from them, sub-standard living conditions and zero pay until they pay off their travel debts). These students have a strong belief that the Nepali people should stay here and help to develop the country and make it a safe and attractive place to live.  As a social studies task, we asked them to write a letter to someone giving them advice about what they could do instead of moving to Qatar to work and some of the responses they came up with were truly moving. In reading their responses I have felt a great deal of hope in that these kids will lead the next generation of Nepali people to prosperity and free the country from the incredible amount of corruption that plagues their every day lives.

Today, five of us decided to brave the crazy Kathmandu roads and walk to the Mitrataa Hostel. It only took us 40 minutes which was good and we got to see a different side to the city. We were made a little uncomfortable at one point when about ten armed Nepali soldiers walked past us; we later found out there was a protest not far from where we were and they must of been heading there. I am putting this all down as experience; I wouldn't say I was scared but it definitely reiterated the importance of being careful. We are fortunate though that tourists are not targeted in any of the protests and so this helps to reassure me that I am safe. In fact, while I have been here I haven't once felt unsafe (except for on my first day when two stray dogs were barreling towards me. They ran straight past me thank goodness).

A giant tree growing out of a very small temple

At Mitrataa the students did their debates and they were fantastic. These girls are so very smart and take their education seriously. This is a real credit to Bec (the founder of the Mitrataa Foundation) who has done a great deal of work in promoting the importance of education for empowering women in Nepal. We had three debates and gave out prizes and they all had a good time sharing their ideas. These girls, just like the year 10 students at Riviera are also fiercely patriotic and it makes me so happy to hear them speak so fondly of their country, its people and culture.

I could probably go on writing for hours tonight but it is going to be a big day tomorrow. It is a free day tomorrow and Bec (the founder of Mitrataa) is going to take us all to Panowti, the village she lives in for the day. It is about 30 kilometres outside of Kathmandu, so I am really excited about exploring the countryside a bit and maybe catch some fresh air (I miss it). After that, some of us will be going to a Bollywood movie with the Mitrataa girls which shall be an experience (no subtitles apparently).
Until then  :)

At the Garden of Dreams