We’ve spent out mornings doing yoga, days swimming, eating, lazing and nights swimming eating and lazing, it doesn’t get much sweeter than this. Fresh seafood everyday! Oh man, a whole world away from Nepal.

The rooftop view from our hotel was awesome, we can see all along the lake, and the city palace, and the surrounding city and hills in the distance, gorgeous sunsets. I am looking forward to getting out of the dessert though! Can’t wait for the beach! The only water i have seen in a long time is really quite putrid, polluted rivers (holy as they were), stinky algae ponds and street gutters, so Goa seems like a paradise right now. I really don’t want to get my expectations too high, but really, sitting on white sands, looking out onto the ocean from a palm tree-lined cove, how bad can that be?

We’re flying to Mumbai this afternoon, then catching the night train to arrive in Goa by the morning! Yay! Soooooo excited!

I’ll post photos one day…….

Alycia and I are very well indeed! We have survived Delhi (since we arrived at about 6pm and checked out by 5am), spent 2 days in Agra, because, there was a slight problem with out itinerary, the Taj Mahal is closed on Fridays! Haahahahahaha, only something the two of us would forget to check for….. so we stayed a night we weren’t planning, and saw the Taj yesterday. I would try to explain, but simply, it’s just gorgeous. The detailing of the inlayed gem stones are hypnotizing. And the mosque next to it has amazing detail too. Somehow, the patterns are perfectly geometric, yet have an organic fluidity that I don’t expect from mathematics. Anyway….. you’ll just have to see it for yourself!

We are now in Jodhpur after taking the night train from Agra, about to go explore the ‘blue city’ and the fort. tomorrow we’ll do a small tour of the surrounding desert towns.

It’s quite hot, my guess is 40ish and humid, exactly what you’d expect!

All good fun, tiring, but fun.

xox

The local buses are packed full of people, sitting in the isles, on the roof, hindi music blaring – painfully loud, squashed seating, filthy rest stops etc, it really is an experience, not comfortable at all, and with 35 degree humid heat (in a country where no one wears deodorant), and there was also a strike at one point, so the roads were blocked and we were stuck on the bus not moving for at least an hour……. quite painful, especially when you don’t know when you’ll be moving again…….but we did, and after 9 hours we arrived…….!!! Alive!

hahahahahahhahahaha! I still think it’s funny, and she will too, one day!

We’re doing a quick visit around here, last night we had dinner with my host family i was staying with before, delicious, and they were so excited to see me again! They’re so cute!

Tomorrow we’re back to Kathmandu, then fly to Delhi on the first…..

I’ll let you know how it goes

xxxxxxx

Mon        3-9 am       1-7 pm

Tue          4-10          3-9

Wed         6-12         4-10

Thu         4-1             6-12

Fri          9-3             6-12

Sat         10-4          7-1

Sun        3-9           12-6

So, because i try to go to the gym in the mornings, leave for work by 12:30, and I’m am home by 6pm, there are days when i effectivly have no power at all.

I have also resolved that there is nothing i can do to permanently help any of these children long term. The issues that i see, are not problems at all to the people working there. The fact that these kids have never had any education – no problem, they don’t bathe – no problem, sleep, eat, live in urine – no problem, play in garbage(literary, i had to take a broken glass bottle neck out of a girls hands) – no problem, get hit and yelled at constantly – no problem, hit and yell at each other – no problem, wear filthy, stinky, stained clothes – no problem. Now, i have to tell you, i found a cupboard FULL of brand new clothes. Big plastic bags full of clothes, they just don’t wear them. The other day they they went to the hospital for a check up, and they were all kitted out in the new clothes, and you should have seen them! They were so excited! Showing off, coming to show me, doing twirls, and sticking out a leg for me to appreciate better, they were so proud and happy! But then, the next day, they were back in filthy rags. The new clothes were just for show at the hospital. I don’t understand, it’s not like they don’t have the facilities, they just don’t use them. Like with the rubbish bin, the reason they play in garbage is because the bin is 2 foot high and has no lid and is kept in the middle of the kitchen. Nothing is actually clean, ever.

anyway blah, blahblahblahblah, the problem is not the training the staff receive, not the facilities, it is the lack of care. They just don’t give a shit. All i can do is give the kids some love while i’m here, and leave them to it when i go. i have thrown my hands up, there is nothing i can do.

i want my own orphanage

oh, and i have a new favorite, not that i have a favorite, her name is Snahar, she’s the one with the massive burn scar on her face, i also found another deep scar on her hairline (what has happened to her?!), and is the biggest sweety. She’s shy and quite, and will stand in the corner, the others push her and hit her and shove her out of the way and she just moves on. I have been spending extra time with her and she’s gorgeous! Once you engage her she’s all giggles and smiles and hugs and kisses, and she just wants to hug. The other kids will come and hold onto your leg or ask to be picked up, but Snahar will snuggle right into your chest, collapse in a ball like a koala. ohhhh man, i don’t want to leave her to be bullied and abused, but i dont have a choice.

only one week to go, with all my bitching, still, i don’t want to leave, i really like it here, oh well, do what ya gotta. I bought some story books, written in Nepali and English, and some funny ones with wiggly eyes. I hope they actually get used, at least they will while I’m here.

xxxxx

The kids are so cute, I totally want to bring one back with me, but a puppy lasts longer than Christmas Day. One girl, Supria, is about 3 and the biggest cuddle monster! The first time i walked in the room, she looked up! Stood up! Ran over! Held her arms wide! Wrapped them around my legs! And stared up at me with the cutest open-mouth, wide-eyed grin! I want her. Not that i have a favorite or anything.

They have so much fun and just want to be played with and held in interacted with. The workers there don’t really seem to do much, I’ve only been twice, but I have only seen one woman talking and playing with the kids, the others just sit outside braiding their hair, or sit sullen in the corner watching while the kids hit each other and cry and fight. I don’t understand. And one poor little thing, has a huge, lumpy, round burn scar on the side of her face, about 4cm diameter, from when she was burnt with a candle, at the orphanage. I mean, accidents happen, and there aren’t enough staff to watch 21 children every second, but why was there a candle within reach of a 2year old? Anyway…….

I’m just there to give them a bit of love and attention. I would really, really love to get the place clean though…grubby is normal for Nepal, so I not talking about general filth, I just want to get rid of the acrid  stench of piss. You hit a wall of it when you first enter, but as you walk upstairs it grows and get heavy, but the time you go in the room where they sleep, it has completely enveloped you, your lungs feel heavy with it, it makes you dizzy. If it was just a smell, you could get over it (in time) but I know it’s bacteria breading and really unhealthy for everyone there, workers included.

I don’t know what to do. The most obvious thing is to wash every sheet and pillow and child and item of clothing, but there is also the floor – carpet. Not thick and plush, more like astro turf than carpet, but still carpet . I want to rip it up, but underneath is just concrete,  they do need a bit of padding, kids like to fall over. The best thing i can think of, is a steam cleaner thing. Like an upright vacuum cleaner, I know I’ve seen adds at home, but are they just for hard surfaces? The carpet is pretty hard

But even so, it’s not something they could ever afford

Would anybody be willing to donate to a “Clean the filthy stink” campaign?

Oh my God! Holi is the best festival ever! We had so much fun! It’s a neighborhood skirmish hilarious! A massive water-fight and everyone is fair game.

In the two day before Holi, you can feel the air thicken, as waterbomb target practice begins. Walking down the street is a minefield. Eyes follow you from the time you step our of your house, turn around to lock the door – spalt - and  a chorus of laughter from the boys playing across the street, walk past the shops – splat – down the hill – splat splatidy splat splat – from overhead balconies – get on the bus – splat – from the side of the road, goes in through the open window and hits the windshield from the inside……… and this is just the warm up……..we bought water guns, balloons, and powder paint in every colour we could……..we prepared bombs the night before and talked tactics, we decided to adopt the local tactics, and that’s “get ‘em when their back is turned”

We have roof access that overlooks the front yard opposite, and to our right, is someones roof overlooking us…….so we had water bombs from all angles, and even mutinies within our own ranks, so, by 10am, we were all soaked through, and had paint everywhere….. and that was before we met up with the kids!…….we all had so much fun!!!!

into the school

This night we stayed at Taptopani, literally means hot water, where the hot springs were, but it was where people were bathing, so I didn’t take any photos….. I will have a photo of my skirt cozie later, once Alycia joins me and can take my picture, it’s kind of weird posing in a frilly bum-out ‘coppertone’ position with a virtual stranger taking the picture.